The Silk Roads of the Northern Tibetan Plateau during the Early Middle Ages (from the Han to Tang Dynasty) : As Reconstructed from Archaeological and Written Sources

Author:
Tong Tao 仝濤

Publisher:
Archaeopress

Publication Year:
2013

Abstract:

The excavation of Tuyuhun-Tubo (Tibetan) elite graves at Dulan 都蘭 and Delingha 德令哈 in the modern province of Qinghai has necessitated a rewriting of the history of the Silk Road of the north-western China, especially during the 5th-8th centuries AD. This work analyses the history and archaeological evidence reflecting the Han Chinese, Tuyuhun and Tibetan domination of the northern Tibetan Plateau, on which the Qinghai Silk Road features. The study focuses on the Tuyuhun-Tubo cemeteries and artefacts, including silks, gold and silver objects, coffin paintings and other significant findings made during the past decades. The result gives fresh insights into the complicated cultural dimensions and interactions along the Silk Road, which contributed greatly to the shaping of the Tibetan culture.

Table of Contents:

1. Introduction

2. The natural environment of the northern Tibetan plateau

3. Transport routes on the northern Tibetan plateau as mentioned in Chinese sources

4. Archaeological materials of the Han and Jin periods (3rd century BC-3rd century AD)

5. Archaeological study of sites on the northern Tibetan plateau along the silk road during the early Tuyuhun period (4th-mid 7th century AD)

6. Archaeological study of sites on the northern Tibetan plateau along the silk road during the Tubo period (the later Tuyuhun period, mid 7th-8th century AD) 

7. Conclusions