The Tarim mummies are a series of mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from 1800 BC to AD 200. A mummy is a Corpse whose Skin and Flesh have been preserved by either intentional or Incidental exposure to Chemicals extreme The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² Xinjiang ( Uyghur: شىنجاڭ Shinjang;; Postal map spelling: Sinkiang; Turkish: Sincan, Sincan Uygur Özerk China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The most remarkable features of these mummies, given the general location of these graves, are the Caucasoid physical type feature the corpses exhibit. The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The mummies, particularly the early ones, are associated with the presence of the Indo-European Tocharian languages in the Tarim Basin. Tocharian or Tokharian is one of the branches of the Indo-European language family. The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² The cemetery at Yanbulaq contained 29 mummies which date from 1800–500 BC, 21 of which are Caucasoid—the earliest Caucasoid mummies found in the Tarim Basin—and eight of which are of the same Caucasoid physical type found at Qäwrighul. The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " [1] However, more recent genetic studies painted a more complex picture (Xie et al. , 2007). It showed both European and East Asian characteristics.
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Archeological record
At the beginning of the 20th century European explorers such as Sven Hedin, Albert von Le Coq and Sir Aurel Stein all recounted their discoveries of desiccated bodies in their search for antiquities in Central Asia. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on Sven Anders Hedin ( February 19, 1865 - November 26, 1952) was a Swedish explorer Geographer and geopolitician Albert von Le Coq (1860 - 1930 was a German Archaeologist and explorer of Central Asia. Antiquities, nearly always used in the plural in this sense is a term for objects from Antiquity, especially the civilizations of the Mediterranean: the Classical Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south [1] Since then many other mummies have been found and analysed, most of them now displayed in the museums of Xinjiang. Most of these mummies were found on the eastern (around the area of Lopnur, Subeshi near Turfan, Kroran, Kumul) and southern (Khotan, Niya, Qiemo) edge of the Tarim Basin. Lop Nur ( Chinese: 罗布泊 Pinyin: Luóbù Pō also Lake Lop, Lop Nuur) Lop Nor = Lob-nor = Lo-pu po Turfan or Tulufan (تۇرپان|Turpan|Turpan Modern Chinese: 吐魯番, Pinyin: Tǔlǔfān is an Oasis city in the Kumul (Qumul or Hami (قۇمۇل|Qumul|K̡umul Chinese: 哈密 Pinyin: Hāmì is an oasis in Hami Prefecture, Xinjiang ( China Niya is an Archaeological site located on the southern edge of the Tarim Basin in modern-day Xinjiang, Autonomous areas of China. The Qiemo County, also known as Cherchen or Qarqan, is a county in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region and is under the administration of the Bayin'gholin The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km²
The earliest Tarim mummies, found at Qäwrighul and dated to 1800 BC, are of a Caucasoid physical type whose closest affiliation is to the Bronze Age populations of southern Siberia, Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and Lower Volga. The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan ( Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, qɑzɑqˈstɑn Казахстан, Kazakhstán,) officially the Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south [1]
The cemetery at Yanbulaq contained 29 mummies which date from 1100–500 BC, 21 of which are Caucasoid—the earliest Caucasoid mummies found in the Tarim basin—and 8 of which are of the same Caucasoid physical type found at Qäwrighul. The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " [1]
Notable mummies are the tall, red-haired "Chärchän man" or the "Ur-David" (1000 BC); his son (1000 BC), a small 1-year-old baby with blond hair protruding from under a red and blue felt cap, and blue stones in place of the eyes; the "Hami Mummy" (c. 1400–800 BC), a "red-headed beauty" found in Qizilchoqa; and the "Witches of Subeshi" (4th or 3rd century BC), who wore tall pointed hats.
Many of the mummies have been found in very good condition, owing to the dryness of the desert, and the desiccation of the corpses it induced. Desiccation is the state of extreme dryness or the process of extreme drying The mummies share many typical Caucasoid body features (elongated bodies, angular faces, recessed eyes), and many of them have their hair physically intact, ranging in color from blond to red to deep brown, and generally long, curly and braided. It is not known whether their hair has been bleached by internment in salt. Their costumes, and especially textiles, may indicate a common origin with Indo-European neolithic clothing techniques or a common low-level textile technology. A textile is a flexible material comprised of a network of natural or artificial Fibres often referred to as thread or Yarn. The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos Chärchän man wore a red twill tunic and tartan leggings. Textile expert Elizabeth Wayland Barber, who examined the tartan-style cloth, claims it can be traced back to Anatolia, the Caucasus and the steppe area north of the Black Sea.
Genetic links
DNA sequence data[2] shows that the mummies happened to have haplotype characteristic of western Eurasia in the area of south Russia. A DNA sequence or genetic sequence is a succession of letters representing the Primary structure of a real or hypothetical DNA Molecule The term haplotype is a contraction of the term " haploid Genotype.
A team of Chinese and American researchers working in Sweden tested DNA from 52 separate mummies, including the mummy denoted "Beauty of Loulan. " By genetically mapping the mummies' origins, the researchers confirmed the theory that these mummies were of West Eurasian descent. Victor Mair, a University of Pennsylvania professor and project leader for the team that did the genetic mapping, commented that these studies were:
- . Victor H Mair (born 1943 is Professor of Chinese Language and Literature in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn) is a private University located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. . . extremely important because they link up eastern and western Eurasia at a formative stage of civilization (Bronze Age and early Iron Age) in a much closer way than has ever been done before. The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age for the mythological Iron Age see Ages of Man. [3]
An earlier study by Jilin University had found a mtDNA haplotype characteristic of Western Eurasian populations with Europoid genes. Jilin University (JLU simplified Chinese 吉林大学 traditional Chinese 吉林大學 is a leading national University under the direct jurisdiction of China's Mitochondrial DNA ( mtDNA) is the DNA located in Organelles called mitochondria. .
The textiles found with the mummies are of an early European textile and weave type and are similar to textiles found on the bodies of salt miners in Austria of around 1300BC. Mair states that "the earliest mummies in the Tarim Basin were exclusively Caucausoid, or Europoid" with east Asian migrants arriving in the eastern portions of the Tarim Basin around 1800BC while the Uighur peoples arrived around the year 842. [4] In trying to trace the origins of these populations, Victor Mair's team suggested that they may have arrived in the region by way of the forbidding Pamir Mountains about 5000 years ago.
This evidence remains controversial. It refutes the contemporary nationalist claims of the present-day Uighur peoples who claim that they are the indigenous people of Xinjiang, rather than the Chinese Hans. In comparing the DNA of the mummies to that of modern day Uighur peoples, Mair's team found some genetic similarities with the mummies, but "no direct links".
About the controversy Mair has stated that:
- The new finds are also forcing a reexamination of old Chinese books that describe historical or legendary figures of great height, with deep-set blue or green eyes, long noses, full beards, and red or blond hair. Scholars have traditionally scoffed at these accounts, but it now seems that they may be accurate. [5]
Chinese scientists were initially hesitant to provide access to DNA samples because they were sensitive about the nationalist Uighur claims, and to prevent a pillaging of national monuments by foreigners.
Posited origins
Physical anthropologists propose the movement of at least two Caucasoid physical types into the Tarim basin, which Mallory & Mair (2000:317–318) associate with the Tocharian and Iranian (Saka) branches of the Indo-European language family, respectively. The Caucasian race, sometimes the Caucasoid race, is a term of Racial classification, coined around 1800 by Johann Friedrich Blumenbach for the " The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from Tocharian or Tokharian is one of the branches of the Indo-European language family. The Iranian languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family and its subfamily Indo-Iranian. Saka is an extinct Iranian language which was spoken in Xinjiang, China
B. E. Hemphill's biodistance analysis of cranial metrics (as cited in Larsen 2002 and Schurr 2001) has questioned the identification of the Tarim Basin population as European, noting that the earlier population has close affinities to the Indus Valley population, and the later population with the Oxus River valley population. Craniometry is the technique of measuring the Bones of the Skull. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from Because craniometry can produce results which make no sense at all (e. g. the close relationship between Neolithic populations in Russia and Portugal) and therefore lack any historical meaning, any putative genetic relationship must be consistent with geographical plausibility and have the support of other evidence. The Neolithic (from Greek νεολιθικός — neolithikos from νέος neos, "new" + λίθος lithos Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic (República Portuguesa is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. [1]
Han Kangxin (as cited in Mallory & Mair 2000:236–237), who examined the skulls of 302 mummies, found the closest relatives of the earlier Tarim Basin population in the populations of the Afanasevo culture situated immediately north of the Tarim Basin and the Andronovo culture that spanned Kazakhstan and reached southwards into West Central Asia and the Altai. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from Afanasevo (or Afanasievo culture, 3500&mdash2500 BC an Archaeological culture of the late copper and early Bronze Age. The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² Indo-Iranian originspng|thumb|300px|Archaeological cultures associated with Indo-Iranian migrations (after EIEC) Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan ( Қазақстан, Qazaqstan, qɑzɑqˈstɑn Казахстан, Kazakhstán,) officially the Central Asia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east and from southern Russia in the north to northern Pakistan in the south The Altai Mountains (Алтай Altay; Алтай 阿尔泰山脉 are a Mountain range in central Asia, where Russia,
It is the Afanasevo culture to which Mallory & Mair (2000:294–296, 314–318) trace the earliest Bronze Age settlers of the Tarim and Turpan basins. Afanasevo (or Afanasievo culture, 3500&mdash2500 BC an Archaeological culture of the late copper and early Bronze Age. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from Turfan Prefecture ( simplified Chinese: 吐鲁番地区 Pinyin: Tulufán Dìqū تۇرپان ۋىلايىتى|Turpan Wilayiti|Turpan Vilayiti is located in The Afanasevo culture (c. Afanasevo (or Afanasievo culture, 3500&mdash2500 BC an Archaeological culture of the late copper and early Bronze Age. 3500–2500 BC) displays cultural and genetic connections with the Indo-European-associated cultures of the Eurasian Steppe yet predates the specifically Indo-Iranian-associated Andronovo culture (c. The Eurasian Steppe (sometimes referred to collectively as The Steppes or The Steppe) is the term often used to describe the vast Steppe Ecoregion Indo-Iranian peoples consist of the Indo-Aryan, Iranian, Dardic and Nuristani peoples that is speakers of Indo-Iranian languages Indo-Iranian originspng|thumb|300px|Archaeological cultures associated with Indo-Iranian migrations (after EIEC) 2000–900 BC) enough to isolate the Tocharian languages from Indo-Iranian linguistic innovations like satemization. Tocharian or Tokharian is one of the branches of the Indo-European language family. The Indo-Iranian language group constitutes the easternmost extant branch of the Indo-European family of languages [1]
Hemphill & Mallory (2004) confirm a second Caucasoid physical type at Alwighul (700–1 BC) and Krorän (AD 200) different from the earlier one found at Qäwrighul (1800 BC) and Yanbulaq (1100–500 BC):
| This study confirms the assertion of Han [1998] that the occupants of Alwighul and Krorän are not derived from proto-European steppe populations, but share closest affinities with Eastern Mediterranean populations. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. Further, the results demonstrate that such Eastern Mediterraneans may also be found at the urban centers of the Oxus civilization located in the north Bactrian oasis to the west. The Amu Darya (formerly Oxus River the Greeks (Ptolemeus called it Oxiana palus) is the longest river in Central Asia. "Bactrian" redirects here For the camel see Bactrian camel. Affinities are especially close between Krorän, the latest of the Xinjiang samples, and Sapalli, the earliest of the Bactrian samples, while Alwighul and later samples from Bactria exhibit more distant phenetic affinities. This pattern may reflect a possible major shift in interregional contacts in Central Asia in the early centuries of the second millennium BC. |
Mallory & Mair (2000:318) associate this later (700 BC–200 AD) Caucasoid physical type with the populations who introduced the Iranian Saka language to the western part of the Tarim basin. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from The Iranian languages are a branch of the Indo-European language family and its subfamily Indo-Iranian. Saka is an extinct Iranian language which was spoken in Xinjiang, China The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km²
Mair concluded (Mair etc al, 2006):
- "From the evidence available, we have found that during the first 1,000 years after the Loulan Beauty, the only settlers in the Tarim Basin were Caucasoid. East Asian peoples only began showing up in the eastern portions of the Tarim Basin about 3,000 years ago, Mair said, while the Uighur peoples arrived after the collapse of the Orkon Uighur Kingdom, largely based in modern day Mongolia, around the year 842. The Uyghur (also spelled Uygur, Uighur, Uigur, Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر) are a Turkic people of Central Asia. "
Historical records and associated manuscript
Tocharians
The Indo-European Tocharian languages also have been attested in the same geographical area, and although the first known epigraphic evidence dates to the 6th century CE, the degree of differentiation between Tocharian A and Tocharian B, and the absence of Tocharian language remains beyond that area, tends to indicate that a common Tocharian language existed in the same area during the second half of the 1st millennium BC. Tocharian or Tokharian is one of the branches of the Indo-European language family. The 1st millennium BC encompasses the Iron Age and sees the rise of successive empires Although Tocharian texts have never been found in direct relation with the mummies, their identical geographical location and common non-Chinese origin suggest that the mummies were related to the Tocharians and spoke a similar Indo-European language. The Tocharians were the Tocharian -speaking inhabitants of the Tarim basin, making them the easternmost speakers of an Indo-European language in antiquity
The Tocharian were described as having full beards, deep-set eyes and high noses and with no sign of decline as attestation in the Chinese sources for the past 1,000 years. This was first noted after the Tocharian had came under the steppe nomads and Chinese subjugation. During the 3rd to 4th century CE, the Tocharian reached their height by incorporating adjoining states. [6]
Yuezhi
In the much easterly geographical area, reference to the Yuezhi name in Guanzi was made around 7th century BCE by the Chinese economist Guan Zhong, though the book is generally consider to be a forgery of later generations. The Yuezhi or Rouzhi ( Chinese: 月支 Pinyin: yuè zhī or ròu zhī; also 月氏 Pinyin: yuè shì Guan Zhong (Chinese 管仲 Wade-Giles Kuan Chung (born 725 BC died in 645 BC was a Chinese politician in the Spring and Autumn Period. [7] The contributed author, Guan Zhong described the Yuzhi 禺氏, or Niuzhi 牛氏, as a people from the north-west who supplied jade to the Chinese from the nearby mountains of Yuzhi 禺氏 at Gansu. Guan Zhong (Chinese 管仲 Wade-Giles Kuan Chung (born 725 BC died in 645 BC was a Chinese politician in the Spring and Autumn Period. Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals. ( is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. A large part of the Yuezhi, vanquished by the Xiongnu, were to migrate to southern Asia in the 2nd century BC, and later establish the Kushan Empire in northern India and Afghanistan. The Xiongnu ( Turkish: Doğu Hun were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes The Kushan Empire (c 1st &ndash 3rd centuries) was a Bactrian state that at its cultural zenith Circa 105 &ndash 250 This article is about the history of South Asia prior to the Partition of British India in 1947 Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت,
Roman accounts
Pliny the Elder (, Chap XXIV "Taprobane") reports a curious description of the Seres (in the territories of northwestern China) made by an embassy from Taprobane (Ceylon) to Emperor Claudius, saying that they "exceeded the ordinary human height, had flaxen hair, and blue eyes, and made an uncouth sort of noise by way of talking", suggesting they may be referring to the ancient Caucasian populations of the Tarim Basin:
- "They also informed us that the side of their island (Taprobane) which lies opposite to India is ten thousand stadia in length, and runs in a south-easterly direction--that beyond the Emodian Mountains (Himalayas) they look towards the Serve (Seres), whose acquaintance they had also made in the pursuits of commerce; that the father of Rachias (the ambassador) had frequently visited their country, and that the Seræ always came to meet them on their arrival. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from Seres (Gr Σῆρες, Lat Sērēs) was the ancient Greek and Roman name for the inhabitants of the northwestern part of modern China Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus or Claudius I ( August 1, 10 BC &ndash October 13, AD 54 ( Tiberius Claudius Drusus from birth to The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island These people, they said, exceeded the ordinary human height, had flaxen hair, and blue eyes, and made an uncouth sort of noise by way of talking, having no language of their own for the purpose of communicating their thoughts. The rest of their information (on the Serae) was of a similar nature to that communicated by our merchants. It was to the effect that the merchandise on sale was left by them upon the opposite bank of a river on their coast, and it was then removed by the natives, if they thought proper to deal on terms of exchange. On no grounds ought luxury with greater reason to be detested by us, than if we only transport our thoughts to these scenes, and then reflect, what are its demands, to what distant spots it sends in order to satisfy them, and for how mean and how unworthy an end!"
Controversy
The focus by some scholars and writers on the racial or ethnic identity of the Tarim Mummies have been criticized by some people as being motivated by Eurocentrism. Eurocentrism is the practice of viewing the world from a European perspective with an implied belief either consciously or subconsciously in the preeminence of European (and Light (1999a, 1999b) argues that the Euro-American scholars and their publicists should not get so excited about finding people who look European that they present only evidence for European connections, while neglecting artifacts of a more complex past. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from A European American (Euro-American is a person who resides in the United States and is either from Europe or is the descendant of European immigrants Some people considered the Mysterious Mummies of China, a NOVA/WGBH documentary first aired on PBS in 1999 to be distorted. For the radio station specifically see WGBH (FM. WGBH is a non-commercial Television and Radio broadcast service located in Boston The Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS) is a Non-profit Public broadcasting Television service with 354 member TV stations in the
Light (1999b) suggests that the documentary treats present-day local Uyghurs as primitives whose history and cultural changes are immaterial: Only their origins matter. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from The Uyghur (also spelled Uygur, Uighur, Uigur, Uyghur: ئۇيغۇر) are a Turkic people of Central Asia. Never mentioning that Islamic cultural influences have been strong here for nearly a millennium. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. A millennium (pl millennia) is a period of Time equal to one thousand Years (from Latin la mille, thousand and la annum He also concludes that the mummies who breached China's fabled isolation 1,000 years earlier than previously thought provide no "startling conclusion. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National " And considered China's "fabled isolation" as a fable.
Light (1999a) "[He] argues he is trying to show the links of East and West, but he does it by keeping them racially separate. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from In contrast, the graves are full of racially diverse corpses. It was a mixed society, and reason indicates that valuable cultural skills came with Caucasoids from the West. "
Cultural exchanges
The presence of Indo-European speakers in the Tarim Basin in the first millennium BC suggests that cultural exchanges occurred among Indo-European and Chinese populations at a very early date. It has been suggested that such activities as chariot warfare and bronze-making may have been transmitted to the east by these Indo-European nomads. The chariot is the earliest and simplest type of Carriage, used in both peace and war as the chief vehicle of many ancient peoples Ancient warfare is War as conducted from the beginnings of recorded History to the end of the ancient period Bronze is any of a broad range of Copper alloys, usually with Tin as the main additive but sometimes with other elements such as Phosphorus
The Chinese explorer Zhang Qian, who visited Bactria and Sogdiana in 126 BC, made the first known Chinese report on many regions to the west of China. Zhang Qian ( 張[[wikt 騫|騫]] Wade-Giles Chang Ch'ien was an imperial envoy to the outside world in the 2nd century BC during the time of the Han Dynasty "Bactrian" redirects here For the camel see Bactrian camel. History Hellenistic period The Sogdian Rock or Rock of Ariamazes a fortress in Sogdiana was captured in 327 BC by the forces of Alexander the Great In his accounts Parthia is named "Ānxī" (Chinese: 安息), a transliteration of "Arsacid", the name of the Parthian dynasty. Parthia ( Middle Persian: اشکانیان Ashkâniân) was an Iranian civilization situated in the northeastern part of modern Iran Zhang Qian clearly identifies Parthia as an advanced urban civilization that farmed grain and grapes, made silver coins and leather goods;[8] Zhang Qian equates the level of advancement of Parthia to the cultures of Dayuan (in Ferghana) and Daxia (in Bactria). The Dayuan or Ta-Yuan ( lit “Great Yuan” were a people of Ferghana in Central Asia, described in the Chinese historical works of Fergana or Farghana ( Uzbek: Farg'ona, Persian فرغانه, UniPers "Farqāna", Russian: Фергана Daxia, Ta-Hsia, or Ta-Hia ( Chinese: 大夏 Pinyin: Dàxià is the name given in antiquity by the Chinese to the territory of Bactria Zhang Qian found Greek influences present in some of the kingdoms of this region.
These theories run counter to the idea that the East and West developed civilizations independently, but suggest that some form of cultural exchanges took place.
The supply of jade from the Tarim Basin from ancient times is well excavated, according to Liu (2001): "It is well known that ancient Chinese rulers had a strong attachment to jade. Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals. The Tarim Basin ( is a large Endorheic basin occupying an area of more than 400000 km² The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from All of the jade items excavated from the tomb of Fuhao of the Shang dynasty, more than 750 pieces, were from Khotan in modern Xinjiang. The Shang Dynasty ( Chinese: 商[[wiktionary 朝|朝]] or Yin Dynasty ( 殷[[wiktionary 代|代]] was according to traditional sources the Xinjiang ( Uyghur: شىنجاڭ Shinjang;; Postal map spelling: Sinkiang; Turkish: Sincan, Sincan Uygur Özerk As early as the mid-first millennium BC the Yuezhi engaged in the jade trade, of which the major consumers were the rulers of agricultural China. "
Footnotes
- ^ a b c d e f Mallory & Mair (2000)
- ^ Saiget, Robert J. The Tarim mummies are a series of Caucasoid Mummies discovered in the Tarim Basin in present-day Xinjiang, China, which date from . "Caucasians preceded East Asians in basin", The Washington Times, News World Communications, 2005-04-19. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1012 - Martyrdom of Alphege in Greenwich London. 1529 - At the Second Diet of Speyer Retrieved on 2007-08-20. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine (English) Archived from the original on 2005-04-20. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1303 - The University of Rome La Sapienza is instituted by Pope Boniface VIII. "A study last year by Jilin University also found that the mummies' DNA had Europoid genes. ( Postal map spelling: Kirin; Manchu: Girin ula is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the northeastern "
- ^ Robertson, Benjamin. "China history unravelled by mummies", Al Jazeera English, Aljazeera. net, 2006-05-14. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1264 - Battle of Lewes: Henry III of England is captured in France making Simon de Montfort the Retrieved on 2007-08-20. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine (English)
- ^ A meeting of civilisations: The mystery of China's celtic mummies The Independent August 28, 2006
- ^ Mair, Victor H. The Independent is a British compact Newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly 's Independent News & Media. Events 475 - The Roman General Orestes forces western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his Capital Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. , "Mummies of the Tarim Basin," Archaeology, vol. 48, no. 2, pages 28-35 (March/April 1995); the quote appears on page 30 of this article.
- ^ Yu, Taishan (2003). A Comprehensive History of Western Regions, 2nd edition, Zhengzhou: Zhongzhou Guji Press. ISBN 7-5348-1266-6.
- ^ Liu, Jianguo (2004). Distinguishing and Correcting the pre-Qin Forged Classics. Xi'an: Shaanxi People's Press. ISBN 7-224-05725-8.
- ^ Silk Road, North China, C. Michael Hogan, The Megalithic Portal, ed. A. Burnham (2007)
References
- The Mummies of Ürümchi. Elizabeth Wayland Barber (1999). London. Pan Books. ISBN 0-330-36897-4
- Warrior Women: An Archaeologist’s Search for History’s Hidden Heroines. Jeannine Davis-Kimball with Mona Behan (2002). Warner Books, New York. First Trade Edition 2003. ISBN 0-446-67983-6 (pbk)
- Hemphill, Brian E. & Mallory, J.P. (2004), “Horse-mounted invaders from the Russo-Kazakh steppe or agricultural colonists from Western Central Asia? A craniometric investigation of the Bronze Age settlement of Xinjiang”, American Journal of Physical Anthropology 125: 199ff. James Patrick Mallory is an Irish-American archaeologist and Indo-Europeanist.
- Larsen, Clark Spencer (2002), “Bioarchaeology: The Lives and Lifestyles of Past People”, Journal of Archaeological Research 10 (2): 119–166, June 2002, <http://monkey.sbs.ohio-state.edu/bioarch/PDF/ProfLarsen-JARarticle.pdf>.
- Li, Shuicheng (1999), “A Discussion of Sino-Western Cultural Contact and Exchange in the Second Millennium BC Based on Recent Archeological Discoveries”, Sino-Platonic Papers (no. 97), December 1999, <http://sino-platonic.org/abstracts/spp097_sino_western.html>.
- Light, Nathan (1999a), “Hidden Discourses of Race: Imagining Europeans in China”, presented at the Association for Asian Studies conference, Boston, <http://homepages.utoledo.edu/nlight/uyghhst.htm>. Retrieved on 20 August 2007.
- Light, Nathan (1999b), “Tabloid Archaeology: Is Television Trivializing Science?”, Discovering Archaeology: 98-101, March-April 1999, <http://homepages.utoledo.edu/nlight/discarch.txt>.
- Liu, Xinru (2001), “Migration and Settlement of the Yuezhi-Kushan. Interaction and Interdependence of Nomadic and Sedentary Societies”, Journal of World History 12 (2): 261-292. The Journal of World History is a refereed Scholarly journal that presents historical analysis from a global point-of-view focusing especially on forces that
- Mallory, J. P. & Mair, Victor H. (2000), The Tarim Mummies: Ancient China and the Mystery of the Earliest Peoples from the West, London: Thames & Hudson. James Patrick Mallory is an Irish-American archaeologist and Indo-Europeanist. Victor H Mair (born 1943 is Professor of Chinese Language and Literature in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the
- Pliny the Elder, The Natural History. Gaius or Caius Plinius Secundus, ( AD 23 – August 25, AD 79 better known as Pliny the Elder, was an ancient Author
- Schurr, Theodore G. (2001), “Tracking Genes Across the Globe: A review of Genes, Peoples, and Languages, by Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza.”, American Scientist 89 (1), January-February 2001, <http://www.americanscientist.org/template/BookReviewTypeDetail/assetid/14302>.
- Chengzhi, Xie; Chunxiang, Li; Yinqiu, Cui1; Dawei, Cai1; Haijing, Wang; Hong, Zhu; Hui, Zhou (2007) Mitochondrial DNA analysis of ancient Sampula population in Xinjiang. Progress in Natural Science, Volume 17, Number 8, pp. 927-933(7)
See also
External links
- The Mummies of Xinjiang by Evan Hadingham DISCOVER Vol. The Pazyryk (Пазарык is the name of an ancient Nomadic people who lived in the Altai Mountains lying in Siberian Russia south of the modern city 15 No. 04, April 1994
- Genetic testing reveals awkward truth about Xinjiang’s famous mummies (AFP) Khaleej Times Online, 19 April 2005
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