The Silk Road has indelible influence to the cultures of the East and West, infusing exotic ideas to the art and design for all regions involved. The intertwined webs of interconnection creates colorful and marvelous leaps in inspiration to the materialistic and spiritual lives of people for thousand years.
While we are enjoying the fruits from our ancestors, the beginning of the Silk Road is not an easy path. The flourishing of the Silk Road is romantic but the initial development of it is brutal.
We should learn how things originate to better admire and appreciate the beauty of home décor ideas evolving through ancient times.
The Overland Silk Road
The traditional Silk Road began in the ancient Chinese capital of Chang’an, passed through Central Asian countries, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and reached the Mediterranean, with Rome as its endpoint. This route, stretching 6,440 kilometers, is considered a crossroads of ancient Eastern and Western civilizations on the Eurasian continent, with silk being the most representative commodity. For thousands of years, nomadic tribes, merchants, religious followers, diplomats, soldiers, and scholars traveled along the Silk Road.
As time progressed, the Silk Road became a general term for all political, economic, and cultural exchanges between ancient China and the West. There was the official “Northwest Silk Road” opened by Zhang Qian during the Western Han Dynasty, which led to the Western Regions; the “Grassland Silk Road” that traveled northward to the Mongolian Plateau and westward to Central Asia via the northern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains; the “Southwest Silk Road” that led from Chang’an to Chengdu and then to India through mountainous paths; and the “Maritime Silk Road” that started from coastal cities like Guangzhou, Quanzhou, Hangzhou, and Yangzhou, extending to the Arabian Sea and even as far as the east coast of Africa.
The Western Han Dynasty
Before the Qin Dynasty, there were already pathways for communication between the eastern and western regions of China, but the formal westward transmission of silk began with the Western Han Dynasty’s expansion into the Western Regions, which is when the Silk Road truly took shape. During this period, the sources, destinations, and routes of silk transmission were clearly documented and well-established, with large quantities of silk traded in an organized manner between the East and West. Therefore, the true opening of the Silk Road can be traced back to the reign of Emperor Wu of Han.
During the Western Han Dynasty, the regions west of Yangguan and Yumenguan, encompassing present-day Xinjiang and beyond, were referred to as the Western Regions. In the early Western Han period, communication channels between the East and West were blocked by the Xiongnu. During Emperor Wu’s reign, the Central Plains first connected with the Western Regions, marking the beginning of enhanced strategies for managing the Western Regions. The Western Regions were originally composed of 36 states, which later divided into over 50 states, located west of the Xiongnu and south of the Wusun.
Emperor Wu heard that the Yuezhi, who had been driven westward by the Xiongnu, intended to retaliate against the Xiongnu. He decided to send envoys to the Yuezhi to form an alliance and attack the Xiongnu from both the east and west. Zhang Qian, a native of Hanzhong in Shaanxi, volunteered for this mission. In the second year of Jianyuan (139 BCE), Zhang Qian led over 100 people toward the Western Regions. Along the way, they were captured by the Xiongnu and detained for ten years. Eventually, Zhang Qian managed to escape and, after several weeks of travel, reached Dayuan. However, by then, the Yuezhi no longer wanted to fight the Xiongnu and had continued migrating westward. Zhang Qian stayed in the Western Regions for over a year before returning to China, only to be captured by the Xiongnu again for over a year. He eventually escaped during a period of turmoil after the death of the Xiongnu’s ruler and returned to the Han Dynasty in the third year of Yuanshuo (126 BCE), where he was warmly received by Emperor Wu and granted the title of Taizhong Dafu. Although Zhang Qian did not achieve his original goal, he gathered valuable information about the Western Regions, leading historian Sima Qian to describe Zhang Qian’s journey as “pioneering.”
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After Zhang Qian’s return, Emperor Wu sent envoys to seek a route to the west that bypassed the Xiongnu and connected with Rome, but they were unsuccessful. Later, the Han army defeated the Xiongnu, gaining control of the Hexi Corridor and establishing a direct link between the Western Han Dynasty and the Western Regions. Following Huo Qubing’s victory over the Xiongnu at the Qilian Mountains, Zhang Qian proposed forming an alliance with the powerful Wusun state in the Western Regions to weaken the Xiongnu’s right flank. In the fourth year of Yuanshou (119 BCE), Zhang Qian was sent to the Western Regions again, this time to invite the Wusun back to their former homeland in the Hexi Corridor and to strengthen ties with various states in the Western Regions. Although he did not achieve his goal with the Wusun, Zhang Qian returned to Chang’an in the second year of Yuanding (115 BCE) along with Wusun envoys. The deputy envoys sent by Zhang Qian to other states in the Western Regions also gradually returned to China. The Wusun, impressed by the wealth and power of the Han Dynasty, gradually established closer ties with the Han. A few years later, Zhang Qian successfully established communication with Daxia (Bactria), and the Western Han Dynasty began frequent interactions with the states of the Western Regions. Zhang Qian’s efforts to “open up” the Western Regions led to the formal opening of the Silk Road, and Emperor Wu rewarded him with the title of Boshang Marquis for his military achievements.
However, the states in the Western Regions had not entirely freed themselves from the control of the Xiongnu. States such as Loulan and Cheshi, incited by the Xiongnu, frequently attacked Han envoys and merchant caravans traveling to the Western Regions. To ensure the safety of the Western Regions’ routes, General Wang Hui led cavalry forces to defeat Loulan, and General Zhao Ponu defeated Cheshi in the third year of Yuanfeng (108 BCE). In the sixth year of Yuanfeng (105 BCE), the Western Han also established a marriage alliance with the Wusun King, jointly countering the Xiongnu. Meanwhile, to break the Xiongnu’s control over Dayuan and to obtain the superior “blood-sweating horses” from Dayuan, Emperor Wu sent General Li Guangli on several campaigns against Dayuan (present-day Uzbekistan). After heavy losses, the Han forces finally captured the capital of Dayuan, significantly enhancing the Western Han’s influence in the Western Regions and ensuring the security of the Silk Road. At this point, the “Silk Road” leading to the Western Regions became fully operational.
In the fourth year of Taichu (101 BCE), Emperor Wu established the positions of “Envoy Commandant” at Luntai (modern-day southeastern Luntai County) and Quli (modern-day southwestern Korla County) to manage agricultural affairs in the Western Regions. This marked the first time that the Western Han government appointed officials in the Western Regions. Subsequently, the Western Han government established bases in the Western Regions.
In the second year of Shenjue (60 BCE) under Emperor Xuan, the Xiongnu King Rizhu led his people to surrender, marking the Western Han’s final victory over the Xiongnu and the establishment of the Protectorate of the Western Regions. This was the beginning of the central government’s formal administrative presence east of the Pamirs and south of Lake Balkhash. From this point on, the Xinjiang region came under central control, becoming an inseparable part of China. The Western Han government stationed permanent officials and soldiers in the Western Regions, appointed Commandants to oversee protection, and fostered closer interactions between the Han Chinese and the ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. With the establishment of the Protectorate of the Western Regions during the Western Han, the Silk Road entered a period of prosperity as a channel for exchanges between the East and West.
The first introduction of Buddhism to China also occurred through the Silk Road. In the first year of Yuanshou (2 BCE) during the reign of Emperor Ai of Han, the Yuezhi envoy Yicun arrived in the imperial capital of Chang’an and orally transmitted the “Sutra of the Buddha” to the Chinese scholar Jing Lu. This marked the official beginning of Buddhism’s introduction to China, a historical event known as “Yicun Teaching the Sutra.” Because of this, various commemorative activities were organized in 1998 by the Buddhist Association of China and the Chinese Religious Studies Association, marking 2,000 years of Buddhism in China.
In the third year of Tianfeng (16 CE) during the Xin Dynasty, the states of the Western Regions severed ties with the Xin regime, leading to a disruption of the Silk Road.
The story should continue from the Eastern Han Dynasty next. Let’s have a sip of the nice Chinese tea, refresh ourselves with the calming incense, and soon begin another journey from the other chapter about the Silk Road.
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