With the in-depth advancement of the "Belt and Road" initiative, China and countries along the belt and road have continuously cooperated in the excavation, research and protection of cultural relics, writing a beautiful chapter of civilizational exchanges.
Review history and strengthen communication
Between Red Square and Manezh Square in the center of Moscow stands an ochre complex, home to the State Museum of Russian History. From vase-shaped teapots to boxes carrying tea leaves, from costumes made of silk to ink tables in the shape of Chinese sailing ships... The museum's rich collection tells the story of trade and civilization exchanges on the ancient Silk Road.
Natalia Shishlina, a senior researcher in the museum's Archaeology Department, told reporters that the museum's archaeology department treasures unique cloth excavated from tombs from the 8th to 14th centuries AD, which is a testimony to the ancient Silk Road connecting ancient China and the volga riverside region.
Representative of ancient costumes unearthed in the 13th century include two robes and headdresses, amulets and leather boots used by some women. With the support of the Russian Science Foundation, archaeologists conducted a comprehensive study of these artifacts and restored more historical background. A study of costumes prepared by researchers at the museum reads: "The robes are made of expensive Chinese cloth. Chinese cloth traveled along the Silk Road to the Volga river, and traditional Chinese motifs such as turtles, fish and cranes symbolize health, longevity and prosperity. ”
According to Hishelina, the museum's steppe archaeology team made archaeological discoveries in the Rostov region of Russia, where fragments of cloth made of Chinese silk were found in the tombs of a medieval nomad. "This shows once again that people have carried out cross-border trade along the Silk Road in history, and the cloth trade has brought considerable profits and taxes, and silk, cotton fabrics, etc. are the main circulating commodities."
On the ancient Silk Road, different civilizations learned from each other in terms of art and technology. Today, the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" has once again built a bridge for cultural exchanges. In recent years, the State Museum of Russian History has actively cooperated with the National Museum of China, the China Silk Museum, the Shanxi Museum, the Guangdong Provincial Museum, and the Qin Shi Huang Emperor Mausoleum Museum. "The cultural heritage that has been preserved for hundreds of years shows the face of ancient civilizations," Shishlina said. This enlightens us that in the era of economic globalization, people can strengthen exchanges and communication, promote common development, and protect the diversity of human civilization in reviewing history and looking forward to the future. ”
Excavations at the site continue the tradition of friendliness
On the shores of the Red Sea, beneath the desert, an ancient silk road memory is being awakened. Located in the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula, the port of Sellin was once a bustling trading port on the Maritime Silk Road. With the passage of time, the ruins of Port Sellin were gradually buried by quicksand and disappeared into the long river of history.
In 2016, China and Saudi Arabia signed the "China-Saudi Port Salem Archaeological Cooperation Agreement" and decided to jointly carry out the archaeology of the Port Sellin site. Since 2018, a joint archaeological team organized by China and Saudi Arabia has carried out investigations and excavations, and has achieved a series of important results. "We found white porcelain from the Song and Yuan dynasties and blue and white porcelain from the Ming and Qing dynasties in various locations at the site, which provided many valuable historical materials for the study of the Maritime Silk Road." Madi, a member of the Saudi archaeology team, said the discoveries showed the long history of travel between the Red Sea region and China.
The Red Sea region, where Port Sellin is located, connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Indian Ocean, and has been a major maritime transport route since ancient times. According to Arabic literature, the 9th and 13th centuries AD were the most prosperous periods in the port of Sellin, where pilgrims and merchants who came by sea landed. In Chinese historical materials, the Yuan Dynasty navigator Wang Dayuan twice arrived in the Middle East by sea and recorded the local customs and customs in his "Island Yi Zhiluo". In the 15th century, the Ming Dynasty navigator Zheng He led a fleet of ships to the West. After docking in port Sellin, the fleet exchanged specialties and gifts with the local population with porcelain, gold and silver, silk, tea and iron. The accompanying translator recorded what he saw and heard in his book "Yingya Victory".
"There is a 'magnet' in the list of items carried by the fleet, and Wang Dayuan has also witnessed Chinese porcelain being sold in the Market of the Red Sea region. These echo the discovery of Chinese porcelain by the Zhongsha archaeological team in Port Sellin. Jiang Bo, the Chinese leader of the joint archaeological team and then director of the Underwater Archaeology Research Institute of the Underwater Cultural Heritage Protection Center of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said that the empirical evidence found showed that by the Yuan and Ming dynasties at the latest, Chinese porcelain had been marketed in the Red Sea region.
"Port Sellin is an important stop on the Maritime Silk Road and an important link between Chinese and The Arab Republic. Today, under the cooperation of jointly building the 'Belt and Road', the friendship between Afghanistan and China is still continuing. "Maddy said that the work of the Saudi-Chinese joint archaeological team is of great significance to understanding the traditional friendship between the two peoples, and will further deepen the people-to-people exchanges between the two countries." There are also many precious historical sites along the Red Sea coast, and we hope that after the completion of the excavation of the port of Sellin, we will cooperate with Chinese friends to more archaeological sites in Saudi Arabia. ”
Collaborative research, joint decoding of history
From April to July this year, "The Story of the Maritime Silk Road - China Sells Heraldic Porcelain to Europe" was exhibited at the National Oceanographic Museum. Pieces of magnificent porcelain with both Chinese and Western cultural characteristics tell the history of Chinese porcelain going to the world through the ancient Silk Road. In recent years, with the full cooperation of Chinese and foreign archaeologists, the research discoveries on porcelain have continuously refreshed people's understanding of the Maritime Silk Road.
In 2016, the Palace Museum signed a cooperation agreement with Durham University in the United Kingdom, under the framework of the joint construction of the "Belt and Road", the two sides will conduct cooperative research on archaeology in the Middle East, Europe and the Indian Ocean region, as well as Chinese porcelain excavated in the region and other cultural relics. Over the past few years, at sites in China, India, the United Arab Emirates and other regions, the two teams have repeatedly carried out archaeological excavations and cultural relics collation. In 2019, the joint Chinese and British archaeological team sorted out more than 10 fragments of Chinese ceramics from the Tang Dynasty to the early Song Dynasty, which were unearthed in Zaragoza, Almeria and Valencia, Spain. Chris Gerrard, a professor in the Department of Archaeology at Durham University, introduced that this major discovery proves from the perspective of material culture that as early as the Tang Dynasty, China and the Mediterranean region had rich cultural and economic exchanges, changing the traditional view that the European-Chinese ceramic trade began in the Ming Dynasty, and providing an important clue for people to re-understand the Maritime Silk Road.
During the covid-19 epidemic prevention and control period, Sino-British archaeological research cooperation has continued online. From June 26 to 27 this year, the Palace Museum and Durham University held an academic seminar in cooperation with Durham University, where scholars from China, Britain and France introduced the latest research results. Dr. Derek Connett of the Department of Archaeology at Durham University said that the presence of Chinese ceramics has been found in almost every site along the Indian Ocean coast, from Africa and the Persian Gulf to India. This is a very important phenomenon in archaeology, which requires the joint cooperation of Chinese and Western scholars. The British side has cooperated with the Palace Museum of China, Peking University, Shandong University and other institutions to give full play to their professional advantages to bring new perspectives and achievements to the study of economic and social development along the Maritime Silk Road, which will help to better understand China's role in ancient Indian Ocean trade. Connaught said: "The Silk Road has linked researchers from all over the world, and we have established friendships in our work, and we have many good friends and good partners." ”
People's Daily Moscow, Cairo, London, Beijing
Source: People's Daily