Posted on 12/30/2004 11:46:01 AM PST by blam
Scientists discover ancient sea wharf
30/12/2004 7:32
Archeologists say that they have found the country's oldest wharf and it is believed to be the starting point of an ancient sea route to Central and West Asia.
The discovery has reaffirmed the widespread belief that the ancient trade route started in Hepu County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, archeologists said at yesterday's symposium on the nation's marine silk road.
After three years of excavation, archeologists have unearthed a wharf that is at least 2,000 years old in Guchengtou Village, according to Xiong Zhaoming, head of the archeological team.
At the same site, Xiong and his colleagues also excavated relics from an ancient city wall, a moat, some gravel and fragments of porcelain with graphics.
"This is enough evidence to say the village was the site of the Hepu county government more than 2,000 years ago," Xiong said.
According to Han Shu Record, also the history of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), the five counties of Hepu prefecture had a population of 80,000 residents.
"We can assume Hepu alone had no more than 20,000 and it was quite natural for the magistrate's office to be located in the commercial hub," Xiong said.
Scholars have been searching for concrete evidence to confirm a statement in Han Shu Record, which said the ancient marine silk road started in Hepu of Guangxi and Xuwen counties in neighboring Guangdong Province.
"The new finding has supported the statement and proven the ancient wharf's role in China's foreign trade more than 2,000 years ago," Xiong said at the symposium.
The two-day symposium has drawn more than 50 archeologists, geologists, historians and geographers from across the country.
Historical records show that foreign trade via the marine silk road dated to the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-24 AD), about 200 years earlier than the inland Silk Road in northwestern China - known as the country's oldest trade route to Central and West Asia as well as Europe.
GGG Ping.
Thanks for the erudite post. Make no mistake, I'm a hard core political enthusiast. But this kind of article is what makes Freerepublic such an Extraordinary Community. This is what gives you a little hope in the durability of the amazing Human Race.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest -- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)
another topic of possible interest to members of the GGG ping list:
Books Read in 2004 (Read Any Good Books Lately?)
right now | Tanniker Smith
Posted on 12/30/2004 1:28:19 PM PST by Tanniker Smith
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/1311146/posts
My thanks to Radix for pinging me to it.
"marine...earlier than...inland" route -- Ancient China
(ping!)
2000 years ago is current events. Especially in world wharfs. Wharves?
Well, that's interesting. Wonder if the marine route motivated a search for a land route?--kind of like Columbus' quest in reverse, perhaps.
A friend of mine from online stated that his ancestors were involved in seagoing trade during the Medieval Warming period (the one in which various inland towns were for a time seaports, due to higher sea level) prior to the Little Ice Age. In summers they were able to navigate around Asia using the Arctic Ocean, and made contact with eastern Asians.
This period noted in the article is much earlier, but Chinese court records survive regarding trade with the Roman Empire (I forget the name they used for the Mediterranean peoples), including a trader who arrived, dropping the name of the emperor (Marcus Aurelius), as well as the Chinese trade delegation / ambassador's voyage to the Euphrates. That ambassador arrived sometime during the reign of Hadrian, right after the Romans vacated their short-lived province of Mesopotamia.
see also:
Kadakkarapally Boat -- An Ancient Sailing Barge in India
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1239841/posts
Nestorian Tablet in China
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1175726/posts
Quality of Life in the Desert? High Living in Rome's Distant Quarries
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1289111/posts
Romans in China?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1173944/posts
Siberian Graveyard's Secret
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1053986/posts
Tamil Trade
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1213591/posts
Voyage around the Erythraean Sea
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1214273/posts
Viking burial ground dispels myth of longship marauders
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1222148/posts
The Periplus of Hanno, King of the Carthaginians, ed. Megalommatis, a Book Review.
The Books | 19/6/2004 | Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis
Posted on 06/20/2004 10:01:04 AM PDT by Muhammad Shams Megalommati
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1156906/posts
The Periplus of the Red Sea, edition Megalommatis, a Book Review.
The Books | 15/6/04 | Muhammad Shamsaddin Megalommatis
Posted on 06/16/2004 7:33:33 AM PDT by Muhammad Shams Megalommatis
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1154520/posts
Something I posted on another thread:
"From the excellent book The Tarim Mummies, page #281: "...Narin Infers that they (Caucasians) had been there at least since the Qijia Culture of c. 2,000BC and probably even earlier in the Yangshao Culture of the Neolithic. This would render the Tocharians as virtually native to Gansu (and earlier than the putative spread of the Neolithic to Xinjaing) and Narin goes so far as to argue that the Indo-Europeans themselves originally dispensed from this area westwards."
Gansu Province, China was once dominated by Caucasian people, exclusively. Chinese skeletons began appearing in the region about 100-200BC. Gansu sits astride the Silk Road.
Something I posted on another thread:
"From the excellent book The Tarim Mummies, page #281: "...Narin Infers that they (Caucasians) had been there at least since the Qijia Culture of c. 2,000BC and probably even earlier in the Yangshao Culture of the Neolithic. This would render the Tocharians as virtually native to Gansu (and earlier than the putative spread of the Neolithic to Xinjaing) and Narin goes so far as to argue that the Indo-Europeans themselves originally dispensed from this area westwards."
Gansu Province, China was once dominated by Caucasian people, exclusively. Chinese skeletons began appearing in the region about 100-200BC. Gansu sits astride the Silk Road.
This top one must be it. It was already in the catalog, but I did post the updated GGG info (to you, in case you see it and wonder).
Archaeologists Uncover Ancient Maritime Spice Route Between India, Egypt
Popular Science ^ | 2-8-2004
Posted on 02/08/2004 12:57:17 PM PST by blam
http://209.157.64.200/focus/f-news/1074033/posts
Egyptian style pyramids discovered in a remote region of Uzbekistan!
Pravda ^ | 11:30 2002-06-19 | Yelena Kiseleva
(Translated by Vera Solovieva)
Posted on 06/28/2002 6:05:31 PM PDT by vannrox
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/707978/posts
The Canton War (How to deal with China/US History) Good Read
Miscellaneous Miscellaneous
Source: Britannica.com
Published: March/April 1997 Author: Drexler, Robert W
Posted on 05/25/2001 07:30:34 PDT by super175
http://www.FreeRepublic.com/forum/a3b0e6c8a7bd0.htm#26
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Just updating the GGG info, not sending a general distribution. |
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