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Unintended Consequences of the “Silk Road”

Matthew Burnett

The Art of the Silk Road virtual exhibit is curated by the University of Washington as part of Silk Road Seattle, a project designed to study the spread of cultures across Eurasia through the “Silk Road”, up until the end of the Seventeenth Century.

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The German-born scholar Ferdinand von Richthofen was the first to use the term “Silk Road” to describe the trade routes linking China to the Mediterranean, with offshoots to India.  The “Silk Road” resulted in the exchange of many goods in addition to silk, although more than just items were exchanged. The trade networks were so expansive that goods were often traded multiple times before arriving at their final destination. This led to the spread of cultural products such as philosophies, languages, religion, and music along with the items themselves.

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The exhibit is split up into four galleries: Culture, Religions, Trade, and Intercultural Exchange. The Culture gallery shows a timeline from 400 BCE – 1600 CE, along with each culture that utilized the trade routes of the “Silk Road.” When clicking on each of the cultures, a history is revealed, along with links to notable art objects. These art objects are cultural artifacts, such as Roman coins, that were found in different localities, such as India. The origin sites are connected sites where the artifacts were found by the “Silk Road.” 

The Religions gallery shows a link to five of the main religions societies of the “Silk Road” practiced: Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, Nestorianism, Islam, and Manichaeism. Similar to the Cultures gallery, clicking on each of the religions shows a history of the religion, and links to notable art objects. These art objects are interesting as they show how far religions spread through the ancient world, with Buddhist objects (the religion having been started in China)

Roman coin portraying the emperor Caligula. It was found in Southern India.

being found in India and a Mosque (Islam having started in the Middle East) found in the Shaanxi

Province of China.

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The Trade gallery is different, being primarily text-based. There are three pages within the Trade gallery: one summarizing the history of the trade routes, one about horses and camels (the primary means of transportation along the “Silk Road”), and one about silk, the namesake of, and arguably the most important item exchanged on, the “Silk Road.” Silk was first made in China from the cocoons of the silkworm (Bombyx mori). It was highly prized because it was made into clothing that was strong, light weight, and insulating. Silk was also turned into cloths that could be used for writing or painting.

 

The Intercultural Exchange gallery is entirely picture-based. This gallery shows a total of six pieces, and is similar to the Culture gallery, with one notable difference. Instead of being objects that were traded, like the Roman coins, these artifacts were created based on objects from other cultures. An example of this is the “peach-shaped pouring vessel” from Iran, which was created to look like a porcelain tea pot from China.

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The exhibit offers a general panorama of how cultures spread across Eurasia, centering the “Silk Road” as avenue for cultural transmission. While the objects themselves show how different societies and cultures interacted, they also represent how ideas were transferred and permeated the continent. Particularly useful is the exhibit’s take on religion and how the “Silk Road” abetted the spread of different religions throughout Eurasia. While its name indicates that the “Silk Road” was an important avenue for intercontinental trade, the exhibit effectively demonstrates how ideas and religious traveled along the paths opened by trade. Interestingly, the exhibit highlights how transmission of ideas and religion often entailed violence, such as with the Crusades.

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The Great Mosque in Xian, Shaanxi Province, China.

Peach – shaped pouring vessel made in Iran to mimic Chinese porcelain teapots

Interpreting exchange beyond the material realm, the exhibit raises the question of what exactly a commodity is or what is exchanged along commercial routes. While some define a commodity as anything that is exchanged for money, the “Silk Road” shows that ideas and even religion can be viewed as a commodity or, at least, resemble commodities. The “Silk Road” enabled the spread of religion, almost as an unintended consequence of the trade for silk and other goods. Much more than mere silk traveled along the vast expanses of the “Silk Road.”

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