The Golden Peaches Of Samarkand

Author : Edward H. Schafer
Publisher : Univ of California Press
Page : 434 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2023-09-01
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 9780520341142

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The Golden Peaches of Samarkand by Edward H. Schafer Pdf

In the seventh century the kingdom of Samarkand sent formal gifts of fancy yellow peaches, large as goose eggs and with a color like gold, to the Chinese court at Ch'ang-an. What kind of fruit these golden peaches really were cannot now be guessed, but they have the glamour of mystery, and they symbolize all the exotic things longed for, and unknown things hoped for, by the people of the T'ang empire. This book examines the exotics imported into China during the T'ang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907), and depicts their influence on Chinese life. Into the land during the three centuries of T'ang came the natives of almost every nation of Asia, all bringing exotic wares either as gifts or as goods to be sold. Ivory, rare woods, drugs, diamonds, magicians, dancing girls—the author covers all classes of unusual imports, their places of origin, their lore, their effort on costume, dwellings, diet, and on painting, sculpture, music, and poetry. This book is not a statistical record of commercial imports and medieval trade, but rather a "humanistic essay, however material its subject matter."

Author : Edward H. Schafer
Publisher : Pickle Partners Publishing
Page : 619 pages
File Size : 53,5 Mb
Release : 2016-10-21
Category : History
ISBN : 9781787201125

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The Golden Peaches of Samarkand by Edward H. Schafer Pdf

In the seventh century the kingdom of Samarkand sent formal gifts of fancy yellow peaches, large as goose eggs and with a color like gold, to the Chinese court at Ch’ang-an. What kind of fruit these golden peaches really were cannot now be guessed, but they have the glamour of mystery, and they symbolize all the exotic things longed for, and unknown things hoped for, by the people of the T’ang empire. This book examines the exotics imported into China during the T’ang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907), and depicts their influence on Chinese life. Into the land during the three centuries of T’ang came the natives of almost every nation of Asia, all bringing exotic wares either as gifts or as goods to be sold. Ivory, rare woods, drugs, diamonds, magicians, dancing girls—the author covers all classes of unusual imports, their places of origin, their lore, their effect on costume, dwellings, diet, and on painting, sculpture, music, and poetry. This book is not a statistical record of commercial imports and medieval trade, but rather a “humanistic essay, however material its subject matter.” “The most essential thing the reviewer can say about this book is, ‘Read it!’ It is probably the most informative, most scholarly, and most delightfully written book on China that has appeared in our time. It is a heartening reminder that scholars still have an interest in studying history in terms of people, in examining people’s intimate reactions to the little human things that occupied their daily lives.”—Jour. of Asian Studies “A pure delight....Scarcely any aspect of T’ang life is omitted, so that bit by bit Mr. Schafer builds up a reasonably complete picture of an entire civilization. Mr· Schafer writes with urbanity and wit.”—Sat. Rev. “A fascinating survey of T’ang culture as reflected in the use and demand for exotica....Rarely has the reviewer come upon a book so enjoyable and informative·”—Jour. of the American Oriental Society.

Author : Edward H. Schafer
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 399 pages
File Size : 44,7 Mb
Release : 1963
Category : China
ISBN : OCLC:1005216714

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The Golden Peaches of Samarkand by Edward H. Schafer Pdf

Author : Edward H. Schafer
Publisher : Univ of California Press
Page : 440 pages
File Size : 40,6 Mb
Release : 1963
Category : History
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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The Golden Peaches of Samarkand by Edward H. Schafer Pdf

In the seventh century the kingdom of Samarkand sent formal gifts of fancy yellow peaches, large as goose eggs and with a color like gold, to the Chinese court at Ch'ang-an. What kind of fruit these golden peaches really were cannot now be guessed, but they have the glamour of mystery, and they symbolize all the exotic things longed for, and unknown things hoped for, by the people of the T'ang Empire. This book examines the exotics imported into China during the T'ang Dynasty, and depicts their influence on Chinese life. This book is not a statistical record of commercial imports and medieval trade, but rather a 'humanistic essay, however material its subject matter.'

Author : Xiaoxiaosheng
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 724 pages
File Size : 45,9 Mb
Release : 1993
Category : Fiction
ISBN : 0691126194

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The Plum in the Golden Vase Or, Chin P'Ing Mei by Xiaoxiaosheng Pdf

A five-volume translation of the classic sixteenth-century Chinese novel on the domestic life of a corrupt merchant.

Author : Scott Pearce,Audrey Spiro,Patricia Ebrey
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 396 pages
File Size : 51,7 Mb
Release : 2020-03-23
Category : History
ISBN : 9781684173556

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Culture and Power in the Reconstitution of the Chinese Realm, 200–600 by Scott Pearce,Audrey Spiro,Patricia Ebrey Pdf

The period between the fall of the Han in 220 and the reunification of the Chinese realm in the late sixth century receives short shrift in most accounts of Chinese history. The period is usually characterized as one of disorder and dislocation, ethnic strife, and bloody court struggles. Its lone achievement, according to many accounts, is the introduction of Buddhism. In the eight essays of Culture and Power in the Reconstitution of the Chinese Realm, 200-600, the authors seek to chart the actual changes occurring in this period of disunion, and to show its relationship to what preceded and followed it. This exploration of a neglected period in Chinese history addresses such diverse subjects as the era's economy, Daoism, Buddhist art, civil service examinations, forays into literary theory, and responses to its own history.

Author : Frances Wood
Publisher : Univ of California Press
Page : 274 pages
File Size : 53,5 Mb
Release : 2002
Category : History
ISBN : 0520243404

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The Silk Road by Frances Wood Pdf

This gorgeously illustrated oversized book brings the history and cultures of the Silk Road alive -- from its beginnings to the present day -- covering more than 5000 years.

Author : H. K. Chang
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 314 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2023-06-02
Category : History
ISBN : 9781000886290

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Civilizations of the Silk Road by H. K. Chang Pdf

This book describes the interactions between various civilizations and societies along the Silk Road between 500 BCE and 1500 CE, the period from the first encounters of ancient Greek and Persian civilizations to the time when maritime exchanges between Europe and Asia exceeded those on land. Starting with the genesis and features of different civilizations, the book focuses on the history and exchange of different cultures along the Silk Road: Zhang Qian’s successful pioneering feats which inaugurated the opening stretch of the Silk Road; the origins and dissemination of Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, Christianity, Manichaeism, Nestorian-Christianity, and Islam; the westward spread of papermaking and printing; and long-distance exchanges of scripts and spoken language, music, architecture, painting, and sculpture. It also outlines the historically significant migrations of various peoples from east to west, such as the Xiongnu, Yuezhi, Han, Qiang, Hephthalites, Turkic groups, Uyghurs, Mongols, and Xibe. The author has interwoven facts, anecdotes, and his own experiences of study throughout the book, making it a fascinating history reader and cultural primer. This book thus will be an essential read for students and scholars of Eurasian Studies and Chinese History and those who are interested in the history of the Silk Road in general.

Author : Cai Hongsheng
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 367 pages
File Size : 40,9 Mb
Release : 2023-11-24
Category : History
ISBN : 9781003804918

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Sino-Foreign Cultural Exchange by Cai Hongsheng Pdf

Understanding culture as a whole way of life, this book touches on various aspects of Sino-foreign interactions, tracing cultural exchanges depicted in Chinese and foreign sources, with particular attention to events or anecdotes in the Tang and Qing periods. In addition to a discussion of the Sogdians and Turks in medieval China, an investigation of the localization process of pugs and lions through different Chinese dynasties, an analysis of the incorporation of Manichaeism into Chinese culture, and the depiction of the "Kunlun slaves" in Chinese Buddhist texts, this book also examines the "caravan tea" trade between Russia and China, the Russian-American company's attempt to do business in Canton, the translation of the Three Character Classic in Russia, the "Russian case" in the Tianjin missionary incident, as well as the Dutch factory in Canton and the Dutch mission in Beijing. This book concludes with a discussion of Chinese workers in Southeast Asia in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. From Central Asia to the South China Sea to the northern border with Russia, this book reveals its great diversity, yet with an intense focus on China's interactions with the outside world. This book will be essential reading for students and scholars of Chinese studies, medieval Central Asian studies, and those interested in world history.

Author : Mark Edward Lewis
Publisher : Harvard University Press
Page : 367 pages
File Size : 52,5 Mb
Release : 2009-10-30
Category : History
ISBN : 9780674265417

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China’s Cosmopolitan Empire by Mark Edward Lewis Pdf

The Tang dynasty is often called China’s “golden age,” a period of commercial, religious, and cultural connections from Korea and Japan to the Persian Gulf, and a time of unsurpassed literary creativity. Mark Lewis captures a dynamic era in which the empire reached its greatest geographical extent under Chinese rule, painting and ceramic arts flourished, women played a major role both as rulers and in the economy, and China produced its finest lyric poets in Wang Wei, Li Bo, and Du Fu. The Chinese engaged in extensive trade on sea and land. Merchants from Inner Asia settled in the capital, while Chinese entrepreneurs set off for the wider world, the beginning of a global diaspora. The emergence of an economically and culturally dominant south that was controlled from a northern capital set a pattern for the rest of Chinese imperial history. Poems celebrated the glories of the capital, meditated on individual loneliness in its midst, and described heroic young men and beautiful women who filled city streets and bars. Despite the romantic aura attached to the Tang, it was not a time of unending peace. In 756, General An Lushan led a revolt that shook the country to its core, weakening the government to such a degree that by the early tenth century, regional warlordism gripped many areas, heralding the decline of the Great Tang.

Author : Adam Leith Gollner
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 304 pages
File Size : 54,6 Mb
Release : 2013-06-11
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 9781476704999

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The Fruit Hunters by Adam Leith Gollner Pdf

A historical account of the role of fruit in the modern world explores the machinations of multi-national corporations in distributing exotic fruits, the life of mass-produced fruits, and the author's experience with unusual varieties that are unavailable in America.

Author : Paul Copp
Publisher : Columbia University Press
Page : 397 pages
File Size : 46,8 Mb
Release : 2014-09-09
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780231537780

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The Body Incantatory by Paul Copp Pdf

Whether chanted as devotional prayers, intoned against the dangers of the wilds, or invoked to heal the sick and bring ease to the dead, incantations were pervasive features of Buddhist practice in late medieval China (600–1000 C.E.). Material incantations, in forms such as spell-inscribed amulets and stone pillars, were also central to the spiritual lives of both monks and laypeople. In centering its analysis on the Chinese material culture of these deeply embodied forms of Buddhist ritual, The Body Incantatory reveals histories of practice—and logics of practice—that have until now remained hidden. Paul Copp examines inscribed stones, urns, and other objects unearthed from anonymous tombs; spells carved into pillars near mountain temples; and manuscripts and prints from both tombs and the Dunhuang cache. Focusing on two major Buddhist spells, or dhāraṇī, and their embodiment of the incantatory logics of adornment and unction, he makes breakthrough claims about the significance of Buddhist incantation practice not only in medieval China but also in Central Asia and India. Copp's work vividly captures the diversity of Buddhist practice among medieval monks, ritual healers, and other individuals lost to history, offering a corrective to accounts that have overemphasized elite, canonical materials.

Author : 荣新江著
Publisher : BEIJING BOOK CO. INC.
Page : 601 pages
File Size : 50,6 Mb
Release : 2021-11-09
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 8210379456XXX

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丝绸之路与东西文化交流 by 荣新江著 Pdf

本书是作者有关丝绸之路的研究论集，分做五编，探讨汉唐丝绸之路的走向、丝绸之路与某些区域或城镇的关系；研究通过丝绸之路的东西文化交流，包括中国与波斯、大食（阿拉伯）、印度、朝鲜半岛、日本的文化交流。

Author : Insight Guides
Publisher : Apa Publications (UK) Limited
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 47,7 Mb
Release : 2017-04-01
Category : Travel
ISBN : 9781786716996

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Insight Guides Silk Road (Travel Guide eBook) by Insight Guides Pdf

Insight Guide The Silk Road is the complete illustrated guide to one of the world's ultimate travel adventures. Passing right through the heart of Asia, this ancient trade route traverses a quarter of the globe from the heart of China to the Mediterranean via a vast, inhospitable expanse of mountains and desert. The guide covers all the sights along the way across 13 countries and 6 time zones, with authoritative chapters on the Silk Road's history and culture to put it all into context. Inside Insight Guide The Silk Road:A fully-overhauled major new edition by our expert Silk Road author.Stunning, specially-commissioned photography that brings the countries along this evocative route to life. Highlights of the Silk Road's top attractions, including the great city of Isfahan, the ancient splendor of Persepolis and China's Terracotta Army in our Best of the Silk Road.Descriptive country-by-country accounts cover the whole route from China to Turkey by way of the 'Stans of Central Asia and the geopolitical nerve centres of the Middle East.Features detail silk production, the ancient treasures that have been discovered along the route, and the colourful bazaars - a reminder of the Silk Road caravanserais of the distant past.Detailed, high-quality maps throughout will help you get around and travel tips give you all the essential information for planning the trip of a lifetime. About Insight Guides: Insight Guides has over 40 years' experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce around 400 full-colour print guide books and maps as well as picture-packed eBooks to meet different travellers' needs. Insight Guides' unique combination of beautiful travel photography and focus on history and culture together create a unique visual reference and planning tool to inspire your next adventure. 'Insight Guides has spawned many imitators but is still the best of its type.' - Wanderlust Magazine

Author : Hugh Scott
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
Page : 203 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 2012-10-23
Category : Art
ISBN : 9781462903788

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Golden Age of Chinese Art by Hugh Scott Pdf

For almost three hundred years the noble T'ang Dynasty fostered a period of artistic and intellectual endeavor which has never been equaled in the history of China. Sculpture, ceramics, glass, and textiles were some of the major artifacts that emerged from this glorious renaissance of Chinese taste and skill. This book is the story of the T'ang told through objects in the author's collection, one of the most representative in private hands. It includes a marvelous array of gold and silver mirrors, jade, jewelry and gilt bronzes. The 124 illustrations, 24 in full color are accompanied by a history of the T'ang era, and a chapter on each of the categories in the collection gives a comprehensive background to the illustrations. The knowledgeable comments of a well-known collector are authoritative, and will be invaluable to other collectors, was well as to all connosseurs of Chinese art.