Kongtong passed Kunlun in the west, and camel and horses came to support the country.
——Du Fu's "Five Slogans of the General Retreat of the Thieves and the Foreign Belt and Bandits·The Third"
Picture/AI generation
The Pearl of the Silk Road
The "top" superstar in the camel world
The history of the Tang Dynasty belongs to the majestic palace and the dying dong camel bells and rolling dust smoke. On the ancient Silk Road, camels brought rare treasures from the foreign land and sent Gentiles full of longing to this Oriental land.
Schematic diagram of the Silk Road route during the Sui and Tang Dynasties
In the mural of the tomb of the Tang Dynasty Wang Ruren, the tomb of the Tang Dynasty
Scene of a man carrying a camel
It is also because of this that camels carrying goods have become one of the most common images of cultural relics in the Tang Dynasty. Among them, the three-color camel unearthed from the tomb of Anpu and his wife became the top cultural relics of the same type because of its tall and majestic posture and brilliant glaze color.
Walking into the exhibition hall of Dufu Thatched Cottage Museum in Chengdu, I saw it stand upright with outstanding demeanor, and the glaze surface was preserved as new. The glaze color flowed naturally, forming a colorful effect, and it still shines through thousands of years.
This extraordinary camel once passed through the long yellow sand like its countless predecessors and sent its owner to the Tang Dynasty, which also created a legendary story of a young man named "Tang Huan".
General Hu
Legendary life across civilization
In 630 AD, the great leader of the Western Regions Anguo (now in Uzbekistan) surrendered to the Tang Dynasty. An Pu, the son of the young leader, came to this land for the first time with his father, and started his magnificent military career.
Font painting of the eastern wall of the tomb of Prince Zhanghuai's tomb
Collection of Shaanxi History Museum
After returning to the Tang Dynasty, An Pu was named General Dingyuan. He once led his troops to resist the Northern Di and made many military achievements in the Dingbian battles of the Tang Dynasty. Historical books call it "one is worth a thousand, and one is alone to sweep the bees and fly", and it is extremely brave.
An Bo Tombstone Gai
This general was born in the Western Regions and died in Chang'an in 664. In 709, his son was moved to the east mountain of Longmen, Luoyang. The story of his son An Jinzang saving the emperor's heir through a caesarean section has also been written into "Romance of the Sui and Tang Dynasties" and has been circulated to this day.
Ruins of the Anbo Tombstone
It can be said that An Pu's life was a microcosm of the countless Hu people entering the Tang Dynasty at that time. They traveled, worked, lived on the land of the Tang Dynasty, and finally integrated into the dynasty, creating and witnessing the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty with the literati and warriors in the Central Plains.
Gold coins in the tomb
International "payment" vouchers in the Tang Dynasty
In 1981, the well-preserved tomb of An Pu and his wife was discovered in Longmen, Luoyang. A total of 129 burial objects were unearthed, with a wide variety and an orderly arrangement. According to their materials, they can be divided into 50 pieces of three-color utensils, 61 pieces of single-glazed utensils, 2 pieces of pottery, 11 pieces of porcelain, 1 piece of gold coins, 3 pieces of bronze utensils, and 1 piece of agate beads.
Schematic diagram of the tomb of Tang Anpu couple
Photo/"Luoyang Longmen Tang Anpu Tomb" Zhao Zhenhua, Zhu Liang
The three-color high-beard hat male terracotta terracotta unearthed from the tomb of Tang Anpu couple
Three-colored Hu figurines unearthed from the tomb of Tang Anpu couple
In addition to the exquisite three-color figures and the outstanding three-color camel, an Eastern Roman gold coin in An Pu's tomb is also amazing.
Front of the Eastern Roman gold coin unearthed from the tomb of Tang Anpu couple
The front is a bust of the king with long beards, wearing a crown, and a five-pointed star in the center of the crown. Both ears are hung with a crescent-shaped ornament. Hold a cross with one hand on the left, with the Latin "FOCAS" on the edge.
The reverse side of the Eastern Roman gold coins unearthed from the tomb of the Tang Anpu couple
In the center of the back is a winged statue of the goddess of victory, holding a sphere of cross in the left hand, holding a long-handled hook-shaped instrument in the right hand, and the Latin inscription "VICTOPIA" at the edge.
Perris silver coins unearthed in Luoyang
The gold coins were minted in 602-610 AD. This is the first foreign gold coin found in the Tang Dynasty tomb in Luoyang, it is a witness to the Silk Road, along with the Persian Sassanidian silver coins found in the Tang tomb in the northern suburbs of Luoyang in 1955. They are not only payment vouchers for trade transactions, but also important physical evidence of economic and cultural exchanges between the East and the West, vividly demonstrating the important position of Luoyang as an international trade center in the Tang Dynasty.
Mutual learning of civilizations
Contemporary Echoes of the Silk Road Spirit
Luoyang in the Tang Dynasty attracted countless people from different civilizations to gather here. They brought different commodities, religions, and arts, which also made the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty.
Photo/Luoyang Cultural Tourism
This spirit of openness, inclusiveness and mutual learning in civilization still has important inspiration today. As President Xi Jinping said: "Civilization is colorful because of exchanges, and civilization is rich because of mutual learning."
This autumn, you might as well come to the Dufu Thatched Cottage Museum in Chengdu, travel through thousands of years with the three-color camels, reread the poems and distances on the Silk Road, clear away the wind and sand of history, and feel the extraordinary atmosphere of the Eastern Capital in the Tang Dynasty.
Provided丨Exhibition Design Department
Editor丨Lei Xia An Yu
Review丨Chen Tao Chen Ning
Re-examination丨Ma Hong Peng Yan
