The Silk Road: Examining Foreign Influences on Chinese Culture

Assignment to hand in:    Map of Silk Road & Rubric

Step 1: Introduction - Look at the pictures below and read the following text:

Map of Silk Road during Han dynasty    Women preparing and dyeing silk thread in China

The term "Silk Road" refers to the network of trade routes that linked China and the West in ancient times. Although this term was first coined in the late 1800's by the German geographer Ferninand von Richthofen, ancient travelers had crossed deserts and mountains to exchange goods with Chinese, Indian, and Persian merchants as early as 300 B.C.E. Few traders traveled the entire route; rather, goods were bartered at various trading centers in staggered progression along the way. The most frequently traveled route, popularized during the Han dynasty when Chinese silk first reached Europe, stretched 7,000 miles. It began in the Han capital city of Chang An, followed northwest along the Great Wall, crossed the Taklimakan Desert, the Pamir Mountains, and Bactria (modern-day northern Afghanistan) and reached the Mediterranean Sea.

A variety of goods - such as gold, ivory, perfumes, glass, and fruits from the West, and furs, ceramics, jade, bronze, iron, spices, gunpowder, paper, and printing techniques from the East - were exchanged along the trade routes. But it was silk that gave its name to the Silk Road because of the material's rarity and beauty. Silk was highly prized by the Roman Empire, China's most powerful trading partner. It was associated with royalty and luxury, and its production was regarded as a Chinese state secret, the telling of which was punishable by death. Silk was used by China as currency for costly goods from other countries, and was also used to pay nomadic tribes to the north and west of China so they would not invade its vulnerable border provinces.

Silk production originated in China, perhaps as early as 3000 B.C.E. Chinese legends ascribe the discovery of silk and the invention of the silk reel to Empress Xilingji (pronounced SHEE-LING-JEE), the wife of Huang Di, the Yellow Emperor. However, scholars can only speculate about the origins of silk production, since the techniques of sericulture (the manufacture of raw silk from raising silk worms) was kept such a closely guarded secret. It was not until the thirteenth century C.E. that Chinese texts began to describe methods of raising silkworms and preparing silk fabric.

The Silk Road served not just as a route for trading goods and introducing silk to the international market, but also as a route along which ideas were exchanged between East and West. Cultural elements such as art, architectural styles, and music traveled along the trade routes. The most significant example of cultural exchange along the Silk Road was religion: Buddhism came to China from India during the Han dynasty and influenced centuries of religious beliefs and teachings, which continue today.

Step 2: Download and print the following student handout: Map of Silk Road

Step 3: Complete the Map of Silk Road by doing the following:

    A. Look at and read each PLACARD below.

                                           
Bactrian Camel                Statue of Buddha            Man w/ 4 String Lute        Gold Roman Coins   

       
Harvesting Grapes        Sikhara Towers

    B. Tracing Route into China: Trace the route that the item/idea entered into China with an arrow (use colored pencils to make each arrow a different color) on the Map of Silk Road.

    C. Matching the PLACARD with the ARTIFACT: Find the ARTIFACT (below) that corresponds to the PLACARD (above) and read the text section in the Student Information Handout that summarizes its significance .

                                               
    Pipa                               Jade Funeral Suit                Camel                                Buddha

           
    Pagoda                            Wine Cup

    D. Visual: Draw a VISUAL representing the artifact in the small box in the upper right of one of the sections on your Map of Silk Road

    E. Note-Taking: Record notes in the section about what kink of influence the item/idea had on Chinese culture in the section box on your map.

    F. Outline Box: Trace the outer perimeter of each section box with the color you used for the "Tracing Route" arrow.

PowerPoint: The Silk Road - Why "Silk?"

Supplemental Videos (To View: Right click, then "Save Target As..."):
Han Dynasty - Trade Route to the Roman Empire
Silk
Story of the Silk Road
The Silk Road

Supplemental Websites:
Silk Road Online Video Game (Don't count on historical accuracy, but an interesting idea)
Silk Road Map (Detailed)
 

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