East Turkestan – 8’0″ x 4’10”

The oasis towns of Khotan, Yarkand and Kashgar are located along the southern branch of the fabled Silk Road in the Xinjiang region of north-western China. Since ancient times until the early decades of the twentieth century, they have been known to the outside world as trading centers with long histories of textile production. Near these cities, archaeologists have discovered fragments of pile-knotted carpets and other textiles preserved in the dry sandy soil. Some date back almost two millennia and new discoveries continue to be made.

Located at the crossroads of Central Asia, the three cities have been historically important during numerous periods. In a repeated pattern, local kingdoms flourished from trading activities for as long as a few centuries before passing away. The Silk Road and its many tributaries formed a tenuous link between ancient Greece and Rome and the land they called Serica. This was the unknown country of silk, located somewhere far to the east.

Old trading routes from Central Asia and China also penetrated south into Tibet and India through difficult mountain passes. More than two thousand years ago, one result of this commercial connection was the gradual conversion to Buddhism of the populations of Khotan, Yarkand and Kashgar. Trade in ideas and ways of life across formidable geographical boundaries produced a social transformation in the heart of Central Asia which would have major historical consequences.

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