Ancient treasures tell of silk capital’s fame
The historical Silk Road is renowned for promoting cultural communication between Eastern and Western countries in ancient times.
However, very few people know that a large proportion of the silk that traveled along the route, and gave it its name, originated in Chengdu.
“We all know the old Silk Road. But where was all the silk from?” Zhang Haipeng, a famous historian in China, asked at the Academic Seminar on the Land of Abundance and the Silk Road in April. “Chengdu was a major silk production base in ancient China and its strategic position on the Silk Road is beyond question,” Zhang explained.
The academic seminar attracted over 90 professors from countries including the United States, India, Sweden, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Experts from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University, Renmin University of China and Sichuan University all participated in the seminar.
Experts and scholars who participated in the seminar reached the consensus that Chengdu not only supplied beautiful silk products to countries along the ancient Silk Road, but also demonstrated China’s spirit of craftsmanship to the world.
Chengdu is a place with thousands of years of silk production history. Can Cong, the first king of the ancient Shu Kingdom, is traditionally believed to be a silkwormbreeding expert.
Jingjiang River, literally meaning brocade river, obtained its name because many brocade producers washed Shu brocade in ancient Chengdu’s river.
“Sichuan brocade is a product made with a high level of technique and ranked No 1 among the top three tapestry traditions in China at the time,” Zhang said.
Duan Yu, a professor from Sichuan Normal University, said that government officers were appointed in the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) to charge taxes on silk production. Shu brocade production and trade were one of key incomes of the governments in Three Kingdoms period (220-280).
Four wooden weaving machine models and 14 painted wooden textiles craftsmen were unearthed in Tianhui town, Chengdu, in early April. The products represented the top level of spinning and weaving at that time, according to Duan.
Chengdu Museum hosted the Spirit of the Silk Road — Dunhuang Art Expo and Tianfu Zhiguo and Ancient Silk Road Cultural Relics Expo, in April this year. More than 100 national first-class cultural relics have been displayed to more than 1 million visitors over three months in Chengdu.