For a time in the eighth and early ninth centuries, the rulers of the T'ang Dynasty were helpless to resist the exorbitant demands of the nomadic Uighurs, who had saved the dynasty from internal rebellion and exploited their monopoly as the main suppliers of horses.
Clearly not all that silk was being used by the nomads but was being traded to those further west. Silk was a form of currency tens of thousands of bolts of the precious substance would be sent annually to the nomadic rulers in exchange for horses, along with other commodities (such as grain) which the nomads sought. At times the substantial financial resources of the Chinese empire were strained to keep frontiers secure and the essential supply of horses flowing. This relationship between the rulers of China and the nomads who controlled the supply of horses continued down through the centuries to shape important aspects of the trade across Asia. Not the least of the goals was to secure a supply of the "blood-sweating" "heavenly" horses of Ferghana. Zhang Qian's report about the Western Regions and the rebuff of initial Chinese overtures for allies prompted energetic measures by the Han to extend their power to the west. The relations between the Xiongnu and China have traditionally been seen as marking the real start of the Silk Road, since it was in the second century BCE that we can document large quantities of silk being sent on a regular basis to the nomads as a way of keeping them from invading China and also as a means of payment for the horses and camels needed by the Chinese armies. Thus, well before the famous journey to the west of Zhang Qian (138-126 BCE), sent by the Han emperor to negotiate an alliance against the nomadic Xiongnu, China had been importing horses from the northern nomads. Marco Polo would note much later regarding the lush mountain pastures: "Here is the best pasturage in the world for a lean beast grows fat here in ten days" (Latham tr.). Natural conditions suitable for raising horses large and strong enough for military use were to be found in the steppes and mountain pastures of Northern and Central Inner Asia, but generally not in the regions best suited for intensive agriculture such as Central China. The use of horses as cavalry mounts probably spread eastward from Western Asia in the early part of the first millennium BCE. With the development of the light, spoked wheel in the second millennium BCE, horses came to be used to draw military chariots, remains of which have been found in tombs all across Eurasia. Given their importance, the horse and camel occupied a significant place in the literatures and representational art of many peoples along the Silk Road. The animals' value to the neighboring sedentary societies, moreover, meant that they themselves were objects of trade. The distinct natural environments of much of Inner Asia encompassing vast steppe lands and major deserts made those animals essential for the movement of armies and trade. Even today in Mongolia and some areas of Kazakhstan, the rural economy may still be very intimately connected with the raising of horses and camels their milk products and, even occasionally, their meat, are a part of the local diet. While those such as sheep and goats provided many communities the essentials of daily life, horses and camels both supplied local needs and were keys to the development of international relations and trade. Schafer)Īnimals are an essential part of the story of the Silk Road. The posts of Han sqeep them away throught he clouds, Tail to muzzle linked, one after the other. Secret understanding of springs and sources subtle indeed is its knowledge.Ĭrying camels come out of the Western Regions, The camel.manifests its merit in dangerous places it has The horses sweat blood and come from the stock of the "heavenly horse."
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