For the western Mediterranean world, China is a silk-producing country; In a sense, China culture is also a silk culture. Along the ancient Silk Road, a large number of China silk sources were transported westward, flowing to Central Asia, South Asia, West Asia, North Africa and even to the Mediterranean world. For example, palmira, an oasis country in the desert of eastern Syria, is an important transit point for China silk products to the Mediterranean region. The tapestry of Chinese characters unearthed here belongs to silk fabrics of 1 century. Its patterns and weavers' Chinese characters are similar to or the same as silk fabrics found in Loulan and other places in Xinjiang at the beginning of this century. They are all tapestries and colorful patterns produced in the Han Dynasty. After being transported to the Mediterranean region, China silk was very popular and soon became the common pursuit of people of all ethnic groups and all social strata there.
Silk from China to Rome must pass through Egypt first. Because Egypt at that time belonged to Alexandria under Roman rule. As the hub of transportation and trade between the East and the West, most of the goods exported by Rome to the East are transported from Alexandria to all parts of the East. Commodities from China, India, Arabia and Persia are also the largest distribution centers here.
China's silk goods were directly transported to Syria by the caravan of China, or transported there by the intermediary caravan of Persia, and then entered Egypt. China's silk has been very popular in Egypt since the early years of AD. According to records, the last Ptolemaic monarch, Queen Kleopatra (who reigned 43-30 years ago), once attended the banquet in full dress. The gorgeous silk dress worn by Cleopatra in history is a special China exquisite service. In the middle of the 1 century, the Roman writer Rocana described the queen as follows: "Her white breasts are shining through Sidon's cloth, which was carefully woven with thin threads and torn apart by Roman craftsmen with needles." In other words, Cleopatra's gorgeous silk dress was woven with ribbons imported from China in Tyre and Sidon. Julius Caesar once wore this exquisite silk robe to the theater, which aroused people's admiration and criticism.
After Rome conquered Egypt, China silk products naturally sold well in various regions of Rome. At that time, the exquisiteness of China silk was unparalleled in the world. Silk fabrics in the Han Dynasty are collectively called "ribbons". For the dry Mediterranean region in summer, it is most suitable to use China silk fabrics such as silk, silk, crepe and yarn to cut clothes. Especially those extremely light and transparent veils and colorful dark silk, with their unique softness, luxury and uniqueness, quickly opened up the situation in the Mediterranean world with wool, linen and cotton as textile raw materials and occupied a broad market. The famous Roman naturalist Pliny (23 ~ 79) wrote in his book Natural History that the silk produced in Ju Lushi is famous for its red feathers. This kind of silk was woven into brilliant flowers and then sold to Rome. Jiao Yuan, the wife of the rich and noble, cut it into clothes, dazzling. "Roman girls rely on this transparent veil to show their beautiful figure."
As early as Rome, the price of silk was higher than that of gold. Silk trade has become the largest trade in the ancient world. By the 2nd century AD, silk was as popular in China as Luoyang, even in the westernmost part of the Roman Empire, the British Island. In order to obtain silk goods and other things, more than 1 100 million Seth (Roman monetary unit) flows into India, Ju Lushi and Arabia from Rome every year. This trend of advocating diaosi is becoming more and more serious. By the 4th century AD, the Romans wore silks and satins, regardless of rank. China silk has not only become an indispensable item in people's life in Rome and the Mediterranean world, but also greatly broadened the vision of people of all ethnic groups in the ancient west in pursuit of beauty.
Due to the long-term influence of a large number of China silk goods flowing to the west, some civilized and advanced nations and regions in the west not only buy China silk goods, but also deliberately imitate China silk goods. For example, after the 4th and 5th centuries A.D., Egyptians began to use raw silk shipped from China as raw materials for local processing and manufacturing, or split silk fabrics from China into silk threads and reweave them separately. For example, fabrics made of China silk were found in Kawu, Egypt. With the increasing number of Egyptian silk-like goods, a few of them have returned to the China market, collectively known as "variegated silk". But at that time, simple looms in Egypt and Rome could weave transparent veils, but they could not weave porcelain patterns. The latter needs a jacquard machine from China to weave. Jacquard was introduced into Egypt from China in the 3rd to 7th century. In addition, the thread stepping device of silk loom was also the earliest invention in China, but it was impossible to install this device on the vertical machine originally used in Egypt, and it was not adopted until the flat knitting machine was introduced in China.
As for the spread of China's silk weaving skills to Europe, there is a vivid legend. It is said that in 550 AD, Eustace Anus, the emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, decided to establish a silk reeling industry in Eastern Rome. At that time, two Persian monks who had been to China told the Eastern Roman Emperor about the process of sericulture and silk reeling they saw in China. The emperor then ordered them to try to bring China's cocoons to East Rome. These two Persian monks made great efforts to hide their silkworm eggs in hollow bamboo sticks, traveled across mountains and rivers, and arrived in East Rome to present them to the emperor of the East Rome. Since then, China's silk weaving skills have been introduced to Europe.
When China's silk products came to the west by land and sea, goods and information from the distant west also came to China. Through commercial and diplomatic activities, people in China at that time were quite familiar with the products of "Daqin" in the far west (that is, the Roman Empire, especially Alexandria-centered Egypt). At the beginning of the 3rd century, Kang Tai, who sent envoys to South China, called Rome a treasure. In Wei Lue, fish talked about Daqin products and discussed them in different categories. Daqin products listed by Weiliu include gold, silver, copper, iron and other metals; Brocade embroidery, variegated silk, gold coating, biogas cloth and other fabrics; Red, white, black, green, etc. 10 displacement (i.e. glass); Agate, jade, bright moon beads, luminous beads and other precious stones; And ivory, rhinoceros horn, spices and other specialties, a total of 65 items. Most of them crossed the ocean and were exported to China, which was appreciated and loved by the people of China.
Most of the jewels shipped from Rome to China came from Egypt, the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Take coral as an example. According to ancient western documents, as early as the early years of AD, coral became an important export of the Roman Empire to India. There are many such records in China's historical records. For example, there are words such as "Da Qin Coral", "Coral Out of Da Qin West Sea" and "Coral Out of Da Qin State, There are continents rising in the sea" in the books such as "Taiping Magnolia". The Red Sea is also called "Coral Sea" because it is rich in corals. In these China history books, people in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea have also described in detail how to collect corals with iron nets.