"Silk Road" was formally put forward by German geographer von Richthofen in 1877, which refers to the trade routes and traffic routes between the east and the west, mainly silk trade. After Zhang Qian's mission to the Western Regions, this land passage from China to the European continent was officially opened.
Compared with the Northwest Silk Road, historians call Chengdu's international trade route to Southeast Asia, South China Sea, India, West Asia and Europe the "Southern Silk Road".
According to Duan Yu's research, the Southern Silk Road was the earliest route for China's silk to export to South Asia, Central Asia and further westward. As early as the middle and late Shang Dynasty, the Southern Silk Road was initially opened. Tooth shells from the northern Indian Ocean and ivory from India were found at Sanxingdui in Guanghan and Jinsha Site in Chengdu. The cultural factors of Sanxingdui bronze statue and the shape of ancient Shu willow bronze dagger also come from this. "Sasha Vujacic" produced in India and West Asia is not only found in Sichuan archaeology, but also in literature records.
Typical teeth of Sanxingdui culture were unearthed in Lamma Island, and some seashells in Sanxingdui sacrificial pit also came from the South China Sea, indicating that as early as Shang Dynasty, ancient Shu civilization had cultural ties and exchanges with the South China Sea.
The earliest known Sanskrit name of China in India is Cina, which is translated into Chinese as zhina, or Zhina, Zhina, etc. , a dual or reincarnation of ancient Chengdu, appeared in the 4th century BC or earlier at the latest. After the name Cina spread from India to Central Asia, West Asia and the European continent, it also formed its metonymy Seres, Thinai and so on. Today, the origin of China's name in western languages is directly related to this. The westward spread of Cina's name was accompanied by the westward spread of silk.
It can be seen that the Southern Silk Road really played a positive and important role in the cultural exchange and interaction between ancient China and the West, and it is worthy of being the cultural exchange link between ancient Asia and Eurasia.
The Southern Silk Road starts from Chengdu Plain and divides southward into east, middle and west lines:
The western front is what the history books call "Shu poison road". Historical Records Biography of Southwest Yi: "In the first year of Yuanshou, Prince Zhang Qian sent a hero. He said that when he lived in the summer, he saw the corn and Qiongzhu sticks and went to inquire. He said: You can get the Shu family into the market from thousands of miles southeast. " Therefore, it was named "Shu Shen Du Dao".
The west line is divided into east and west lines, and the west line is called Lingguan Road (also called Yak Road or Qingxi Road in different periods). East Road is called "Wuchi Road" (also called "Shimen Road"). Lingguan Road starts from Chengdu, passes through Shuangliu, Xinjin, Qionglai, Ya 'an, Yingjing, Hanyuan, Yuexi, Xide, Lugu, Xichang, Dechang, Huili and Panzhihua in Sichuan, crosses Jinsha River to Dayao and Yaoan in Yunnan, and reaches Dali in the west. Wuchi Road passes through Leshan, Qianwei, Yibin, Yunnan Daguan, Zhaotong and Qujing in Sichuan, and passes through Kunming and Chuxiong to the west. After the two roads meet in Dali, they continue to the west to Yongping, which is called "Yongchang Road" (also known as "Bonan Road"). Starting from Yongping, crossing Bonanshan, crossing Lancang River, crossing Nujiang River in Baoshan, leaving Tengchong to Myitkyina, Myanmar, or leaving Ruili from Baoshan to bhamo, Myanmar, and then going west to India, Central Asia, West Asia, and reaching Europe.
The center line is divided into two roads: "Butou Road" and "Jinsang Road". Butou Road goes from Wuchi Road to Kunming and Jinning by land, then from Jinning to the south of Tonghai, and along the Red River to Vietnam. "Schumann" is a six-year volume: "It takes 14 days from Tonghai City to Shantou, and it goes from Shantou along the river, and rises to Nanman on the 35 th." Hence the name "Butou Island". This route is the oldest waterway connecting Yunnan and Indochina Peninsula. After Qin destroyed Shu, Shu Wang Anyang went south from this road to establish a country in northern Vietnam. Enter Sangdao, that is, through Miming, leave Kunming, cross Nanpanjiang, Wenjing Mountain leave southeast Yunnan, cross Hejiang and Xuanguang, and follow Panlongjiang to reach Hanoi.
The eastern line is called Yelang Road or Songyu Road, from Chengdu south to Yelang (now western Guizhou), then through Xijiang River to Panyu (now Guangzhou), and then out of the South China Sea to Southeast Asia. "Historical Records of Southwest China" contains: "In the sixth year of Jianyuan, Fan Yang made Tang point to South Vietnam. South Vietnam eats Shu Meng hook sauce. No one has ever asked me. It is said that the northwest is awkward. The river is several miles wide, leaving Panyu outside the door. Meng went back to Chang 'an and asked Shu and Jia. Jia Ren said: Only Shu produces citric acid sauce. Steal more property from Yelang City. Yelang, return to the river. Jiang Guang took more than 100 steps, enough to sail. "Because it crosses Yelang country and land, it is called Yelang Road, and because it crosses Songyou River (Nanpanjiang and Xijiang), it is called Songyou Road.
The western route of the Southern Silk Road (Shudao Capital) runs from Chengdu Plain through Yunnan to Myanmar, westward to India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and then to Central Asia, West Asia and the Mediterranean. This traffic line running through Asia is one of the longest and oldest traffic arteries in ancient Eurasia. The central line (Butou Road, Jinsang Road) and the eastern line (Yelang Road) of the Southern Silk Road communicate the relationship between southwest China and Southeast Asia.
Leshan is an important hub of the Southern Silk Road.
After Leshan became a land and water transportation hub, shipbuilding began in the Tang Dynasty and became the shipbuilding center of Sichuan in the Song Dynasty, with an annual output of 45 official ships. In the Ming Dynasty, King Shu still set up a shipyard in Kannonji, north of the city, also known as "Wang Shipyard".
The east, middle and west lines of the Southern Silk Road all start from Chengdu, and the first part of the journey must go down Minjiang River to Yibin, and then turn to Wuchi Road, Trail Road and Yelang Road. Leshan, located in the middle reaches of Minjiang River, has become a must. In addition, the West Silk Road (Shushendu Road) is divided into two roads, and there are three branches connecting the two roads, namely: Pingqiang River Road (starting from Jiazhou and ending in Yazhou), Yangshanhe Road (starting from Jiazhou and ending in Hanyuan and Ganluo Haitang) and Muyuanchuan Road (starting from Jiazhou to Xincheng and turning to Xichang). The starting points of the three feeder lines are all in Leshan. Therefore, Leshan has become a transportation hub for many routes of the Southern Silk Road.
A post station was established in the Tang Dynasty and named Jiading Post Station in the Song Dynasty. According to The History of Song Dynasty, Foodstuffs, Part III (Cloth, Silk and Transportation), "The gold and silk of Sichuan Yi State and the cloth of renting the city were handed down by Jianmen and distributed in history, and were transported to Jingnan by water, and the official transportation capital was sent by Jingnan. Xianping transported 660,000 horses at a fixed age, divided into ten grades. At the end of the Scorpio, more than 231,000 pieces of gold, silk and coins were transported by land and water, two at each end and two horses, and more than 275,000 kilograms of jewelry and incense. "
Since the Song Dynasty, Sichuan tea-horse trade has taken Leshan as the meeting point of tea boats. The "edge tea" transported from Wushan and Jianshi in eastern Sichuan to Lizhou, Yazhou and even Tibetan areas has been going upstream along the Yangtze River and Minjiang River, stopping in Leshan City and then returning to Qingyi River for distribution. During the tea season, there are often more than 100 boats moored at the gates of Jiazhou. Leshan was an important land-water transport hub on Minjiang River in Song Dynasty.
After Leshan became a land and water transportation hub, shipbuilding began in the Tang Dynasty and became the shipbuilding center of Sichuan in the Song Dynasty, with an annual output of 45 official ships. In the Ming Dynasty, King Shu still set up a shipyard in Kannonji, north of the city, also known as "Wang Shipyard".
Zhong Zhen, a well-known Jiading Prefecture in the Ming Dynasty, commented: "On the occasion of land and water in Liu Da, there is no peace by the boat in the afternoon." Gu Zuyu, an Amin, commented in Reading History: "Jiading is only five stops north to Chengdu. Song Moucai Confucius said: Jiading is the foundation of the west of the town. According to its status, it is also located in the upper reaches of Lebanon and Asia. However, the Tianjin route is convenient and there is no embarrassment in Chengdu. " Leshan is the throat of the south leading to Chengdu. Li Diaoyuan, one of the three gifted scholars in Shu in the Qing Dynasty, said in a poem, "As the Yangtze River passes day by day, Yunfeng sees three towering mountains." It shows the magnificent landscape of Leshan as a water pier.
By the end of the Qing Dynasty, Japanese teacher Nakano Nakayama called Leshan "Jiading Port" in "A Miscellaneous Visit to Shu" and wrote: "There are thousands of ships moored in the port, forming a dock city." He further believes that Leshan "mainly depends on the entry and exit of ships and the distribution of goods". Leshan has become a commercial city. Nakano Taniyama also said: "Jiading Port is full of sails, and the upper and lower ships are intertwined. At night, the lights of the ship reflect the river, forming a spectacle. " The conclusion of Leshan County Chronicle in the Republic of China is: "The county is surrounded by mountains and waters, surrounded by water on three sides, reaching Dadu, Chongqing, Yahe, Tianquan, and copper river, Ebian and Jinchuan, which are important for land and water. The commercial port is prosperous in southern Sichuan. " The transportation hub on the Southern Silk Road is well deserved.