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Kevin McSpadden

Popular imagination paints the Silk Road as an exotic trade route, with dedicated merchants slowly transporting their wares from China to Europe, and vice versa.
In reality, most merchants used only a small portion of the route, helping transform the Silk Road into an avenue for long-distance trade that became the economic backbone for the diverse variety of cultures that inhabited Asia for thousands of years.
This economic importance meant that the value of the products moving through the Silk Road was immense, transforming it into a perilous trade route.
“The merchants were literally travelling with gold and silk of the highest quality. The silk that was traded on the Silk Road pretty much bankrupted Rome, if that gives you an idea of how valuable everything was,” said Christine Lee, an assistant professor of Anthropology at the University of Mississippi.
Lee and her co-author, Cassandra Kuba, from Pennsylvania Western University, analysed 275 skulls from three archaeological sites in modern-day Xinjiang, in northwest China, and one in Mongolia.
The craniums covered a considerable amount of time (1000 BC-420), and the region was also touched by the rise of three distinct eras – the Qin (221-206 BC) and Han (202 BC-9, 25-220) dynasties in China, and the Xiongnu (220 BC-46) in Mongolia.
The researchers discovered evidence of an ethnically vibrant region whose settlements had a direct relationship with violence although it manifested differently between the four sites.

“A lot of the trauma we saw in the sites was not accidental, and it was not two people who got in a bar fight. These were combat-style attacks,” Lee told the Post.
One site, named Chandman, had the highest level of violence, including an instance of four strikes to the face, including a “penetrating wound” to the face that “obliterated their identity”.
The particularly gruesome nature of the violence – coupled with its geographic location further away from the three sites in modern-day Xinjiang – suggests that it could have been near a contested border and inhabited by trained military men.
“I suspect that it was a frontier site,” said Lee, explaining that a lot of the men looked like they were trained to protect the region. “A lot of the injuries seem to be from skirmishes, and they are very young men with multiple sword blows. It was quite violent.”
The second-most violent site was Yanghai, also in Xinjiang, which also exhibited signs of conflict, and Lee and Kuba hypothesised that the victims were trained guards protecting a particularly economically important portion of the Silk Road.
In Nileke, the furthest Western inhabitation, the authors believe it was a mining site and, once again, the victims of the violence were trained to protect the resources from attacks.
However, the region was not simply a series of quarrelling communities fighting over the exploitation of resources.
“There was the violence on the road because of the money and valuable resources, but it was also a remarkably vibrant and diverse area,” said Lee.

To highlight this complexity, one site, Yingpan, the furthest south of the four, seems to have been a training ground for professional polo players. The trauma for the residents was remarkably similar and appeared like direct blows to the nose as if they were struck in the face with a ball or stick.
The authors wrote that violent attacks would appear more random, and the broken noses were coupled with previous understandings that this region was known for producing travelling acrobatic troupes and sports teams.
“I suspect that like the city was training polo players for professional playing, not just recreation,” said Lee.
Also in the region, a dozen cases of facial mutilation, in which 11 of the individuals had their noses cut off, highlighted that, while this region was mostly separated from China, there still was a relationship with their large neighbour to the east.
The theory is that these people committed crimes while living within Chinese borders after they had been recruited to build roads and fortresses.
Facial mutilation was a form of state-sanctioned violence in China until 167 BC, suggesting that the individuals may have committed a serious crime and had their noses cut off in China before being sent back to their home towns bearing their permanent scars.
By analysing hundreds of skulls along the Silk Road, Lee and Kuba could paint a nuanced picture of the dangers facing the communities who relied on the trade route for their economic viability.
They also managed to offer us insights into the lives of regular people, whose stories are often lost in histories that focus on the lives of emperors, kings, and queens.
“In many ways, life back then was similar to life today. And equally, it was nothing like our lives now,” said Lee.


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Chinese history

From border skirmishes to polo players, how violence manifested along ancient Silk Road

A research conducted on the perilous nature of the Silk Road sheds light on the historical violence that plagued this ancient trade route in Asia. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/The Poetics of Violence in Afroeurasian Bioarchaeology

The study uncovers the perils that travellers faced along the ancient Silk Road, revealing evidence of corporal punishment inflicted during conflicts that occurred along this historic trade route. Photo: The Poetics of Violence in Afroeurasian Bioarchaeology

Until 167 BC, facial mutilation was a sanctioned form of violence in China. The act was believed to signify serious criminal offences, with individuals carrying the enduring marks of their punishment. Photo: The Poetics of Violence in Afroeurasian Bioarchaeology 

2,500-year-old Taiwan human skeletons indicate indigenous tribes on island chewed betel nuts

Unearthed 2,500-year-old human skeletons found in Taiwan hint at ancient indigenous tribes’ betel nut chewing habits. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/cabcy.gov.tw

The red mineral stains found on the teeth of these two ancient human skeletons are believed by researchers to be traces of betel seed juice. Photo: Chiayi City Cultural Bureau

Betel nuts, with their vibrant red juice and characteristic staining of teeth and gums, are recognised as a popular oral stimulant drug in Southeast Asia. Photo: Shutterstock

The skeletons found in the tombs during the construction of the railway project in Chiayi City, southwestern Taiwan, illuminate the area’s archaeological significance. Photo: Chiayi City Cultural Bureau

China husband endures daily 320km round-trip commute to work ‘for love’ of wife

An office worker in China loves his new wife so much he says he is happy to spend six hours each day travelling to and from work. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock/QQ.com/Sohu



Lin catches a train at 6.15am every day so he can reach his office on time. Photo: Douyin

The last leg of his daily journey is a 15-minute trip on the metro to his office. Photo: Douyin

Good vs evil: how 17th century introduction of Catholicism impacted Chinese beliefs of retribution

As Catholicism gained acceptance in China during Emperor Kangxi’s reign some 360 years ago, it intricately intertwined with local beliefs, notably Buddhism and indigenous folk religions. Photo: SCMP composite/Shutterstock

Confucianism teaches that individuals gradually amass minor “virtues” and minor “vices” over their lifetimes, emphasising the importance of steering clear of significant wrongdoing while striving towards notable goodness.  Photo: Shutterstock

Taoism is a philosophical and spiritual tradition that originated in China and has had a significant influence on Chinese culture, art, and literature throughout history. Photo: Shutterstock

Yuan Tong Temple is the biggest Buddhist temple in Kunming, Yunnan province in southwestern China. Photo: Shutterstock

How famous Chinese folktale ‘Legend of the White Snake’ portrayed women negatively for centuries  in China

The timeless saga of “The Legend of the White Snake” weaves a mesmerising tale of forbidden love between a mortal man and an enchanting female snake spirit. Photo: SCMP composite/Wikipedia

A painting from the Summer Palace in Beijing depicts “The Legend of the White Snake” which showcases a serene and mystical scene. Photo: Wikipedia/Shizhao

“The Legend of the White Snake” is a popular Chinese folktale that has been adapted into various forms of literature, including books, plays, and poems.

Numerous films have depicted “The Legend of the White Snake” like the one above in 2019. Photo: iQiyi

Stunning murals discovered in small Tang-era tomb depict eighth-century everyday life

Archaeologists in northern China recently unveiled a small brick tomb containing stunningly preserved and exquisite murals from the 8th century. Photo: SCMP composite/chinanews.com/Wikipedia

The murals on all sides of the tomb, excluding the floor, showcase scenes of daily life during the Tang dynasty (618-907) against a white background, highlighting the cultural richness of that era. Photo: Xinhua

The figures depicted throughout the mural look like the same two people, prompting archaeologists to speculate that they were the owners of the tomb. Photo: Xinhua

News

People & Culture

Analysis found a remarkably vibrant region with an up-close relationship to the dangers of the ancient trade route


The Silk Road was a dangerous place in ancient Asia, and a duo of researchers painted a picture of how the violence manifested thousands of years ago.


Archaeology and palaeontology

China trade