Southern Silk Road: Through Khotan

We do not know exactly when the South Taklamakan Route was first used, but silk from c 1500 BC has been found in Bactria,[3] suggesting the use of the route very early in history. Khotan was possibly the source of nephrite for China as early as 645 BC.[4] However, from historical sources, such as the writings from Sima Qian, it seems the route was poorly known before the 2nd century BC and that it importance was during the Han period, when Khotan had garrisons to protect it.[5] The importance that this route had is illustrated by the bronze Sino-Kharosthi coins, based on the tetradrachm from the 1st century AD, that have been found in Khotan, suggesting an already well established relationship between China and the Indo-Greek empires through Khotan in the beginning of the Han era.[6][7] Moreover, it seems from Mitochondrial DNA analyses that Central Asian population share genes with East Asians and Europeans, suggesting regular contacts between them.[8] The foundation of Khotan is seen as reflecting a marriage between an Indian and a Chinese,.[9] All these factors suggest that interaction between Khotan and its neighbours, whether to the south, west or east had taken place over a protracted period of time.

There is little doubt that any east-west route would have passed through Anxi and Dunhuang, before dividing to the northern and southern routes around the Taklamakan Desert. Letters, such as one from the king of Khotan giving his daughter to the ruling family of Dunghuang in AD 941, suggest that the links between these areas were strong.[16] From Dunhuang the most likely route would go to Miran[17] (which became a Tibetan city, from which numerous written records from the late seventh and eighth century AD have been recovered).[18] From Miran the route probably moved from one oasis or river valley to the next, along the foothills of the mountains, through sites such as Charklik, Waxxari, Charchan, Endere, Mingfeng, and Niya to Khotan. The route after that probably included Pishan and Yarkand before reaching Kashgar.

The elevation of the routes is relatively high on the slope, with a relatively small change in altitude (an average of 0.7%, -0.6% except at the extremities).,[19] important as the slope would be an important factor for animals carrying heavy packs. Khotan is situated in a pleasant valley that probably protected it from harsh weather.

One of the most useful maps for Khotan's oases is still Stein's, which shows how green and prosperous Khotan could be.[20]

The general assumption that the Silk Roads connected east and west is an over-simplification.[21] This southern Taklamakan route also connected with trans-Tibetan plateau routes linking Central and South Asia. In addition, the modern hydrology visible on Google Earth suggests a number of south to north courses through the desert; for example from Yotkan to Aksu through Mazar-tagh. The maps published by Aurel Stein[22] also show that movement was not just from east to west, but from south to north as well. However Mazar-tagh is far from the usually accepted Silk Road, in the middle of the desert: there has to be a reason for it being there.