Mongolian Influences on Iranian Arts
The Silk Roads witnessed various political movements shaping and transforming the arts the period. It is notably the case with the presence of the Mongols in the Iranian plateau and Central Asian regions. Contrary to common beliefs, the arrival of the Mongols in the 13th century CE did not eliminate the cultural traditions of the […]
Smuggling Domesticated Silkworms along the Silk Roads
At some point around AD 600-700, a legend started spreading about a princess who snuck mulberry tree seeds and silkworm eggs into the Buddhist kingdom of Khotan (present-day northwest China). Sericulture, the ancient Chinese technique of silk farming, had been kept a secret for thousands of years. Integral to this technique were silkworms that had […]