silk road or horse road？

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1、SilkRoadorHorseRoad？　　Thisbook，writtenbyanEnglishacademicEdwardBurmanandpublishedin2014，providessomeveryinterestingandinspiringperspectivesaboutXi’andifferentfromthoseofChinese.　　ThefirstoneisBurman’sunconventionalviewabouttheSilkRoad.Hearguesthatthe

2、SilkRoadshouldbere-baptizedastheHorseRoadbecausetheSilkRoad“onlyexistedinordertoprocureandpayforhorsesfortheChineseempire”.AccordingtoBurman，duringZhangQian’swesternjourney，henotedthecelestialhorsesof“exceptionalquality”inCentralAsia.Whenhereportedhi

3、sdiscoverytotheEmperorWudi，theemperordecidedtoprocurethesehorsesbecausetheywere“farsuperioraswarmachines”tothenativehorsesforfightingagainsthismostpressingenemy，theXiongnu.Burmanarguesthatthesehorsesaresomethingthatwere“farmoreimportantthannewsaboutf

4、ar-offtribesandcountries”and“changedthehistoryoftheworldfromtheearlyXiongnuraidstothemilitarysupremacyoftheHandynastyandtheireffectivecontrolofChinafor400years”.Besides，thesehorsesarealsousefulfordomesticandinternationalcommunicationandtransportation

5、.DuetothevitalrolethehorsesplayedinthehistoryoftheHandynasty，BurmanproposesthattheSilkRoadshouldbenamedtheHorseRoad.HeevenproposesafurtherhypothesisthattheSilkRoadwas“only”ahorseroad，andinsomesensesa“local”roadsincetheroad“reachedasfarasFerghanaandth

6、esourcesofthevaluablehorses”.　　ThesecondoneisBurman’scriticalopinionaboutEmperorQinshihuang.AccordingtoBurman，althoughQinshihuangisoftencreditedwiththe“innovations”ofasinglestandardforweightsandmeasures，infactsimilarmeasureshadalreadybeenintroducedby

7、thepowerfulcourtadvisorShangYangduringthereignofDukeXiaoofQin.Besides，“Wereitnotfortheastonishingfactofhismausoleumandtherediscoveredterracottaarmy，thefourteen-yearruleofthisdynastycouldalmostbeconsignedtoafootnoteinthelongannalsofChinesehistory.”　　T

8、hethirdoneisBurman’sintroductionofBuddhisminXi’an.HenotonlyillustratestwoChineseprogenitorsofChineseBuddhismFaXianandXuanZang，butalsomentionsthenamesofsomeWesternerswholaidsolidfoundationsforthedisseminationofBuddhism，includingAnShigao，Lokaksema，andD