Report on archaeological investigation and excavation of Loulan: Chinese scholars have a say in Loulan research

2022-02-11

Loulan is an important kingdom in the history of the western regions. Whether from the history of the relationship between the western regions and the Central Plains Dynasty or from the position in the cultural exchange between the East and the west, Loulan plays an extremely important role and has been widely concerned by the academic circles for a long time. At the same time, Loulan is a great power in the western regions that completely disappeared due to the changes of natural conditions. For today's academic circles, especially scholars in archaeology, geography, environment, history, climate and other disciplines who pay attention to the impact of the ecological environment on human beings, Loulan is a very attractive issue, which has aroused the efforts of many scholars at home and abroad for many years, making Loulan a continuous hot topic in the world. The study of Loulan in modern sense should begin with the archaeological excavation of Loulan by Swedish Explorer Sven heding in 1900. In 1903, the English version of his documentary travel notes, Central Asia and Tibet, was published; Then, from 1904 to 1907, he wrote eight volumes of the scientific achievements of travel in Central Asia from 1899 to 1902, which aroused the interest of ordinary readers and professional scholars in Loulan and Lop Nur. In 1906, British archaeologist Stein went to Loulan and systematically investigated and excavated most of the city sites and tombs in Loulan before the arrival of other expeditions he speculated. In 1912, he first published two volumes of his personal travel notes "the ruins of Sha burying Khitan"; Then in 1921, a five volume official archaeological report, archaeological Atlas of the western regions, was published. In fact, where Loulan's treasure can go into Stein's bag as much as possible. In 1909, shortly after he left, Ju Ruichao of the Japanese otaku expedition explored the ancient city of Loulan and obtained the "Li Baiwen book" proving that Haitou and Loulan were located. Stein came here again in 1914 and got something. From 1927 to 1935, during the Sino Swiss northwest scientific expedition, Chinese team member Huang Wenbi dug wooden slips of the Han Dynasty at the Tuyin site, and Swiss team member Bergman excavated the prehistoric cemetery at the Xiaohe site, all of which are very important archaeological discoveries. Since then, the archaeological excavation of Loulan was interrupted. After the founding of new China, it became a nuclear test base. Many areas, including Loulan City, were once listed as military restricted zones and ordinary people were not allowed to enter. Therefore, for a long time, there are not many scholars who really have a voice in Loulan, because most scholars are not personally involved. Even if they have been to Loulan, few people can start digging. In 1980, the God of luck fell on Mr. hou can of the Institute of Archaeology of the Xinjiang Academy of social sciences. At that time, China Japan diplomatic relations were normalized, and Japan NHK proposed to enter Loulan to shoot the Silk Road, which was approved by Chinese state leaders. After a survey, hou can led an archaeological team into Loulan in April of that year to make a formal archaeological investigation and excavation of Loulan and its nearby sites. As a result, he became the first archaeologist in Xinjiang to engage in Loulan archaeology after the China Switzerland northwest scientific expedition. Moreover, the archaeological excavation of Loulan under his auspices has obtained a wealth of cultural relics and literature materials, filled some gaps in China's archaeological work, gave Chinese scholars a voice in Loulan research, and attracted the attention of the international academic community. Shaking off the sand and soil on his body, Mr. hou can, who returned to Urumqi, continued to write. By March 1987, he had completed the report on the archaeological investigation and excavation of Loulan. This is the official report of archaeological investigation and excavation presided over by him. It gives a detailed description of the process of investigation and excavation and the cultural relics obtained from archaeological excavation, and makes a detailed analysis and research compared with the similar items excavated by predecessors. It is illustrated with pictures and texts, as well as a large number of line drawings and data statistics, which reflects the academic quality of a researcher with a professional background in archaeology. This book can be said to be an important achievement of archaeological research in the new era. Unfortunately, it has not been published for various reasons, and Mr. hou can died in June 2016, which has become a lifelong regret. Another important academic field of Mr. hou can is the study of Turpan documents and epitaphs. Using these two kinds of materials, he has made an in-depth study on the official position and year of gaochangguo. After I graduated from Peking University in 1985, I assisted you in editing the collection of Dunhuang Turpan literature research. I was ordered to contact him and discuss with him about his contribution of the newly unearthed Turpan epitaph after liberation. In the future, I have the opportunity to go to Xinjiang, or Mr. hou can comes to Beijing to meet and study. In 1990, Mr. hou can published the collection of research on Loulan in Gaochang, which was a gift for postgraduates. After retiring in 1998, Mr. hou can moved to Chengdu and still cared about archaeology in Xinjiang. He successively compiled and published three volumes of "integration of Chinese Simplified paper documents in Loulan" (November 1999) and two volumes of "notes to bricks unearthed in Turpan" (April 2003). Today, we are happy to see the publication of his "Loulan archaeological investigation and excavation report", which is worth celebrating. (author: Rong Xinjiang, Professor of Boya lecture at Peking University and President of China Dunhuang Turpan Society) (Xinhua News Agency)

Edit:Li Ling    Responsible editor:Chen Jie

Source:Guangming Daily

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