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The Present-day Value of Maps Illustrating the Archaeological Surveys of Sir Aurel Stein in Xinjiang and Gansu

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 September 2009

Karl E. Ryavec
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Extract

The maps illustrating the archaeological surveys of Sir Aurel Stein's Central Asian expeditions remain to this day the most authoritative map series concerning the location of archaeological monuments in the Tarim Basin and Gansu Corridor of western China. The aim of this article is to evaluate the present-day value of Stein's maps for both relocating known ancient sites and attempting to locate additional sites on more recent maps. Figure i of this article shows the general area surveyed by Stein's expeditions. This study will be divided into three main parts: (i) a general description of Stein's cartographic surveys in terms of the regions of Xinjiang and Gansu surveyed and features depicted; (2) map series covering this region produced since Stein's surveys, and an outline of the history of the treatment of place names on both Stein's and subsequent maps; (3) an in-depth study of the Niya site area to illustrate both the extent to which Stein's original findings can be relocated on recent maps and the value of such maps for locating additional ancient sites.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society , Volume 3 , Issue 2 , July 1993 , pp. 233 - 243
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Asiatic Society 1993

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References

1 de Rhins, Dutreuil, Mission scientifique dans la Haute Asie, 1890–1895 (Paris, 1897–1898)Google Scholar, and Hedin, Sven, Die geographisch-wissenschaftlichen Ergerbnisse miener Reisen in Zentralasien 1894–1897 (Gotha, 1900)Google Scholar.

2 Stein, A., Memoirs on Maps of Chinese Turkistan and Kansu (Dehra Dun, 1923), p. 9Google Scholar.

3 Ibid., p. 23.

4 Ibid.

5 Ibid., p. 56.

6 Ibid.

7 Ibid., p. 107.

8 Stein, M. A., “Note on maps illustrating Dr Stein’s explorations in Chinese Turkestan and Kansu”, Ceographical Journal (1911), p. 278Google Scholar.

9 Ibid.

10 Ambolt, N. P. and Norin, E., Memoir on Maps, i (Stockholm, 1967)Google Scholar.

11 Stein, , Geographical Journal, p. 277Google Scholar.

12 “Directions for the treatment of geographical names in Sinkiang”, Tentative, Board on Geographical Names, US Department of the Interior (1944)Google Scholar.

13 See “ Announcement concerning the promulgation of Mongolian, Uighur, and Tibetan (Lhasa dialect) place name transcription rules” (“Guanyu Banfa ‘Mongol, Uygur, yu Zang Yu (Lhasa Hua) Diming Yiyin Guize’ de Tongzhi”). General Staff Ministry (in conjunction with) National Survey Institute (1982), Directive No. 336.

14 See “Place name work in retrospect (by the) Place Name Office of Xinjiang” (“Diming Gongzuo de Huigu-Xinjiang Diming Bangongshi”). Place Name Knowledge (Diming Zhishi), (1990), p. 19Google Scholar.

15 Gropp, G., Archäologische Funde aus Khotan (Bremen, 1974), p. 25Google Scholar.

16 Stein, M. A., Memoirs on Maps of Chinese Turkistan and Kansu, p. 57Google Scholar.

17 See for example sheet 29 (Innermost Asia, 1928) that depicts the remains of streambeds in the ancient delta of the Kuruk-darya (the Konqi He of contemporary PRC sources), where the Lou-Ian sites are located.

18 The legend of TPC sheet G–7B contains a note stating “no prominent vegetation is known to exist within the area of this chart”.

19 Concerning the rate of the shifting of sand-dunes covering ancient sites, the observations of Dr Emil Trinkler concerning the Rawak Stupe (see map 14 in the atlas volume of Innermost Asia, 1928) during the archaeological surveys of the German Central Asian Expedition of 1927–8 are particularly informative. “ Wie sehr die Dünen in diesem Teil der Wüste hin- und herwandern, zeigte mir der Vergleich der Stein'schen Spezialkarten vom Rawak-Stupe mit der Lage der Sanddünen z. Z. meines Besuchs. Als Sir Aurel Stein 1901 zum ersten Mai die Ruine besuchte, war die Westecke der Stupe-Anlage unter einer 15 fuß hohen Düme begraben. Sein Lager hatte er damals anscheinend auf derselben Tonterrasse, auf der auch wir Lager geschlagen hatten. Bei seinem zweiten Besuch im jahre 1906 waren die Tonflächen unter Sand begraben, erst im Laufe der letzen Jahre sind sie wieder freigelegt. Die große Düme auf der Nordseite der Stupe-Anlage aber ist immer noch dominierend und macht jegliche Ausgrabungssarbeiten an dieser Seite auch heute noch fast unmöglich.” (Wissenschaftliche Ergebnis der Dr. Trinklerschen Zentralasien-Expedition, Band 1, Berlin, 1932, p. 91Google Scholar.) The frequency of changing stream channels is noted in numerous cases throughout Stein’s works. See also “River changes in the Eastern Tarim Basin”, Geographical Journal (12. 1929), pp. 574–6Google Scholar.

20 The 1990 edition of TPC sheet G–7B inaccurately records this place name as Tülkigikol. The official PRC spelling of this place name is to be found on page 221 of the Zhongguo Diminglu (Gazetteer of China, Shanghai, 1983Google Scholar). This gazetteer provides the romanised forms of more PRC Uighur place names than are shown on PRC maps of Xinjiang.

21 The Yawatongguz He of official PRC sources.

22 Stein, M. A., Ancient Khotan (Oxford, 1907), p. 419Google Scholar.