Kamboja-Dvaravati Route
Encyclopedia
The Kamboja–Dvaravati Route is the name given in old Jataka
literature to an ancient land trade route that was an important branch of the Silk Road
during antiquity and the early medieval era.
It connected the Kamboja Kingdom in today's Afghanistan
and Tajikstan via Pakistan
to Dvārakā and other major ports in Gujarat, India
, permitting goods from Afghanistan
and China
to be exported by sea to southern India, Sri Lanka
, the Middle East
and Ancient Greece
and Rome
.
The road was the second most important ancient caravan
route linking India with the nations of the northwest.
The Kamboja-Dvaravati trade route began at the seaport of Dvaravati. It passed through the Anarta
region to Madhyamika, a city near Chittor. South of Aravalli, the road reached the Indus River
, where it turned north. At Roruka (modern Rodi), the route split in two: one road turned east and followed the river Sarasvati to Hastinapura
and Indraprastha, while the second branch continued north to join the main east-west road (the Uttarapatha Route
across northern India from Pataliputra to Bamyan) at Pushkalavati
..
From Pushkalavati, the Kamboja-Dvaravati and Uttarapatha routes ran together to Bahlika
through Kabul
and Bamyan. At Bahlika, the road turned east to pass through the Pamir Mountains
and Badakshan, finally connecting with the Silk Road
to China
.
and Kamboja) had economic and political relations with the western Indian kingdoms (Anarta
and Saurashtra) since Pre-Christian
times. This commercial intercourse appears to have led to the adoption of similar sociopolitical institutions by both the Kambojas and the Saurashtras.
and Begram, bear evidence to a close trade relationship between the region and ancient Phoenicia
and Rome
to the west and Sri Lanka
to the south.
Because archaeological digs in Gujarat have also found ancient ports, the Kamboja–Dvaravati Route is viewed as the logical corridor for those trade items that reached the sea before traveling on east and west..
From the port of Dvaravati at the terminus of the Kamboja–Dvaravati Route, traders connected with sea trading routes to exchange goods as far west as Rome
and as far east as Kampuchea
. Goods shipped at Dvaravati also reached Greece
, Egypt
, the Arabian Peninsula
, southern India
, Sri Lanka
, Myanmar
, the land of Suwannaphum
(whose location has still not been determined) and the Indochinese peninsula.
Dvaravati was, however, not the only port at the route's terminus. Perhaps more important was Barygaza or Bharukaccha (modern Bharuch
, located on the mainland to the east of the Kathiawar
peninsula on the river Narbada.
Horse dealers from north-west Kamboja traded as far as Sri Lanka, and there may have been a trading community of them living in Anuradhapura
, possibly along with some Greek traders.. This trade continued for centuries, long after the Kambhojans had converted to Islam in the 9th century CE..
The chief export products from Kamboja were horses, ponies, blankets
embroidered with threads of gold
, Kambu/Kambuka silver
, zinc
, mashapurni, asafoetida
, somvalak or punga, walnuts, almonds, saffron
, raisins and precious stones including lapis lazuli
, green turquoise
and emeralds.
The commerce of the western Indian coast was lucrative. Bharukacchan and Soparan traders who established settlements or trading posts in the Persian Gulf
reaped enormous profits from the Indo-Roman trade and, according to the Vienna Papyrus, written in the mid-2nd century AD, paid high rates of interest.
There is good archaeological evidence of Roman
trade goods in the first two centuries CE reaching Kamboja and Bactria through the Gujarati peninsula. Archaeologists have found frescoes, stucco decorations and statuary from ancient Phoenicia and Rome in Bamian, Begram and Taxila in Afghanistan..
Goods from Rome on the trade route included frankincense, coral of various colors (particularly red), figured linen from Egypt
, wines, decorated silver vessels, gum, stone, opaque glass and Greek or European slave?women. Roman gold coins were also traded and were usually melted into bullion in Afghanistan,, although very little gold came from Rome after 70 CE. In exchange, ships bound for Rome and the west loaded up in Barbaricum/Bharukaccha with lapis lazuli from Badakshan, green turquoise from the Hindu Kush
and Chinese silk (mentioned as reaching Barbaricum via Bactria in The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea).
and Afghanistan
. A fragment of a Gandhara
Buddha statue
in schist
was recently unearthed from the excavations at Jetavanaramaya
in Anuradhapura. Other finds in Sri Lanka, such as lapis lazuli of the Badakshan type, connect that island with Kamboja, ancient source of the material.
Jataka
The Jātakas refer to a voluminous body of literature native to India concerning the previous births of the Buddha....
literature to an ancient land trade route that was an important branch of the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
during antiquity and the early medieval era.
It connected the Kamboja Kingdom in today's Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and Tajikstan via Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
to Dvārakā and other major ports in Gujarat, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, permitting goods from Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
to be exported by sea to southern India, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
and Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
.
The road was the second most important ancient caravan
Camel train
A camel train is a series of camels carrying goods or passengers in a group as part of a regular or semi-regular service between two points. Although they rarely travelled faster than the walking speed of a man, camels' ability to handle harsh conditions made camel trains a vital part of...
route linking India with the nations of the northwest.
The route
Anarta
Anarta was an ancient Indian region which corresponded to the present-day North Kathiawar region of Gujarat state-Anarta in the Puranic literature:...
region to Madhyamika, a city near Chittor. South of Aravalli, the road reached the Indus River
Indus River
The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...
, where it turned north. At Roruka (modern Rodi), the route split in two: one road turned east and followed the river Sarasvati to Hastinapura
Hastinapura
Hastinapur is a town and a nagar panchayat in Meerut district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.-History:Hastinapur was the capital of the kingdom of the Kauravas, belonging to the Kuru dynasty of kings. The throne of this city was the prize over which the Kurukshetra War of the epic...
and Indraprastha, while the second branch continued north to join the main east-west road (the Uttarapatha Route
Uttarapatha
Ancient Buddhist and Hindu texts use Uttarapatha as the name of the northern part of Jambudvipa, one of the "continents" in Hindu mythology.The name is derived from the Sanskrit terms uttara, for north, and patha, for road...
across northern India from Pataliputra to Bamyan) at Pushkalavati
Pushkalavati
Pushkalavati is an ancient site situated in Peshawar valley in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located on the banks of Swat River, near its junction with Kabul River, now it is known as Charsadda...
..
From Pushkalavati, the Kamboja-Dvaravati and Uttarapatha routes ran together to Bahlika
Bactria
Bactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
through Kabul
Kabul
Kabul , spelt Caubul in some classic literatures, is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. It is also the capital of the Kabul Province, located in the eastern section of Afghanistan...
and Bamyan. At Bahlika, the road turned east to pass through the Pamir Mountains
Pamir Mountains
The Pamir Mountains are a mountain range in Central Asia formed by the junction or knot of the Himalayas, Tian Shan, Karakoram, Kunlun, and Hindu Kush ranges. They are among the world’s highest mountains and since Victorian times they have been known as the "Roof of the World" a probable...
and Badakshan, finally connecting with the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
to China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
Land trade
Both the historical record and archaeological evidence show that the ancient kingdoms in the northwest (GandhāraGandhara
Gandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
and Kamboja) had economic and political relations with the western Indian kingdoms (Anarta
Anarta
Anarta was an ancient Indian region which corresponded to the present-day North Kathiawar region of Gujarat state-Anarta in the Puranic literature:...
and Saurashtra) since Pre-Christian
Pre-Christian
Pre-Christian may mean:*before Christianization**historical polytheism *BC**Classical Antiquity**Iron Age...
times. This commercial intercourse appears to have led to the adoption of similar sociopolitical institutions by both the Kambojas and the Saurashtras.
Historical records
References in both Hindu and Buddhist scriptures mention trading activities of the ancient Kambojas with other nations:- The ArthashastraArthashastraThe Arthashastra is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and military strategy which identifies its author by the names Kautilya and , who are traditionally identified with The Arthashastra (IAST: Arthaśāstra) is an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, economic policy and...
by Kautiliya, a treatise on statecraft written between the 4th century BCE and the 4th century CE, classifies the Kamboja and Saurashtra kingdoms as one entity, since the same form of politico-economic institutions existed in both republics. The text makes particular mention of warfare, cattle-based agriculture and trade. The description tallies with those in the Bṛhat Saṃhitā, a 6th century CE encyclopedia and the major epic MahabharataMahabharataThe Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
, which makes particular reference to the wealth of the Kambojas.
- Buddhist sources such as literature in the AvadānaAvadanaAvadāna is the name given to a type of Buddhist literature correlating past lives' virtuous deeds to subsequent lives' events...
collection also refer to the "Kamboja-Dvaravati land road".
Archaeological evidence
Numerous precious objects discovered in excavations in Afghanistan, at Bamyan, TaxilaTaxila
Taxila is a Tehsil in the Rawalpindi District of Punjab province of Pakistan. It is an important archaeological site.Taxila is situated about northwest of Islamabad Capital Territory and Rawalpindi in Panjab; just off the Grand Trunk Road...
and Begram, bear evidence to a close trade relationship between the region and ancient Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
and Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
to the west and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
to the south.
Because archaeological digs in Gujarat have also found ancient ports, the Kamboja–Dvaravati Route is viewed as the logical corridor for those trade items that reached the sea before traveling on east and west..
The seaport and international trade
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
and as far east as Kampuchea
History of Cambodia
- Prehistory and early history :Carbon 14 dating of a cave at Laang Spean in northwest Cambodia reveals people who made pots were living in Cambodia as early as 4200 BCE . Further archaeological evidence indicates that other parts of the region now called Cambodia were inhabited from around...
. Goods shipped at Dvaravati also reached Greece
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
, Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, the Arabian Peninsula
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Pre-Islamic Arabia refers to the Arabic civilization which existed in the Arabian Plate before the rise of Islam in the 630s. The study of Pre-Islamic Arabia is important to Islamic studies as it provides the context for the development of Islam.-Studies:...
, southern India
History of Kerala
The history of Kerala goes back more than several millennia. Stone age carving in Edakkal Caves had pictorial writings believed to be dating to at least 5000 BC, from the Neolithic man, indicating the presence of a prehistoric civilization or settlement in this region. From as early as 3000 BC,...
, Sri Lanka
History of Sri Lanka
The History of Sri Lanka begins around 30,000 years ago when the island was first inhabited. Chronicles, including the Mahawansa, the Dipavamsa, the Culavamsa and the Rajaveliya, record events from the beginnings of the Sinhalese monarchy in the 6th century BC; through the arrival of European...
, Myanmar
History of Myanmar
The history of Burma covers the period from the time of first-known human settlements 13,000 years ago to the present day. The earliest inhabitants of recorded history were the Pyu who entered the Irrawaddy valley from the north c. 2nd century BCE. By the 4th century CE, the Pyu had founded...
, the land of Suwannaphum
Suwannaphum
' , , is the name of a land mentioned in many ancient sources such as the Chronicle of Sri Lanka , some stories of the Jatakas, and Milinda Panha...
(whose location has still not been determined) and the Indochinese peninsula.
Dvaravati was, however, not the only port at the route's terminus. Perhaps more important was Barygaza or Bharukaccha (modern Bharuch
Bharuch
Bharuch , also known as Broach, is the oldest city in Gujarat, situated at the mouth of the holy river Narmada. Bharuch is the administrative headquarters of Bharuch District and a municipality of more than 1,50,000 inhabitants. As Bharuch is a major seaport city, a number of trade activities have...
, located on the mainland to the east of the Kathiawar
Kathiawar
Kathiawar or Kathiawad is a peninsula in western India, which is part of the Saurashtra region on the Arabian Sea coast of Gujarat state. It is bounded on the north by the great wetland of the Rann of Kutch, on the northwest by the Gulf of Kutch, on the west and south by the Arabian Sea, and on...
peninsula on the river Narbada.
Horse dealers from north-west Kamboja traded as far as Sri Lanka, and there may have been a trading community of them living in Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura
Anuradhapura, , is one of the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka, famous for its well-preserved ruins of ancient Lankan civilization.The city, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, lies 205 km north of the current capital Colombo in Sri Lanka's North Central Province, on the banks of the historic...
, possibly along with some Greek traders.. This trade continued for centuries, long after the Kambhojans had converted to Islam in the 9th century CE..
The chief export products from Kamboja were horses, ponies, blankets
Blankets
Blankets may refer to:* Blankets , a graphic novel by Craig Thompson.* Blankets , an accompaniment to aforementioned novel from Tracker, an American indie rock act* Plural of Blanket...
embroidered with threads of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
, Kambu/Kambuka silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
, zinc
Zinc
Zinc , or spelter , is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
, mashapurni, asafoetida
Asafoetida
Asafoetida , alternative spelling asafetida, is the dried latex exuded from the living underground rhizome or tap root of several species of Ferula, which is a perennial herb...
, somvalak or punga, walnuts, almonds, saffron
Saffron
Saffron is a spice derived from the flower of Crocus sativus, commonly known as the saffron crocus. Crocus is a genus in the family Iridaceae. Each saffron crocus grows to and bears up to four flowers, each with three vivid crimson stigmas, which are each the distal end of a carpel...
, raisins and precious stones including lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli is a relatively rare semi-precious stone that has been prized since antiquity for its intense blue color....
, green turquoise
Turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrous phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula CuAl648·4. It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gem and ornamental stone for thousands of years owing to its unique hue...
and emeralds.
Historical records: western sea trade
The sea trade from the southern end of the Kamboja–Dvaravati Route to the west is documented in Greek, Buddhist and Jain records:- The 1st century CE Greek work The Periplus of the Erythraean SeaPeriplus of the Erythraean SeaThe Periplus of the Erythraean Sea or Periplus of the Red Sea is a Greco-Roman periplus, written in Greek, describing navigation and trading opportunities from Roman Egyptian ports like Berenice along the coast of the Red Sea, and others along Northeast Africa and India...
mentions several seaports on the west coast of India, from BarbarikonBarbarikonBarbarikon was the name of a sea port near the modern-day city of Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, important in the Hellenistic era in Indian Ocean trade...
at the mouth of the Indus to Bharakuccha, SoparaSoparaSopara or Soparaka was an ancient port town and the capital of the ancient Aparanta. The site of this ancient town is located near the present day Nala Sopara town in the Thane district of the state Maharashtra, India.Nala Sopara is one of the busiest western suburbs of Mumbai city...
, Kalyan and MuzirisMuzirisMuziris is an ancient sea-port in Southwestern India on the Periyar River 3.2 km from its mouth. The derivation of the name Muziris is said to be from "Mucciripattanam," "mucciri" means "cleft palate" and "pattanam" means "city". Near Muziris, Periyar River was branched into two like a...
. The Periplus also refers to Saurashtra as a seaboard of Arabia.
- A century later, PtolemyPtolemyClaudius Ptolemy , was a Roman citizen of Egypt who wrote in Greek. He was a mathematician, astronomer, geographer, astrologer, and poet of a single epigram in the Greek Anthology. He lived in Egypt under Roman rule, and is believed to have been born in the town of Ptolemais Hermiou in the...
's The Geographia also refers to Bharakuccha port as a great commercial center situated on the Narbada estuaryEstuaryAn estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
. Ptolemy also refers to Saurashtra as Syrestrene.
- The 7th century CE Chinese traveler Yuan ChwangXuanzangXuanzang was a famous Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator who described the interaction between China and India in the early Tang period...
calls Saurashtra Sa-la-ch'a and refers to it as "the highway to the sea where all the inhabitants were traders by profession".
- Undated ancient Jain texts also refer to heavy trade activity in Saurashtran seaports, some of which had become the official residences of international traders.. Bharakuccha in particular is described as donamukha, meaning where goods were exchanged freely. The Brhatkalpa describes the port of Sopara as a great commercial center and a residence of numerous traders.
- Other ports mentioned in texts include VallabhiVallabhiVallabhi is an ancient city located in Saurashtra peninsula in Gujarat, in western India, near Bhavnagar. Also known as Vallabhipura, it was the capital of the ancient Maitraka dynasty.- Origins and history :...
(modern ValaValaVala can refer to:Caste* Vala, a Rajput clan found in Gujarat in IndiaPeople* Numonius Vala, a Roman family name, or any of the men of that name* Vala , an Indo-Aryan name and surnameFiction...
), a flourishing seaport during the MaitrakaMaitrakaThe Maitraka dynasty ruled Gujarat in western India from c. 475 to 767. The founder of the dynasty, Senapati Bhatarka, was a military governor of Saurashtra peninsula under Gupta Empire, who had established himself as the independent ruler of Gujarat approximately in the last quarter of 5th century...
dynasty in the 5th through 8th centuries CE. The existence of a port at KamboiKamboiKamboi is an ancient village/town located in chanasma taluka, in Patan district, in the modern Indian State of Gujarat. This place is at a distance of 10 km west of Chanasma on the Harij-Mehsana road. It has post office Postcode number of 384230....
is attested in 10th c. CE records
The commerce of the western Indian coast was lucrative. Bharukacchan and Soparan traders who established settlements or trading posts in the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
reaped enormous profits from the Indo-Roman trade and, according to the Vienna Papyrus, written in the mid-2nd century AD, paid high rates of interest.
Archaeological evidence: western sea trade
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
trade goods in the first two centuries CE reaching Kamboja and Bactria through the Gujarati peninsula. Archaeologists have found frescoes, stucco decorations and statuary from ancient Phoenicia and Rome in Bamian, Begram and Taxila in Afghanistan..
Goods from Rome on the trade route included frankincense, coral of various colors (particularly red), figured linen from Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, wines, decorated silver vessels, gum, stone, opaque glass and Greek or European slave?women. Roman gold coins were also traded and were usually melted into bullion in Afghanistan,, although very little gold came from Rome after 70 CE. In exchange, ships bound for Rome and the west loaded up in Barbaricum/Bharukaccha with lapis lazuli from Badakshan, green turquoise from the Hindu Kush
Hindu Kush
The Hindu Kush is an mountain range that stretches between central Afghanistan and northern Pakistan. The highest point in the Hindu Kush is Tirich Mir in the Chitral region of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.It is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram Range, and is a...
and Chinese silk (mentioned as reaching Barbaricum via Bactria in The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea).
Historical records: eastern sea trade
The eastern and southern sea trade from the ports at the southern terminus of the Kamboja–Dvaravati Route is described in Buddhist, Jain and Sri Lankan documents.- Ancient Buddhist references attest that the nations from the northwest, including the Kamboja as well as the Gandhara, Kashmira, Sindhu and Sovira kingdoms were part of a trade loop with western Indian sea ports. Huge trade ships regularly plied between Bharukaccha, Sopara and other western Indian ports, and southern India, Sri Lanka, MyanmarMyanmarBurma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
, Suwannaphum and the Indochinese peninsula. In particular, literature in the Buddhist AvadānaAvadanaAvadāna is the name given to a type of Buddhist literature correlating past lives' virtuous deeds to subsequent lives' events...
collection refers to a saint named Bahiya Daruciriya who was born in the port of Bharakuccha and who made several trade voyages. He sailed the length of the Indus seven times, and also travelled across the sea as far as Suwannaphum and returned safely home. Also, the 4th century CE PaliPáli- External links :* *...
text Sihalavatthu refers to Kambojas being in the Province of Rohana on the island of Tambapanni, or Sri Lanka.
- An undated Jain text mentions a merchant sailing from Bharukaccha and arriving in Sri Lanka in the court of a king named Candragupta.
- There is also a tradition in Sri Lanka, (recorded in the Pūjāvaliya) that Tapassu and Bhalluka, the two merchant brothers, natives of Pokkharavati (modern PushkalavatiPushkalavatiPushkalavati is an ancient site situated in Peshawar valley in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is located on the banks of Swat River, near its junction with Kabul River, now it is known as Charsadda...
) in what then was ancient Kamboja-Gandhara and now is the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan, "visited the east coast of Ceylon and built a Cetiya there.". In addition, several ancient epigraphic inscriptions found in a cave in AnuradhapuraAnuradhapuraAnuradhapura, , is one of the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka, famous for its well-preserved ruins of ancient Lankan civilization.The city, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, lies 205 km north of the current capital Colombo in Sri Lanka's North Central Province, on the banks of the historic...
refer to Kamboja corporations and a Grand Kamboja Sangha (community) in ancient Sinhala, as early as the 3rd century BC.
- Several IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian records mention an embassy from a Sri Lankan king to the Iranian emperor Anusharwan (531-578). The Sri Lankan monarch is reported to have sent the Persian emperorEmperorAn emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
ten elephants, two hundred thousand pieces of teakwood and seven pearl divers.
Archaeological evidence: eastern sea trade
Archaeological digs in Sri Lanka have turned up coins, beads and intaglios from BactriaBactria
Bactria and also appears in the Zend Avesta as Bukhdi. It is the ancient name of a historical region located between south of the Amu Darya and west of the Indus River...
and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. A fragment of a Gandhara
Gandhara
Gandhāra , is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
Buddha statue
Buddharupa
Buddharūpa is the Sanskrit and Pali term used in Buddhism for statues or models of the Buddha.-Commonalities:...
in schist
Schist
The schists constitute a group of medium-grade metamorphic rocks, chiefly notable for the preponderance of lamellar minerals such as micas, chlorite, talc, hornblende, graphite, and others. Quartz often occurs in drawn-out grains to such an extent that a particular form called quartz schist is...
was recently unearthed from the excavations at Jetavanaramaya
Jetavanaramaya
The Jetavanaramaya is a stupa, located in the ruins of Jetavana Monastery in the sacred world heritage city of Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka. King Mahasena initiated the construction of the stupa following the destruction of Mahavihara, his son Maghavanna Ithe construction of the stupa...
in Anuradhapura. Other finds in Sri Lanka, such as lapis lazuli of the Badakshan type, connect that island with Kamboja, ancient source of the material.