Through the jade gate : China to Rome : a study of the silk routes during the Later Han Dynasty 1st to 2nd centuries CE : an annotated translation of the chronicle on the 'Western Regions' in the Hou Hanshu - Hill, John E. (BookSurge Publishing, 2015)
Chinese text and English translation of the 'Chronicle on the Western Regions' from the Hou Hanshu.
Volume I includes the original Chinese text, a detailed introduction, maps and comprehensive notes to the text. Volume II has 26 appendices which highlight extra fascinating information of special interest - such as Rhinoceroses, the Story of Sea-silk and the Significance and Use of Skull Cups - and the comprehensive bibliography. This updated, definitive English translation of the complete Chronicle on the Western Regions from theHou Hanshu, presents an intriguing picture of this little-known period of history. It describes the origins of the Silk Routes using information collected from soldiers, merchants, envoys and spies. The text is based on the report to the Chinese Emperor An, circa 125 CE, by Ban Yong, his senior general in the Western Regions.