Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE

Abstract Natron-based glass was a vital part of material culture in the Mediterranean and Europe for nearly two millennia, but natron glass found elsewhere on the Eurasian Continent has not received adequate discussion, despite its influence on ancient Asian glass. Here we present a new interpretati...

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Autores principales:	Qin-Qin Lü, Julian Henderson, Yongqiang Wang, Binghua Wang
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Nature Portfolio 2021
Materias:	Medicine R Science Q
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/0103b26d404d41f282265246f7a766b4
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:0103b26d404d41f282265246f7a766b42021-12-02T13:30:22ZNatron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE10.1038/s41598-021-82245-w2045-2322https://doaj.org/article/0103b26d404d41f282265246f7a766b42021-02-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-82245-whttps://doaj.org/toc/2045-2322Abstract Natron-based glass was a vital part of material culture in the Mediterranean and Europe for nearly two millennia, but natron glass found elsewhere on the Eurasian Continent has not received adequate discussion, despite its influence on ancient Asian glass. Here we present a new interpretation of natron glass finds from both the West and the East. After establishing the compositional types and technological sequence of Mediterranean natron glass (eighth-second century BCE) using trace elements, we report the analysis of a mid-1st millennium BCE glass bead from Xinjiang, China, which was likely made with Levantine raw glass, and identify common types of stratified eye beads in Eurasia based on a compositional and typological comparison. Combining these findings, we propose that a considerable number of Mediterranean natron glass products had arrived in East Asia at least by the fifth century BCE, which may have been a contributing factor in the development of native Chinese glass-making. The swift diffusion of natron glass across Eurasia in the 1st millennium BCE was likely facilitated by a three-stage process involving maritime and overland networks and multiple forms of trade and exchange, indicating a highly adaptable and increasingly efficient transcontinental connection along the ‘Proto-Silk Road’.Qin-Qin LüJulian HendersonYongqiang WangBinghua WangNature PortfolioarticleMedicineRScienceQENScientific Reports, Vol 11, Iss 1, Pp 1-13 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Medicine R Science Q
spellingShingle	Medicine R Science Q Qin-Qin Lü Julian Henderson Yongqiang Wang Binghua Wang Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
description	Abstract Natron-based glass was a vital part of material culture in the Mediterranean and Europe for nearly two millennia, but natron glass found elsewhere on the Eurasian Continent has not received adequate discussion, despite its influence on ancient Asian glass. Here we present a new interpretation of natron glass finds from both the West and the East. After establishing the compositional types and technological sequence of Mediterranean natron glass (eighth-second century BCE) using trace elements, we report the analysis of a mid-1st millennium BCE glass bead from Xinjiang, China, which was likely made with Levantine raw glass, and identify common types of stratified eye beads in Eurasia based on a compositional and typological comparison. Combining these findings, we propose that a considerable number of Mediterranean natron glass products had arrived in East Asia at least by the fifth century BCE, which may have been a contributing factor in the development of native Chinese glass-making. The swift diffusion of natron glass across Eurasia in the 1st millennium BCE was likely facilitated by a three-stage process involving maritime and overland networks and multiple forms of trade and exchange, indicating a highly adaptable and increasingly efficient transcontinental connection along the ‘Proto-Silk Road’.
format	article
author	Qin-Qin Lü Julian Henderson Yongqiang Wang Binghua Wang
author_facet	Qin-Qin Lü Julian Henderson Yongqiang Wang Binghua Wang
author_sort	Qin-Qin Lü
title	Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
title_short	Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
title_full	Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
title_fullStr	Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
title_full_unstemmed	Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE
title_sort	natron glass beads reveal proto-silk road between the mediterranean and china in the 1st millennium bce
publisher	Nature Portfolio
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/0103b26d404d41f282265246f7a766b4
work_keys_str_mv	AT qinqinlu natronglassbeadsrevealprotosilkroadbetweenthemediterraneanandchinainthe1stmillenniumbce AT julianhenderson natronglassbeadsrevealprotosilkroadbetweenthemediterraneanandchinainthe1stmillenniumbce AT yongqiangwang natronglassbeadsrevealprotosilkroadbetweenthemediterraneanandchinainthe1stmillenniumbce AT binghuawang natronglassbeadsrevealprotosilkroadbetweenthemediterraneanandchinainthe1stmillenniumbce
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Natron glass beads reveal proto-Silk Road between the Mediterranean and China in the 1st millennium BCE

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