CENTRAL ASIA.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 307, 21 September 1908, Page 7

CENTRAL ASIA.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL TREASURES. (UT TELEGBArK—I'UESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRIGHT.) London, September 18. Dr. M. A. Stein, who since 1906 has been conducting an archaeological and geographical expedition in Chinose Turkestan, has discovered m a refuse heap at Kara-Shahr paintings and sculpture, also a large collection of Indian, Chinese, and Tibetan writings of tho eighth .century. EXPLORERS AT WORK. BUDDHIST PICTORIAL ART-TEE GEEAT WALL. Central Asia, which has lately yielded so much of interest to Dr. Sven Hedin and Dr. M. A. Stein, is just now one of the most attractive fields for exploration. This remark- especially applies to the western depondoncies of the Chinese Empire—Tibet and Eastern Turkestan. The exploratory work in these regions during 1007 has been thus summarised:—"ln 190G-7, Dr. Sven Hedin carried out a journey through Tibet from its north-western borders to Shigafee, and from Shigatso to the western borders of Tibet up tho valley of the San-po or Upper Brahmapootra. Further north, Dr. M. A. Stein, with the support of the Indian Government and the British Museum, renewed in 1906 his archaeological and geographical investigations along tho southern borders of Chinese TnTkestan. His excavations among tho sand-buried ruins in the desert have brought to light numerous remains throwing much light on both the human and tho physical history of tho region. In July, 1907, Dr. Stein arrived at Su-chou, on the borders of the Chinese province of Kan-sui having traversed the wholo of Chinese Turkestan from west to east in rather more than twelve months. Simultaneously a French expedition under M. Pelliot has been at work pursuing archaeological and geographical investigations in tho northern districts of Chinese Turkestan. Dr. Tafol, a German geologist, continued in 1907 extensive explorations on the borders of Eastern Tibet and China proper, and early in the year a French expedition under Captain d'Ollono started to journey through the western provinces of from south to north." Advices dating up to December 10, 1907, indicated that in the canon-like valley formed by tho stream of Tashi, Dr. Stein found an interesting series of Buddhist cave temples, still forming a place of pilgrimage and closely resembling in character and date the "Halls of tho Thousand Buddhas" near Tun-huang, but less extensive. Tho large and well-preserved fresco compositions which decorate their walls supply fine illustrations of Buddhist pictorial art, unmistakably Indian in origin, as practised in this region from tho Bth to tho 12th century a.d. ELEVATED GOLD MINING. On tho Talai-shan range, Dr. Stein fonnd some gold-mining pits at an elevation of 13,000 ft. They are worked for. a few months annually, as tho weather permits. By tho beginning of August tho snow had barely melted. Tho three northernmost ranges of tho Central Nan-slmn riso to peaks of"18,000-19,000ft. Dr. Stein's explorations of old fortifications snom to indicate that the "Great Wall" of ICansu extended much further to the west than modern writers believed. Part of tho Wall, dating from tho 2nd century, n.0., was used to safeguard tho narrow belt of oases which marked tho passago from China into Eastern Turkestan. That was in the days wlien China's spirit was to expand westward. Another part of tho Wall, dating from tho 15th or 16th century, was built for tho opposite purpose—to close t.lio great route towards Central Asia and the West, at a period when China had onco more resumed her traditional attitndo of seclusion. At somo distance from tho villago of Chiaotzo, Dr. Stein saw tho ruins of a town abandoned about tho I2th-13th century. Tho remains of a canal, whioli brought water to tho site, aro traceablo for a long distance.