描繪古絲路 需要好畫筆

沈衛星

《外國文物里的絲綢之路》獲得國家新聞出版署“絲路書香”工程出版資助后，英文版的翻譯和編校工作即將完成并要付梓了。作為編著者，回想中文版和英文版的編撰過程，感慨良多。

講好絲路故事需更多國外專業聲音

觀察歷史，可以有不同角度。也只有建立來自各方位的審視點，才能對歷史有著全面深入的認知。想起當時之所以做了編撰該書的這一決定，除了上述的原因外，也還有其他幾方面的因素促成，不妨在此亮明一下我的心跡。

第一，畢竟“一帶一路”本由歷史深處走來，文博界最能融通古今、承接中外，有世界共通的語言。從文物考古入手，能夠在那些被歷史雪藏的原初物品和珍貴線索中，讓中外讀者較為真切地看到中國的“一帶一路”與古絲綢之路之間有著怎樣的血脈延續和精神聯結，從而打開審視、欣賞和思考的新窗口。

第二，雖然“絲綢之路”的文物考古和博物館藏品研究星星點點不少，但由多個國家出自多樣作者之手的橫向發聲不多，如果做較為集中而全面的掃描，不失為一種新意。另外，考古發現和博物館藏品也是大眾最為關注的興趣點之一，容易走近讀者。

第三，越是多元主體參與，越需要多樣聲音共鳴。講好絲路故事，就是要引入更多國外的專家、學者、業者發聲。在我國對古絲路已然說得很多的情況下，如何引入更多國外專家學者業者發聲，向世人講述中國和其他各國在古絲綢之路所作的貢獻，這是絲綢之路乃至“一帶一路”對外傳播的重要課題。如果出版外文版，用圖書“走出去”的方式進行國際傳播，有利于向國際社會展示中國文化源遠流長及與世界各國的友好交往，彰顯中華民族早在絲綢之路形成時期就砥礪精進、擁抱世界的開放姿態，提升世界對絲綢之路和“一帶一路”的關注度，為“和平、發展、合作、共贏”理念提供智力支撐。我認為這是一項意在主動尋找增進對話、理解、互信的工作，也是讓我下決心編著的最重要因素。

南疆之行，給我觸動很大。2019 年7 月，我因公務出差到新疆，當驅車行進在南疆的帕米爾高原，無論是紅旗拉甫口岸中巴人貨交通的喧騰，還是塔什庫爾干瓦罕走廊的寂靜，都仿佛正在訴說新絲路與古絲路接續的故事，這也對編著文集注入了新的動力。

文物考古是歷史的顯微鏡

如果說文物是歷史的見證者的話，那么考古是歷史的顯微鏡。古絲綢之路蘊含著極為豐富的自然信息、歷史謎題和人文內涵，載有豐厚的物質性、社會性和文化性，是文博界一座挖掘不竭的富礦。

與國內對古絲綢之路熱火朝天的研究相比，國外的文博界又是什么樣的狀況？特別是沿線國家對古絲綢之路正在進行怎樣的文物考古發掘？開展哪些方面的研究？取得哪些新的成果？博物館里的藏品有否新的發現和展示？哪些專家學者在其研究領域具有代表性？怎樣向他們表達清楚本書的定位和寫作要求？……一旦進入實際工作狀態，諸多問題便紛至沓來。

所幸的是，經過簡單的觀察、調研后發現，自中國提出“一帶一路”倡議后，世界各國文博界在古絲路方面，考古有新發現，研究有新拓展，藏品有新開掘，許多方面都不斷有新推進。因此，當我真正與外國專業人士接觸后，便發現古絲綢之路在國際社會的文物考古領域已經變成競相開掘的富礦了。

不知不覺間，邀約的稿件由案頭的零星幾篇，到逐漸堆疊增厚，時時感覺來自各個國家的文章內容愈來愈豐滿，信息也漸趨清晰和多樣。我從外國專家的筆下發現，中國與絲路沿線各國家之間，雖然有荒漠與大川、草原與戈壁、山鄉與澤國等萬千阻隔，盡管充斥其間的不乏朔風嘯叫、惡浪滔天、百獸怒號，但陸、海、草的絲綢之路，在車輳轔轔、帆影幢幢、駝鈴聲聲中，早已將高原屋脊與大洋深處、巍峨城邦與星布村落之間聯結成一片。其間，榮衰不斷變換，新舊不斷交替，重心不斷移位，閉塞之地逐漸變成開放之城，動人的故事在精美瓷盤中傳遞，美妙的交流就隱藏在絲織的錦繡圖案中。

最終，我選定17 篇外國作者的稿件，它們來自美國、英國、法國、俄羅斯、日本、以色列、土耳其、巴基斯坦、伊朗、哈薩克斯坦、塔吉克斯坦、烏茲別克斯坦、泰國、印度等國家，作者中有各大學和文化機構的專業研究人員，也有文博界的業內掌門人，他們均秉持權威的專家身份，開放的學術姿態，從各自的考古、文博等領域將最新發現和成果欣然呈現，觀點闡發新穎，研究視角獨特，論述過程嚴謹，判斷時盡量多用“可能”“或許”等詞語，而不是妄下結論，顯示出應有的客觀、求真、務實的探究作風。

刷新學界業界研究發現新高度

編著的過程，同樣也是一次發現的過程。

這些學界、業界的文章，凝結著作者的智慧和心血，為我們提供了對古絲路新的研究角度、新的發現領域、新的歷史結論。

以海洋、城市、陵墓、港口等為核心的田野考古是一項既枯燥又辛苦還要冒風險的工作，然而背后也有令人驚喜的收獲，如英國杜倫大學考古學系的古鐵雷斯和杰拉德兩位教授，在對西班牙海域的考古發現進行研究后指出：“‘海上絲綢之路的終點可能早在唐代就已延伸至西歐，而非此前認為的晚至明代，這一重大發現將中歐陶瓷貿易起始時間向前推進了500年。”這真是一個振奮人心的消息。還有像巴基斯坦真納大學阿什拉夫和阿里夫、伊朗原德黑蘭大學考古系主任唐內希普、印度喀拉拉邦跨學科考古科學發展研究所所長切利安等專家，他們在各自研究領域取得突破性進展時的歡欣，也令我感同身受。

而英國牛津大學考古學院榮譽研究員奈杰爾 · 武德、美國美利堅大學人類學系教授庫沙姆巴、日本沖繩縣立藝術大學教授森達也等幾位考古學者，則在先進技術和儀器的應用方面堪稱典范，不僅大大提升了獲取信息的能力，也提出了有科學性、創見性的認識，其研究成果充分展示了當代高科技在考古發掘中的作用。

以新發掘的出土文物為研究對象和佐證依據，并結合歷史文獻來對古絲路在演進過程中的蛛絲馬跡和規律性認識作出獨到闡釋，是這次來稿中的又一重要方面。代表專家有法國的艾克斯 · 馬賽大學教授波特、以色列的特拉維夫大學孔子學院院長戈爾德施密特、哈薩克斯坦的中央國家博物館考古中心主任哈米特、塔吉克斯坦的國家博物館考古和錢幣學系主任多伍迪等。

來自俄羅斯莫斯科國立東方藝術博物館館長西多夫、烏茲別克斯坦撒馬爾汗國家博物館保護區首席專家拉克馬托娃、土耳其安卡拉哈吉 · 巴伊拉姆 · 維利大學文學院教授吉來 · 菲丹和土耳其總統府國家宮殿管理局藝術歷史學家阿爾帕伊、塔吉克斯坦國家博物館游覽與群眾部負責人肯扎夫、泰國文化部藝術局高級顧問瑞蘇查特等專家，他們對自己國家博物館里的絲路藏品頗為驕傲，以絲綢、陶瓷、金銀器等為代表的手工業遺存為切入點，深入淺出地向人們講述了古絲路的深遠歷史背景和呈現的無窮魅力。

中外文博界的一次對話

我想表達的是，絲綢之路的巨幅畫卷，離不開各種筆畫的繪就。 如果說這本文集有什么意義的話，我認為它曾經用綿薄之力做過一掬飲、一抔土的綴補工作。如果能在打通歷史淵源、交流絲路精神、共享文博研究上有所裨益的話，我將很欣慰。也希望這本由外國專家撰寫的專題論集，不僅是一次外國文博界的橫向呈現，也是中外文博界的一次遙契和對話吧。

為了尋求本文集的特色，我試圖將其打造成一個 “大家”寫給大眾的項目，兼顧學術性與可讀性。這樣，信息飽滿，注重悅讀，自然成了追求。便更加致力于通過外國考古挖掘和館藏文物所呈現的史料文獻和藏品圖片，對散落四海的絲路歷史碎片進行準確梳理、互相印證，寓枯燥的研究于平實的敘述中，幫助讀者獲得新穎而有史識、鮮活而有依據的絲路圖景，進而從親近絲路歷史文化和燦爛文明中獲得深厚滋養。為便于悅讀，配以300 多幅珍貴文物圖片資料，使之圖文并茂。

最后，我想說的是，通過這本文集，再一次表明，近年來國外有關古絲路的重大考古發現接連不斷，各國博物館相關藏品也有更為深入的挖掘和更多的主題性展出，這些不僅大大觸發了人們對發生在數千年前這條繁華貿易通道的感知，也深化了人們對古絲路上不同歷史階段社會、經濟、農業、手工業、城市建設等的理解，原有的很多事件和細節由此變得更加形象、直觀、清晰。而更重要的是，它們彌補了史料記載的缺失，刷新了學界研究的高度，為進一步探索和揭示古絲路歷史奧秘提供了新的起點和新的可能性，也為人們真切感知其迷人魅力找到新的載體，更為今天的“一帶一路”建設打通物質和精神上的血脈。

（作者系中國政法大學光明新聞傳播學院院長、教授、博士生導師，光明日報原副總編輯。）

Brushes from Abroad to Paint the Picture of

the Silk Road

By Shen Weixing

When I was the deputy editor-in-chief at Guangming Daily， I often pondered on a question： how to make full use of the newspapers resources to improve the international influence of the Chinese culture， enhance Chinas soft power， promote cultural exchanges between China and the world， and ultimately present a true， three-dimensional and comprehensive China to the world？

In May 2017， when the Belt and Road Forum （BRF） for International Cooperation was held in Beijing， I led the team of Guangming Daily for the coverage of the event. Four years ago， the Chinese President Xi Jinping unveiled the “Silk Road Economic Belt” and “21st Century Maritime Silk Road” initiative， later collectively known as the Belt and Road Initiative， which immediately won praises all around the world， in particularly from countries along the Belt and Road. Now， ideas were needed on how best to implement relevant policies and carry out related programs. Against such a background， 29 foreign heads of state and governments and representatives from more than 130 countries and 70 international organizations came to the BRF for mutual cooperation and open development.

At the time， a book entitled The Silk Roads： A New History of the World by the Oxford historian Peter Frankopan deeply attracted me. For me， it was among the best newly published books of foreign scholars on the history of the ancient Silk Road. Shaking off the eurocentrism and hubris commonly seen in similar works， he argued that the Silk Road had played a key role in connecting the East with the West， in particular emphasizing the important role that the Belt and Road Initiative played.

The BRF and Frankopans book prompted me to pay more attention to the latest research on the Silk Road; they also became the catalyst for this book： if leading scholars from across the globe could be invited to write on the ancient Silk Road， such an anthology would present more perspectives and arguments. Once the idea was born， like a seed， it began to take root and germinate. After much thinking， I finally decided to start from archeological discoveries and museum collections， and came up with the title “Cultural Relics along the Silk Road”.

History can be interpreted from different angles. Only through multiple perspectives can we have a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of history. Apart from the abovementioned reason， several other factors also contributed to my choosing “cultural relics” as the main subject of the book. For one thing， the Belt and Road Initiative was born out of history after all. Researchers in the fields of archeology and museology share a universal language and are the best ones to literally dig into the past and see its connection with the present – in this case the continuity between the Belt and Road Initiative and the ancient Silk Road.

For another， while studies abound on the cultural relics and museum collections along the Silk Road， a comprehensive research that “connects the dots”， i.e. a multiple-country-multiple-authored study， is still lacking. And a book on the archeological findings along the Silk Road is also what the common readers are interested in today.

More important， perhaps， is the fact that a book that gathers a host of eminent foreign scholars and that is written in English is one of the best ways to tell the “China story” to the world， to show the overseas audiences the contributions that China and the countries along the Silk Road have made.

Compared with the booming interest in the ancient Silk Road among Chinas archeologists and scholars， what is it like in the other countries？ In particular， what kind of archeological excavations are being carried out in countries along the ancient Silk Road？ What kind of research is being conducted？ What new achievements have been made？ Are there any new discoveries and exhibits in the museums collections？ Which experts and scholars are the leading ones in their fields of study？ How do you communicate to them the purposes and requirements of the book？ ... Once actual work started， many questions needed to be answered.

Fortunately， after some initial investigation， I found that new discoveries， new studies and new progress have been steadily made after China proposed the Belt and Road Initiative. When I began to get in touch with those foreign experts in earnest， I realized that this field is truly a rich mine waiting to be tapped.

Gradually， more and more submissions arrived at my desk， and ultimately， I have chosen 17 of them， whose authors coming from the US， the UK， France， Japan， Israel， Turkey， Pakistan， Iran， Russia， Kazakhstan， Tajikistan， Uzbekistan， Thailand and India. While oceans and mountains apart， these articles all manage to tell moving stories through each and every piece of past relics. Through their meticulous and rigorous research， these scholars are able to present the latest developments and ideas in their fields to the readers.

For example， Professors Alejandra Gutiérrez and Christopher Gerrard from Durham University argued that the end of the Maritime Silk Road may have already extended into Western Europe during the Tang times （618-907）， instead of the commonly believed Ming period （1368-1644）， which means Sino-European trade in porcelain started 500 years earlier than previously thought. Nigel Wood， Honorary Research Associate from Oxford University， Professor Kusimba from American University in Washington and Professor Tatsuya Mori from Japans Okinawa Prefectural University of Arts have all exceled in applying advanced technologies and instruments to obtain important information in archeology. To name just a few. And to help readers better understand the research， over 300 pictures and illustrations of rare cultural relics have been made available in the book.

The Silk Road is akin to a giant painting， which cant be completed without various kinds of brushes. By assembling papers from all over the world， this book intends to achieve that very end. If the book can be of any value and service in transmitting the history of the Silk Road， promoting its spirit and sharing the latest research， I would be more than happy.