The Maritime Silk Road in the Han Dynasty: Evidence Provided by Beryl Beads Unearthed from Tombs in Guangdong and Guangxi Regions China

XIONG Zhaoming1*, HUANG Shuyu1, LI Qinghui2, and LV Liangbo3

The beryl beads of the Han Dynasty unearthed in China are concentrated in tombs in Guangxi and Guangdong, the coastal areas of southern China, and date from the late Western Han Dynasty to the late Eastern Han Dynasty (32 BCE - 220 CE). The owners of the tombs were generally of high status. These beryl beads include three varieties: aquamarine, goshenite and heliodor, totalling 168 beads. They are diverse in shape, mainly in various prismatic forms. Research suggests they originated in southern India or the Malay Peninsula in Southeast Asia and were directly related to the Maritime Silk Road trade. In northern Changsha City, Hunan Province, scattered discoveries have been unearthed, which should be the result of an inland circulation from Guangdong and Guangxi. Even in the capital region of the Han Dynasty and the vast southwestern region of China, such archaeological discoveries have not been reported until now.