国立情報学研究所 - ディジタル・シルクロード・プロジェクト
『東洋文庫所蔵』貴重書デジタルアーカイブ

202

tiIAPS OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTUTY.

East of the upper Ganges Witsen accepts the orography of Kircher and Visscher with Consangui mons lapideus, and Belor mons; west of the latter the classical Caucasi montes are still to be seen. In the text he says they are not far

from Imaus.

For the Croceus sive Hoamko Fluvius he chiefly follows Martini. An improvement is that the uppermost course runs W.N-W. to E.S-E., instead of south to north. On the other hand Martini's localisation of Koko-nor was much more correct. Witsen identifies it with Chimoi, or Chiamai lacus.

As usual the greatest confusion prevails in the representation of Central Asia, incl. Tibet. Between the Caucasus and the Altai Witsen has only a narrow space for Tibet, Turchestan and Tanguth. Tibet which had been better placed by Cantelli than on any previous map, now covers a very small region in the far west, while the most famous of all Tibetan plants, the rhubarb, is placed far to the east, on the upper Hwangho. This notion comes from Marco Polo, and therefore we find the legend: »Hier valt veel Rhabarber», near Soeksi sive Sochu, and not far from Tanguth. I

Witsen has a special chapter, Tibet or Tebet, in which he places this country at 42° N. lat., »though others have it at 40°». He has heard that some people make it 20 days' journey round. It is situated to the N.W. of the Chinese province of Xensi, a notion which agrees with Martini's map, but not with his own. According to Father MAGELLAEN's »Description of Clzina» Tibet should be to the east of the Mogol's Empire, and its capital should be called Kaparange. From Chinese sources he relates that to the East of Tibet is a city and province called Utsang, Utsana, Ussangue or Sifan, and he quotes Father Andrade, who tells that Ussang or Ussangue is at a distance of 20 days' journey from China.' This Utsang is the combined province of U and Tsang, but in Andrade's description it simply signifies Lhasa. Gastaldi's Monte Vssonte may be the same as Monte Ussangue or Mountains of Lhasa.

I Already the Arab geographers knew the rhubarb of Tibet. Edrisi says the mountains round Buthink abound in this plant. In his description of the province of Sukchur with the chief city Sukchu which belongs to the General Province of Tangut, Marco Polo says: »Over all the mountains of this province rhubarb is found in great abundance, and thither merchants come to buy it, and carry it thence all over the world. (Yule, Book I, p. 217.) Speaking of Suju, the present Su-chau near Shanghai, Marco Polo makes the mistake to write : »In the mountains belonging to this city, rhubarb and ginger grow in great abundance.» For this rhubarb was brought from Tibet for sale in Su-chau. (Yule, Book II, p. 181, r 83.) Father du Halde says of the rhubarb: »La meilleure est celle de Se tchuan: celle qui vient dans la Province de Chen si & dans le Royaume de Thibe(t), lui est fort inférieure: il en croît aussi ailleurs, mais qui n'est nullement estimée, & dont on ne fait ici nul usage. — Description de la Chine, Tome III, p. 492. Compare also Tome I, p. 42.

2 Andrade's passage runs: »Le Tibet ... comprend le Royaume de Cogué qui est celuy auquel nous demeurons a present (Caparangue, Aoust 1626), celuy de Ladac, de Moriul, Rudoc, Vtsana & deux autres qui sont vers l'Orient, tous lesquels auec le grand Royaume de Sopo, qui confine d'vn costé la Chine, & de l'autre la Moscouie, font la grande Tartarie.» Sopo, Sogpo in Tibetan, is Mongolia. The description is very good.