National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

Sec. vii] LIST OF ANTIQUES FROM RUINS OF TUN-HUANG LIMES   781

weave ; and a fr. of fine exceedingly close-woven dark blue silk, with a pin stripe in buff recurring at intervals of é"• This fabric shows at the selvedge a strip of light brown, and is sewn on one side to silk of bright red; on the other to silk of light buff, frs. of which remain ; sand-encrusted. c. 31" X 3".

T. xiv. a. ii. ow. Wooden hoe. Wedge-shaped head with edge worn with use ; handle a stick, oval in section, with red-brown smooth bark and close-grained wood resembling cherry; fastened to head by means of wedge driven tight into end. Head r i" x 4" x r" toy, handle I'7"X Iâ"Xg". Pl. LII.

OBJECTS FOUND UNDER D]±BRIS AT WATCH-TOWER T. xV

T. xv. I. Neck and rim of pottery jar, wheel-made, of slaty grey-burning clay, hard kiln-fired. Rim sharply everted and capped by secondary ring, giving on the outside a slightly concave bevel to extreme edge ; on inside, sharp cavetto, distinguishing it from curve of rim proper. In the top rim and down the bevelled outer edge, four notches (made after firing) to take strings crossing mouth at right angles and securing stopper. Cf. T. xvl. I. Diam, 5".

T. xv. 001-003. Three wooden knobs as T. xi'. 0015 ; sq. in section below, painted black or red. Gr. length 2.", gr. diam. -g" sq.

T. xv. 004. Hoe-blade of cast iron, socketed to take wedge-shaped end of wooden shaft full width of blade (socket 6g" x"). Sides rounded off at corners to working edge ; one end ground down by use. 64"x r$"; metal at top ie" thick ; total width ". Pl. LIV.

T. xv. 005. Five frs. of iron from old matchlock, found near steps leading up to top of watch-tower ; tied up in a bundle with string ; probably dropped by some hunter while watching from ruin for wild camels. Gr. length 5'.

T. xv. 006. Woven string shoe, hemp ; type of T. xvIII. iii. oor, with the toe forming upturned point. Edge of opening bound with leather ; part of heel lost. Length II", gr. width 4". Pl. LIV.

T. xv. 007. Three frs. from edge of woollen pile carpet; double warp (back and front) of goat's hair (?) yarn, on which the red and yellow wool is wound and knotted, forming pile on either side. The weft is of finer buff woollen yarn, and appears to gather the warp threads

together in groups of four pairs (back and front), interwoven in a species of ' wrapped-twined' weave. Gr. fr. 3" X Ir. Pl. XLIX.

T. xv. oo8. Bronze arrow-head ; general type of T. 007, but head longer and narrower, while the angles end in true barbs ; depressions in all three sides. Cf. T. xxvIII. oor2. Length Ir.

T. xv. oog. Fr. of iron spade or hoe, consisting of socket and upper part of blade ; cast in a mould, as the indications of the joint down the sides evidence. Construction admirable ; the wedge-shaped socket is, on the outside, 31" long, 2" tapering to 14" on the broad face, I "-o on the narrow face ; the blade springs from the sides of the socket 14" from the broad end, and its rounded shoulders are edged by a thickening of the metal ; the socket extends râ" down the blade, giving great strength. Width of blade at widest part is 3a". Well preserved. 4â" x 3a". PI. LIV.

T. xv. ooro. Spade or mattock-blade of welded iron ; shape almost sq., but with concave sides widening slightly to socket ; corners of working edge rounded off. The two sheets of metal welded together about half-way down blade, then opening above to receive wedge-shaped end of wooden shaft ; ends open ; at each upper corner, hole for iron rivet through wood and metal, one remaining, â" long. Depth 5y, width 4r to 5 ", thickness -h" to 4" (open end). PI. LIV.

T. xv. oorr. Strip of red silk fabric, fine corded weave, worn. Length 6".

OBJECTS EXCAVATED FROM REFUSE-HEAPS OF STATION T. xv. A

T. xv. a. oor. Wooden seal-case ; cf. type A, T. vIII. 5. No string grooves, but three string holes pierced level with bottom of cavity, two on one side and third opposite. These " diam. Seal-câvity Ir X I" X 4" ; seal-case 21V x ir x y. PI.LIII.

T. xv. a. 002.ß. Two pieces of figured silk with pattern in rich yellow on blue ground. A double row of rectangular billets, space between billets in each row being about twice the width of billet itself, and billets of one row occurring opposite space in row above, alternate with rows of thin angular meanders variously grouped in' one, two, and four parallel bands with two small spots in each hollow. Part of band of skeleton billets occurs composed of elongated octagons in outline, each enclosing two parallel lines lying

in direction of length of octagon. [Note. This type appears also among silk fabrics from L.C. site, Lou-Ian, excavated r 914.] Larger piece I 8" X I ". PI. LV.

T. xv. a. 003. Fabric frs., including :-14 pieces of silk fabric, buff or light brown (very ragged); r piece dark blue silk; 3 pieces faded blue silk and 2 frs. loose felt. Gr. M. 1'.

T. xv. a. i. 3. Two strips of fawn-coloured silk, plain weave, much worn. The longer, torn at each end, shows by one end impress of seal in black, much effaced. The shorter has selvedge at one end, and shows by this, on one side, impress of seal and three or four Chin. chars. ; on the other side one 1. Chin. chars. See Chavannes, Documents