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

by the knoll, which makes the spot exceptionally well adapted for the purposes of a travellers'
shelter, had seemed sufficient on the occasion of my previous visit to justify my recognizing in
the ruined enclosure 'the last remains of the ancient structure to which Hsüan-tsang's record
refers'. The close survey of the ground that more favourable conditions as to time and assistance
now rendered possible fully confirmed this conclusion. It showed me that the south-western
portion of the large enclosure was once occupied by a block of quarters, forming a rectangle whose
outside measurement was 58 by 55 feet (see plan, Pl. 1). The lines of the main walls, two and
a half feet thick for the most part and of the same construction as the outer enclosure, could be
traced quite clearly on the ground even without excavation, though broken down almost to the
surface level. The ground plan comprised two rows of five rooms each, ranged on either side of
an inner courtyard measuring approximately 53 by 26½ feet. The rooms showed a uniform dimen-
sion of nine and a half feet square and were divided from each other by walls one and a half feet
thick. The disposition of these rooms leaves no doubt about their having been intended for travellers'
quarters and the inner court for the storage of caravan goods, &c., while the unoccupied portion
of the larger enclosure outside would serve for the transport animals. The worst winds over the
Chichiklik-maidān seem to blow from the north-east, and whoever planned this ancient Sarai
may have left the northern and eastern sides of the outer enclosure unoccupied for the purpose
of allowing the animals to seek shelter under those walls from the cutting blasts.

Antiquity
of struc-
tural
remains. The fact that the grave mounds are now found uniformly scattered over the whole area, including
the portion occupied by the quarters, proves the structure to have been in its present state of complete
decay for a very long period. It is possible that the ancient hospice was already in ruins when
seen by Hsüan-tsang; for his account, as contained in the available translations of the Hsi-yü-chi,
gives indeed a full account of the legend about its saintly foundation as he heard it, but leaves us
in doubt whether the pious traveller himself enjoyed its protection. It only remains for me to add
that plentiful fragments of pottery found outside the enclosure and on the adjoining ground prove
that the spot was occupied as a usual halting-place for caravans, &c. The two huts that a Chinese
'Amban' had had built some 200 yards away to the north-west, which in 1906 afforded modern
proof of the suitability of the spot for a hospice, were now found completely in ruins though only
erected since 1903. Their rapid disappearance serves to illustrate the severe climatic conditions
and also, by contrast, the solid construction of the ancient hospice, which has left its clear traces
even after the lapse of so many centuries.

Descent
through
Tangi-tar
gorge. From the Chichiklik eastwards I had to follow once more the route which leads down to
Tar-bāshi and through the extremely confined rock gorges of Tangi-tar (Fig. 68). I have fully
discussed on a previous occasion the antiquarian and quasi-personal interest attaching to this
trying defile, owing to the adventures experienced there by Hsüan-tsang and nearly a thousand
years later by Benedict Goës.⁹ I need only add that on my descent to Tar-bāshi I noticed clear
indications of ancient glaciation in large ancient moraines and in a succession of plateau-like
steps, which seemed to mark the terminal points reached at different geological periods by the
glacier that once filled the valley. There can be little doubt that the Chichiklik-maidān, too,
owes its peculiar configuration to the former presence of a big glacier completely covering the
head of the Shindi valley.

Division
of parties
at Toile-
bulung. On September 15th our routes divided at Toile-bulung, a Kirghiz grazing ground with patches
of cultivation, where the stream from the Tangi-tar defile joins the one descending the Buramsāl
valley from the north (Map 2. D. 4). Lāl Singh moved off by rapid marches eastwards in order
to reach, via Yārkand and Khotan, that portion of the main K'un-lun range above Kapa and