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| 0412 |
Innermost Asia : vol.1 |
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ing passage the distinct statement that the region in question ' constitutes the northern limit of the
lake '. This will be fully understood if we keep in view the fact that now, as formerly, those very
limited portions of the ancient sea-bed which still hold patches of salt marsh, with soft boggy ground
or with open streaks of salt water, are to be found along the southern shore of the otherwise dried-
up basin.¹² It must be remembered also that the terminal marshes of the Tārim represented by
the present Kara-koshun can be shown to have already occupied in early historical times the south-
western extremity of the basin, and that those once formed by the Kuruk-daryā delta, the ' Yu
marshes ' of Li Tao-yüan, similarly extended into the south-western portion of the basin. Thus
Li Tao-yüan's authority was fully justified in describing the region of the ' Town of the Dragon '
and the great waste of hard salt crust eastwards as ' the northern limit of the lake '.
' Route of
the centre '
in Wei lio. From Li Tao-yüan's interesting account we may turn next to the notice which is nearest in
time and, though brief, has the merit of clear topographical sequence. It is contained in the record
which the Wei lio, composed between A.D. 239–65, supplies of the ' route of the centre ', leading
from Tun-huang past ' ancient Lou-lan ' to the great northern highway of the Tārim basin. This
important record, which M. Chavannes' translation first rendered accessible, has been fully analysed
and discussed in Serindia.¹³ It will therefore suffice to quote the passage concerning this route,
while restricting my comments, except those on the locality which directly interests us here, to
a brief indication of the identifications there established or proposed. The passage runs thus :
' The route of the centre is the one which starting from Yü-mên kuan, sets out on the west, leaves
the well of the Protector General 都 護 井, turns back at the northern extremity of the San-lung
(' Three Ridges ') Sands 三 隴 沙, passes the Chü-lu granary 居 盧 倉 ; then, on leaving
the Sha-hsi well 沙 西 井, turns to the north-west, passes through the Lung-tui 龍 堆 (' Dragon
Mounds '), arrives at the ancient Lou-lan 故 樓 蘭.'
Localities
in Wei lio
itinerary
identified. Even though this itinerary lacks those indications of distances between the several stages
which would have been very helpful, the certainty acquired in the course of my explorations as
regards the starting and terminal points and the guidance afforded by the recorded bearings made
it possible for me, when discussing the passage in Serindia, to locate the intermediate stages
mentioned with great probability. Starting from Yü-mên kuan, the famous ' Jade Gate ', the
position of which in Han times near the ruined fort T. xiv of the Limes west of Tun-huang is
established beyond doubt,¹⁴ the ' route of the centre ' followed the Limes line westwards, just
as the present caravan track does, to its extreme end near the watch-towers T. iv. a, b. There I
place the ' well of the Protector General '.¹⁵ As regards the ' Three Ridges Sands ', the evidence
furnished by the actual configuration of the ground, by the reference to the route which there
' turns back ', and by the very name, makes it practically certain that we have to place them at
the northern extremity of a belt of high dunes crossed by the present caravan route to the east of
Bēsh-toghrak.¹⁶ It is at or near the last-named important halting-place that I consider that the
' Chü-lu granary ' was probably situated.
Location of
Sha-hsi well. For the location of the Sha-hsi well we are afforded valuable help by the statement that the
route on leaving it turned to the north-west. Reference to the map clearly shows that the route
coming from Bēsh-toghrak must have kept to the northern edge of the Bēsh-toghrak valley, in
order to avoid the troublesome and needless crossings of the large eastern inlet of the dried-up
sea. It had then, in order to reach Lou-lan, necessarily to turn to the north-west at the western
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