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

sand to the west and south in which lie the dry beds marking the connection between the
Kuruk-daryá and the present course of the Konche-daryá. ⁷⁶ This area is of particular hydro-
graphical interest as it witnessed the change which sometime after the middle of the third
century A. D. caused the waters of the Konche-daryá and, perhaps, a Târim branch united with
it, to abandon the Kuruk-daryá bed and the easterly direction towards Lou-lan for a south-
easterly course and the subsequent junction with the Târim. ⁷⁷
From Ying-p'an I sent Alrâz-gul to Tikenfik to survey the main Lop–Kara-shahr
route along branches of the Târim and across the Inchike-daryá to the
Survey from 'Dry
River' to Korla. new settlement of Kara-kum on the Konche-daryá. He subsequently
surveyed the course of the latter river as far as Korla. ⁷⁸ I myself
proceeded to this place by Dr. Hedin's interesting desert route of 1896 along the line where
the gravel glacis stretching down from the foot of the Kuruk-tâgh overlooks the riverine
belt of jungle extending along the left bank of the Konche-daryá. This route, now water-
less almost throughout for a length of about a hundred miles, is marked by a series of ruined
towers and watch-stations which my explorations have proved to date back to approximately
the same period as the construction of the Tun-huang Limes (end of 2nd century B. C.).
They clearly mark a continuation of the ancient Chinese high road via Lou-lan.
By the end of the first week of April our four lines of survey had been successfully
brought to their appointed meeting point at Korla, the flourishing oasis
Parties re-united at
Korla. in the north-eastern corner of the Târim basin, Muhammad Yakûb having
rejoined from the Turfân side after a survey of the southern shore of
the Baghrash lake. ⁷⁹ We then set out in three separate parties for the long journey west-
wards with Kâshgar as our common goal. Lâl Singh's task was to keep close to the T'ien-
shan and to survey as much of its southern main range as the early season and the available
time would permit. Muhammad Yakûb, with most of our brave camels, was sent southwards
across the Konche and Inchike rivers to the Târim, ⁸⁰ with instructions to survey its present
main channel to the vicinity of Âbâd in the Yârkand district.
My own antiquarian tasks obliged me to keep in the main to the long line of oases
which fringes the southern foot of the T'ien-shan and through which since ancient times the
chief trade and military route of the Târim basin has always passed. Well-known as is this
high-road, over which lay most of my journey to Kâshgar, some 900 miles in length, yet its
detailed survey proved of distinct interest by the light thrown both on its physical and historical
geography.
By detaching Afrâz-gul wherever the need of inspecting old remains off the main road
rendered this advisable, it became possible to survey also portions of
Surveys around
Kuchâ. the scrub-covered desert southwards before reaching Kuchâ on
April 14th. ⁸¹ Three busy weeks spent within and around this great
oasis, important both on historical and archæological grounds, enabled me with Afrâz-gul's
efficient help to survey in some detail both its present cultivated area and that which, by the
evidence of the numerous ancient sites scattered in the scrubby desert from south-east to
south-west, must have once formed part of it. ⁸² Apart from archæological finds of interest,
these surveys have furnished clear evidence of 'desiccation'. They have shown that the
volume of water available for the irrigation needs of the oasis from the Kuchâ and Muz-art
rivers has considerably decreased within historical times.
The centre of the Kuchâ oasis was touched also by the survey of Lâl Singh who from
Korla had kept as close to the T'ien-shan as transport and other condi-
Lâl Singh's surveys
along T'ien-shan to tions would permit. From Yangi-hissâr he had succeeded in reaching
Ak-su.
the top of the Kara-dawân pass, still covered by deep snow, over which