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Tokharians and Uighurs of
the City States of Central Asia in
Frescos etc from the Tarim Basin

Tumshuk


Warriors from Tumshuk



Helmet, Tumshuk



Helmet, Tumshuk



Statue fragment from Toqquz Sarai, Tumshuk



Kumtura and Kizil {Qyzil} Caves (near Kucha)


Capture of Bimbisara, Kumtura.



Kizil Cave of the Sixteen Sword Bearers



Helmet, Kizil



Kizil cave donor figures



Kizil Cave of the Sixteen Sword Bearers



Stele of l'ui-zcika



Kizil cave 305, Eight Kings of the relics



Avalokitesvara
Armour

Kizil cave of the Painter



Warrior, Blue
Cave, Kizil


Karashahr {Qarasahr} and Shorchuk {Šōrčuq} (between Kucha & Turfan)


Stucco relief
figures, 'Ming-oi'



Stucco reliefs of horses 'Ming-oi', Kara-shahr.



Armoured Cavalrymen from Šōrčuq
in a Siege of Kushinagara scene



Cavalryman
from
Šōrčuq

Armour,
Naga Cave,
Sorcuq

Armoured Men from Karashahr




City on the Yâr {Yarkhoto} (near Turfan)


Cavalryman in the city on the Yar


Chotscho {Xoqo, Khocho, Qočo}, Bezeklik {Bäzäklik} Caves (east of Turfan)


Christian Temple, Chotscho



Bezeklik fresco, Temple No. 9



Bezeklik fresco, right wall of Cella (inner chamber), Temple No. 9



A Manichaean Illumination



Bezeklik fresco, Temple No. 1



Bezeklik fresco, Pranidhi scene No. 6, Temple No. 9



Bezeklik fresco, Pranidhi scene No. 14,
Temple No. 9

Leg Armour & Stirrup
from Chotscho

Manichaean Silk Painting,
Chotscho

Uighur Face Defence,
Chotscho

Uighurian Princes,
Temple 9, Bezeklik

Uighurian Princesses,
Temple 9, Bezeklik

Uighurian Prince,
Temple 19, Bezeklik

Astāna


Horseman from
Astāna cemetery

Armoured
Horseman

Mucilinda cave, Tuyoq (70 km east of Turfan)


An armoured bodhisattva from Mucilinda cave, Tuyoq


Dandān-uiliq (near Khotan)


Horseman and
camel-rider

Four armed Bodhisattva
in Persian style costume

Horseman with
offering bowl

Statue
Dandan-Uiliq
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A Map of Central Asia showing Tumsuk, Kizil, Kumtura, Kuça, Sorçuk, Karasahr, Turfan, Astana, Khotan and Dandan-Uilik
Wind-sock standards
Preserved shoes and hats
Some of the material removed to Germany was destroyed during WWII.
Main Source: Rare books at the National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Background articles in English
Reference: EXCAVATIONS iv. In Chinese Turkestan Encyclopaedia Iranica



Referenced on pp. 173-4, vol. 1, The military technology of classical Islam by D Nicolle
    The spread of lamellar armour from Central Asia across the Muslim world is altogether easier to chart. Its terminology is generally less contentious and the illustrated material is simpler to interpret. As discussed earlier: such a form of defence may have originated in the ancient Middle East but by the immediate pre-Islamic centuries lamellar armours of iron or a mixture of iron and bronze were far more characteristic of Central Asia and eastern Iran than the Fertile Crescent35 (Figs. 61, 67, 82, 428, 435, 437, 440, 443, 451, 453, 454, 455, 462, 463, 464, 471, 472, 474, 478, 480 and 481). There is, however, some evidence to suggest that they were known in 7th century Arabia, although they are likely to have been rare.36 Indeed, lamellar would seem to have been highly prized and expensive even in those Transoxanian regions where it was not common, and remained so well into the Muslim era.37
    The increased importance of lamellar in eastern Islam and in the partially subdued Christian regions of the Caucasus is clearly documented as is its spread westward into Muslim Anatolia towards the end of the period under review39 (Figs. 220B, 306, 309, 316, 348, 410, 442, 444, 447, 638, 641 and 642C). References could be multiplied ten- or twenty-fold if one included all those concerning armours known to be of lamellar, such as the jawshan and kamarband, rather than simply those that described lamellar, its appearance, construction or fastenings.

35. Robinson, Oriental-Armour p. 130; Laufer, op. cit., pp. 208 and 214; W. Hauser, "The Persian Expedition, 1933-1934," Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art XXIX (1934), p. 8.
36. Schwarzlose op. cit., pp. 327 and 346.
37. Narshakhī, op. cit., p. 46; al Ṭabarī: op. cit., vol. II, pp. 256 and 1889.
38. Firdawsī, op. cit., pp. 270, 273, 427, 688 and 953; Anon., The Book of Dede Korkut, p. 166; Rust'haveli, op. cit., verse 220.



See also Central Asian Warrior, from Qieszil, Tarim Basin (?), 5th–early 6th century, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 51.94.1
Cup with horseman, Khwarezm c.7th to beginning of the 8th Century, in a coat with large lapels.
Sogdian murals from Panjakent, 6th-8th Centuries
A Sogdian Mortuary Couch, Bas Relief, Northern Qi dynasty, A.D. 550-577
Armoured cavalrymen attacking a fortress, Semireçye, Central Asia, 9th-10th century, Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
Tomb Figure of a Horse with Central Asian Rider, China, Tang Dynasty (618-907). Newark Museum 92.488.

Ancient Illustrations and Articles
8th century Illustrations of Costume & Soldiers
Index