Ruins of Desert Cathay
Personal Narrative of Explorations in Central Asia and Westernmost China

In this 1912 two-volume work, Hungarian-born archaeologist Marc Aurel Stein describes his second expedition to the deserts of Chinese Turkestan.

M. Aurel Stein (Author)

9781108077521, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 2 October 2014

796 pages, 102 b/w illus. 3 colour illus. 1 map
22.9 x 15.2 x 4.5 cm, 1.15 kg

In this two-volume work, published in 1912, the Hungarian-born archaeologist Marc Aurel Stein (1862–1943) describes his second expedition to the deserts of Chinese Turkestan in 1906–8. (His account of his first expedition, Sand-Buried Ruins of Khotan (1903), is also reissued in this series.) Stein intended this account to be read by non-specialists, and, like his previous book, it is highly illustrated and full of interesting details about his journey and the people he met en route, as well as of the important archaeological discoveries which still link his name with the civilisation of this remote and dangerous area. In Volume 1, Stein describes the problems of setting up the expedition and the excitement and perils of the route, which took him through the tribal areas of the North-West Frontier and the kingdom of Afghanistan, ending with his arrival at the western extremity of the Great Wall of China.

Preface
1. Between Hydaspes and Indus
2. Through Swat and Dir
3. Across the Lowarai
4. In Chitral
5. Through Mastuj
6. On the Darkot Pass
7. In Afghan Wakhan
8. To the source of the Oxus
9. From Sarikol to Kashgar
10. At Chini-Bagh, Kashgar
11. To Yarkand and Karghalik
12. Stay at Kök-yar
13. Along the foot of the Kun-lun
14. My return to Khotan
15. To the Nissa glaciers
16. On the Otrughul glacier
17. In the Karanghu-tagh mountains
18. A feast at Khotan
19. By the desert edge of Khotan
20. The shrines of Khadalik
21. Sites around Domoko
22. To Keriya and the Niya river
23. At the Niya site ruins
24. Records from a hidden archive
25. Last days at a dead oasis
26. To the Endere river
27. From the Endere ruins to Charchan
28. Along the Charchan river
29. At Vash-shahri and Charklik
30. Start for the Lop desert
31. Across an eroded dry delta
32. First excavations at the Lop-nor site
33. Survey of the ancient station
34. Records from an ancient rubbish heap
35. Discovery of art remains
36. Across the desert to the Tarim
37. By the Tarim and Charchan Darya
38. The ruined fort of Miran
39. Finds of Tibetan records
40. Ancient temples of Miran
41. A dado of angels
42. The frescoes of Miran
43. A cycle of festive figures
44. Mural painting of Buddhist legend
45. The start for Tun-huang
46. On old travellers' tracks
47. The last of the dry Lop-nor
48. A strange old lake bed
49. First glimpse of an ancient frontier.

Subject Areas: Archaeology by period / region [HDD]