Customer Reviews

The Golden Peaches of Samarkand: A Study of T'ang Exotics

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I myself am not a scholar of China. I found this book while doing a search online about Samarkand, for an historical fiction novel I'm working on. This book tempts me to drop everything else I'm doing in my life, and just study China all the time.

Let me just quickly point out that there are only three or four illustrations in this book, and that they are in black and white. The constant references in other reviews of this book to its "gorgeousness," and beauty, apply to the style in which it is written. It really is a pleasure to read this work. Every page brims over with measured, cadenced sentences that just flow, like terraced waterfalls of prepositional phrases. It all sounds so natural that one suspects that Mr. Schafer actually spoke like this. It simply doesn't have the feel of extensively edited prose... In reading this book, oddly enough, it is best to start with the introduction, and the first chapter, pausing to dwell carefully upon the last two sections of the first chapter, entitled "Exotic Taste" and "Exotic Literature." Then, I recommend taking some time to just browse back and forth, to see what catches your eye. The book isn't really set up to be read straight through cover to cover -- it's more of a wandering browser's feast. Also, it's not a bad idea to return periodically to the table of contents, just to reinstate and solidify your own sense of the context, and the taxonomy of all these funky knick-knacks. Finally, there are kind of a lot of footnotes, but it's usually worth being patient and flipping back and forth to the back of the book. Most of then are pretty interesting.

Some of my personal favorite bizarre, hilarious sections in this book are as follows... "Lamp Trees," "Water Sheep and Ice Silkworms," "Feather Garments," "Dragon's Blood," "Python Bile," "Fish Tusks," (?!?!) and "Fire Orbs." These sections are extremely well presented, placed with related items in eighteen carefully thought out categories, such as Aromatics, Textiles, Industrial Minerals, Sacred Objects, Wild Animals, and so on. Each topic is presented interestingly, with discussions of it's significance, and often with reference to folktales, historical tidbits, or other means of placing the exotica in even cooler contexts.

If you get this book, and enjoy it, I'd like to recommend "Passing Strange and Wonderful," by Yi-Fu Tuan, which is a sort of global historical survey of aesthetic awareness. Chapter nine, especially, deals with the T'ang dynasty, and therefore probably has enhanced relevance for anyone who actually is reading this review. If you enjoy surveys of the unusual, especially in (roughly) this time period, then I'd like to seize this opportunity to recommend "Wonders and the Order of Nature, 1150-1750" written by two eminent historians of science, Lorraine Daston and Katherine Park. It focuses upon Western societies, but has many interesting thematic parallels to this very enjoyable work.

I wish I were some kind of mutant, so I could give this book three or more thumbs up.

This remarkable and highly readable book abounds with information on tribute goods sent to the T'ang Court from all over Asia. These exotic materials included plants, animals, perfumes, drugs, jewels, books, even slaves. Schafer identifies each item as they appeared in the extant writings of numerous Asian and European cultures, and provides anecdotes and stories related to them. Did you know ambergris was known as "dragon spittle" in eleventh century China? Reading this book is like opening a chest filled with the most wonderful treasures in the world.

In the course of acquiring a PhD and writing about 25 books, I've encountered a LOT of scholarly works, but never one as richly textured, evocative, and just plain beautiful as THE GOLDEN PEACHES OF SAMARKAND. It lives up to its title, which is a hard enough act to follow, and takes readers through the splendor and tragedy of T'ang Dynasty China, including the revolt of An Lushan (Rokshan).

He has another book out, THE VERMILION BIRD, which deals with Southeast Asia.

Schafer strikes me as a sort of literary Marco Polo, opening up a strange new world for the specialist and nonspecialist alike.

Five minutes after encountering his book in the NY Public Library (it had been recommended to me by a scholar at Columbia), I knew I was going to have to buy it. It has enriched my cultural life.

Susan Shwartz

... I haven't read any book like this for a long long time. The flowing texture of writing, the unique choice of organization, the depth of the author's knowledge in T'ang empire and its relation with city-states in Serindia as well as other peripheral states, the grasp of Chinese classical literary texts, of this book, clearly set a high standard that's hard to surpass.

This is not a chronicle of events between 7 and 10th century. There is no clear time axis to the theme. Yet it reveals to us a vivid, alternative facade of T'ang empire. It is not an overstatement to say, for me, it is rather shocking to find out that so many things that are considered quintessentially Chinese are actually product of people of many origins. For example, in Chapter II Men | Musicians and Dancers, the most celebrated Chinese classic "Rainbow Chemise, Feathered Dress" was actually a rendition of Serindian song "Brahman". (This song is now lost. Once rediscovered by a lyricst of Sung era, 2-3 centuries later. Lost again later on). This once again strengthen my view of Sinic culture as a fruition of multi-cultural interation.

I do wish author had put in the book a timetable of major political events. He had only one for dynasties timetable, and one succession table for T'ang Emporers. For example, when he repeatedly referred to the conquest by T'ang (Emporor Tai Chung) of Kogoryo, if he has a table for political events we wouldn't have to confer a history book to find it out what year that's and how that's related to other major events (such as Rebellion of Rokhsan).

Except this tiny blemish, I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in history as well as cultures.

To wrap up this petite review, I would like to put down a few footnotes to the book, for other intelligent readers:

1. The Grand Canal (referred to by the Author as "The River of Transport", a literal translation) was built in the reign of Emporer Young, Sui Dynasty which preceded T'ang.

This one thousands odd miles long acquaduct contribute greatly to the nation's unity, prosperity. Perhaps, for the first time, the economy of the south and the north are truely united.

2. In the book, Author translated Chinese old names for Rome as "the Great Chin". This is correct only in modern times if one is to interpret the word "Da Chin"(Rome) literally. According to some scholar, Da Chin came from the ancient word "Dasina" which means "the one from the west". The other proper name for Rome is "Fu Lin" which derived from "FRome", a phonetic variant of "Rome".

Enjoy the book

I felt the need to write a review after the previous review. The book's title is purposely vague and mysterious (GOLDEN apples? Samarkand?); it's the sub-title which clarifies and tells quite explicitly that this is a book on the physical culture (exotics) of the Tang Dynasty. Why anyone could mistake such a wonderful book for anything else...

I came by this book because of its tantalizing title: The Golden Peaches of Samarkand. Who can resist such a juicy exotic invitation? I couldn't, so I plunged into this intriguing essay on Tang exotics and I must say I emerged enriched.
Edward Schafer (1913-1991) was truly a great Chinese scholar because in an university scenario in which much had already been said on the Tang period and on the scientific and cultural life of Chine during the Early Middle Ages (that by the way for the Chinese represent what for Europe was the Renaissance if a similar comparison in proper) by major scholars such as Needham, he managed to create and original, interesting and nowadays indispensable reference book for that historical period. In a plethora of texts that all give a different view of the same topics endlessly repeating the known historical facts, this "microhistory" essay tangentially describes Tang civilization touching and exploring the lives and desires of rich men in another age.

The Tang Dynasty (618-907) ruled during a period in which China probably was the most advanced civilization of the world and as in all rich societies the search for the superfluous became a necessity. The development of commerce by land and see, the safety of the Silk Road to the West and the political necessity or at time the disinterested pleasure of foreign kings in sending gifts and tokens of gratitude to the Tang emperors all contributed to the afflux to Chang'an (the Tang capital of the times) of all the strangest, rarest and most expensive luxury goods. This stimulated the emperors' and the peoples curiosity giving way to more requests, descriptions in poetry, amazing tales, representations in art and downright falsifications of these exotic artefacts.

Kunstkammers have always been the expression of the culture and richness (remember Rudolph the II in Prague) and have represented a further stimulus to civilization. Reading this book we are amazed by the quantity and quality of foreign goods known by the Chinese. Schafer, with a beautiful prose, often interrupted by his own or A. Waverly's translation (translator of The Monkey) of Chinese poems by major Tang artists, leads us by categories to a deep knowledge of the period's reality and imagination. A apparently sterile catalogue of men, domestic and wild animals, birds, furs and feathers, plants, woods, foods, aromatics (spices), drugs, textiles, pigments, minerals, jewels, metals, secular and sacred objects and books in reality opens up like with a magical key an infinity of little rooms full of "mirabilia", each linked to stories, poems, sages and monks, pharmacists and alchemists, emperors and their wives and court men.

Other reviewers have suggested not to read the book cover to cover, but to skim through it following your curiosity. Actually I went through the book cover to cover, reading all the notes that represent more than one fifth of the text and I did not find it particularly heavy. Instead I was stimulated all along to consult other books for the illustrations, which unfortunately are missing for the major part. I received great help from the beautiful "Three Thousand Years of Chinese Painting" by Yang Xin and others, and I also from the old book on "China, a History in Art" by Bradley Smith and Wan-go Wen. For the historical reference I used J.A.G. Robert's the "A Concise History of China" that helps to understand the economical and political situation.

Naturally, this book would be best read with a solid preparation in Chinese history but I think it is enjoyable even without it. Surely it awakes curiosity for further study of that magnificent historical period.

A golden nugget in Chinese historiography.

The Golden Peaches of Samarkand has been very well-beloved by professional Sinologists ever since it first came out in 1963. Happily, it still remains available, 44 years later, in this paperback incarnation. The book features an obsessivly complete listing, with judicious commentary, of nearly every trade product that came into Tang China by sea or land. Equally helpful, are the end notes which reference each such product to the Chinese sources that mention it.

However, general readers will want to know that this is a very detailed reference book that is mostly of interest to professionals. Don't be misled by the glowing (and deservedly so) scholarly reviews! An example:

"PATCHOULI

A Malayan mist yields the fragrant black oil which was called malabathron or phyllon Indikon, "Indian leaf," in the classical West. Its Sanskrit name is tamala-pattra, but we know it by a name derived from Tamil, paccilai, "green leaf." In Chinese, patchouli was called "bean-leaf aromatic," from its appearance..."

If the idea of reading 300 pages like this turns you on, hey, go for it :-)

This work is brilliant. That said, don't pick this up expecting to read cover to cover. View it more as a thematically-organized encyclopedia of T'ang exotics and you'll enjoy the experience much more. A must-read for any student of the T'ang period.

What a marvelous study of the T'ang Dynasty! A comprehensive, yet manageable compilation of the rich variety of objects that influenced the lives of those living in China during this period,
based upon the works of international scholars. Scholarly yet easy to read; fascinating in scope; intelligently presented; stimulating and appropriate quotations from respected sources; well-
selected illustrative photographic plates; attractive cover; many useful resources including bibliographies, notes, tables, glossaries, a map (references are approximately one fourth of the book).
This book is an ideal selection for my study group. Each member will report on one section. A gem!

When this book arrived yesturday I couldn't wait to dive into it. I'm doing a research project on medieval aviculture in China and had heard from a friend this book might have key information I was looking for. Sure enough, the information is golden. But the bibliography is NOT, so much that I have to downgrade from 5 stars to 3 stars. All over the notes section are abbreviations that you cannot readily find explained. Rather than just copying and pasting the names of the works, you get TTT and the like. hello, but what is that???

Bibliographies and notes have to be useful so that researchers like me can consult the same sources used in the work. This work is beautiful and reads well, but is terrible to check out. How can I check sources if there's no way to figure out what the sources used really are? How do I determine if there were rose breasted cockatoos in China if I cannot see the original for myself? Maybe this author doesn't know a cockatoo from a cockapoo! It's why I'm expected to check the bibliography and read the originals. So read the book but don't expect to get great research out of it.

Oh and one more thing: he doesn't use hanyu pinyin in this book. I don't know what romanization system he's using, but heck that I can figure out who, what, or where when it comes to Chinese language words and names! Again, this is important for a researcher!

Would it hurt to write "Beijing" instead of "Peking?"