HUM 111 Rome & China

Rome and China knew about one another. Or, at least, each one knew that there was another large empire across the great expanse of what we now know as Eurasia, even if they were sparse on further details. Rome knew China as Seres, the land from which silk came (at ruinous expense). China knew Rome as Daqin, and perhaps recognized it as the source of glass. However, no Roman that we know of ever got as far as east as China, nor did anyone from China get as far as the Roman empire. There were a couple of near misses on each side (one Chinese ambassador got to Persia but was misled about the remaining distance to Rome and gave up in despair, while a Roman merchant got only a few days’ journey from Chinese-controlled Kashgar), and it’s at least plausible that Byzantine dignitaries visited China (though, since the accounts of such visitors only exist as brief mentions in Chinese records, it’s unclear if they were real Romans/Byzantines, natives of client states claiming to represent the empire, or simply con men), but China and the classical Roman empire never directly contacted one another.