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Aurel Stein on the Silk Road

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BY SUSAN WHITFIELD

CHICAGO: SERINDIA PUBLICATIONS, 2004
143 PAGES, ISBN 10: 1-932476-11-3, HARDBACK

REVIEWED BY ROBERT W. FOSTER

Book cover for Aurel Stein on the Silk RoadDr. Susan Whitfield has a number of publications dealing with the Silk Road. Aurel Stein on the Silk Road is an enjoyable, light introduction to one of the leading figures in the development of Silk Road studies during the early twentieth century. Dr. Whitfield’s clear prose is injected with moments of dry humor, such as the chapter entitled, “The Cook, The Thief, His Dog, But No Lover,” which encapsulates Stein’s difficulties finding a decent chef, his encounter with a prolific forger, his love for his dogs (all named Dash), and his confirmed bachelorhood.

The 143-page book reads quickly and does not provide detailed information or scholarly analysis of Stein’s life and work in Central Asia, but this does not seem to be Dr. Whitfield’s intention. The book is an entertaining entry to Silk Road lore via the life of one of the area’s early Western explorers. The author tends to focus on “human interest” vignettes, rather than Stein’s archaeology; this choice brings to life the expeditions that are recounted in far greater and drier detail in Stein’s own works. However, Dr. Whitfield does touch upon the major issues related to Stein’s work: British imperialism, the Great Game, the ethical debate regarding removing cultural objects from China for permanent possession in European, American, and Japanese museums, and how Stein’s work greatly expanded our understanding of the history, cultures, and religions of Central Asia.

The real strength of the book is Dr. Whitfield’s meshing of text with ninety-nine images that range from clear photographs of Silk Road Buddhist artwork, to sections of Stein’s hand-drawn maps, to photographs of Stein and the people with whom he interacted. The book contains a useful bibliography and suggested readings for those who would like to delve deeper. As such, the book is a useful intro­duction to the Silk Road and related issues. It is suitable for high school world history classes, but on its own is probably not suitable for collegiate work. It could be used to develop topics for further research using the suggested readings, or in conjunction with the immensely rich International Dunhuang Project Web site at http://iidp.bl.uk, of which Dr. Whitfield is director.