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Silk Road: The Path of Transmission of Avalokitesvara

The Silk Road is a network of trade routes that provided a bridge between the east and the west. Although the eastern part of the routes had been in use for millennia, the opening of the Silk Road occurred during the first century BCE, when China secured control over the eastern section and began trading with the Roman Empire through intermediary states in Central Asia. From this time until the end of the Mongol Yuan period in the fourteenth century with periods of disruptions, the Silk Road flourished as a commercial and at times military highway. But more than that, the Silk Road was a channel for the transmission of ideas, technologies, and artistic forms and styles, with far-reaching impact beyond China and the Mediterranean world, extending to Southwest Asia, Africa, the Atlantic shores of Europe, and Japanto the east. The transmission of religious faiths—Nestorianism, Zoroastrianism, Manicheaism, Islam, and most notably Buddhism—along the Silk Road had significant influence on many countries. This project explores the path of transmission of Avalokitesvara (the Bodhisattva of Compassion), one of the most important Buddhist deities, on the Silk Road.

Using the Silk Road as a spatial template, this project attempts to create a digital, interactive presentation that allows for comparison of representations of Avalokitesvara across geographic areas and over time, in turn generating new understanding of how the cult of Avalokitesvara spread throughout Asia.

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