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Year: AD 716-756

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Manufactured by: Suyab, Taraz mint

Provenance:

1. Spink 2022

2. Dr. Werner Burger Collection

The Türgesh Khaganate rose during the Tang Dynasty in China, following the demise of the Western Turkic Khaganate. The relationship between the Turks and the Tang Dynasty was linked to intermarriage and played a crucial role in maintaining the security of the Silk Road.

These coins are said to have been minted during and after the reign of the supreme leader Suluk. Their shape was greatly influenced by Sogdian coins, and the Sogdian coins were modelled after the Tang Dynasty’s “Kaiyuan Tongbao.” This highlights the widespread economic and cultural dominance of the Tang Dynasty across the Eurasian continent.

The obverse of the coins bears Sogdian script, while the reverse features the Tamga, which is the Turkic bow-shaped rune (the letter ‘t’ in Turkic script)!

The precise location of Suyab City became a subject of intense debate in the early 20th century. In AD 1903, French scholar Édouard Émmannuel Chavannes, in his work Documents sur les Tou-kiue (Turcs) occidentaux, identified Suyab City as being near Tokmak. Subsequently, scholars such as Toshio Matsuda agreed with this assertion. Archaeological investigations into the Ak Beshim site began in the late 19th century, but it wasn’t until 1961 that British scholar Gerard Clauson, in his article “Ak Beshim-Suyab” conclusively argued that the Ak Beshim site was indeed Suyab City. In the same year, French orientalist Louis Hambis reached a similar conclusion in her article “Ak-Besim et ses sanctuaires.” Later, in AD 1979, Chinese scholar Zhang Guangda combined literary sources such as the New Book of Tang and
Book of Roads and Kingdoms  by the Muslim geographer
Ibn Khordadbeh, along with archaeological discoveries, argued that Suyab City should be located at the present-day Ak Beshim site. Further evidence was found in AD 1982, when archaeologists discovered a stone tablet with Chinese inscriptions at the site, including the term “Suyab.”

Those academic research and archaeological findings have provided compelling evidence for the identification of Ak Beshim as the location of Suyab City.

物件編號:

年代: 公元 716-756 年

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製造地: 碎葉城，塔拉茲造幣廠

來源:

1. 斯賓克拍賣行 2022

2. 布威納博士舊藏

突厥汗國 (Türgesh Khaganate) 在中國唐朝期間，隨著西突厥汗國的滅亡而興起。突厥與唐朝的關係與通婚有關，對維護絲綢之路的安全有著重要作用。

這些錢幣據說是在最高領導者蘇魯克 (Suluk) 統治期間以及其後所鑄造的。它們的形狀受到粟特(華人稱之為昭武九姓)(Sogdian)錢幣很大影響，而粟特幣的形狀則是參照了唐代的「開元通寶」。這突顯了唐朝在歐亞大陸上廣泛的經濟和文化主導地位。

錢幣正面鑄有粟特文字，背面為突厥的弓形圖騰 (Tamga) (突厥文字的符文字母 ‘t’ )。

碎葉城是唐朝於西域所設的重鎮之一，與龜茲、疏勒、于闐並稱「安西四鎮」。對於碎葉城較早的描述可見於由玄奘法師所著之《大唐西域記》：「清池西北行五百餘里，至素葉水城。城周六七里，諸國商胡雜居也。土宜糜、麥、蒲萄，林樹稀疎。氣序風寒，人衣氈褐。」此素葉即為碎葉城。關於碎葉城的地理位置則可見於由杜環所著之《經行記》：「碎葉國從安西西北千餘里。有秋達嶺。嶺南是大唐北界，嶺北是突騎施南界。西南至葱嶺二千餘里。其水嶺南流者，盡過中國而歸東海。嶺北流者，盡經胡境，而入北海。又北行數日，度雪海。其海在山中，春夏常雨雪，故曰雪海。中有細道，道傍往往有水孔，嵌空萬仞，輒墮者莫知所在。㪍達嶺北行千餘里，至碎葉川。其川東頭有熱海，茲地寒而不凍，故曰熱海。」指出碎葉城東臨熱海（今伊塞克湖），西接塔拉斯。

然而，碎葉城的確實位置在二十世紀初引起白熱化的討論，公元1903年，法國學者沙畹在著作《西突厥史料》中考定碎葉城位於托克馬克附近，及後，學者如松田壽男、伊瀨仙太郎均認同此說。

考古學界對於阿克．貝希姆遺址的考察始於十九世紀末，直至公元1961年，英國學者傑拉德．克勞森在其文章《阿克．貝希姆——碎葉城》(Ak Beshim-Suyab)指出阿克．貝希姆遺址即碎葉城。同年，法國東方學者韓百詩在文章《阿克．貝希姆及其寺院》(Ak-Besim et ses sanctuaires)亦作出相似的結論。

公元1979年，張廣達結合文獻資料，如《新唐書》及由穆斯林地理學家伊本．胡爾達茲比赫所撰之《道里邦國志》以及考古發現，論證碎葉城應位於現今的阿克．貝希姆遺址。公元1982年，考古學家於該遺址發現一塊刻有漢文的殘碑，其中包括「碎葉」。

上述的文獻考究以及考古發現為碎葉城位置的判定提供了有力的證據，使阿克．貝希姆遺址即碎葉城的設想廣被接納。