In the thirteenth century the Mongols created a vast transcontinental empire that transported skilled artisans from one cultural zone to another. Among those transported were Muslim textile workers, resettled in China, where they made clothes for the imperial court. In a fascinating account, the author considers the significance of cloth and color in the political and cultural life of the Mongols. Situated within the broader context of the history of the Silk Road, the book will interest not only historians of the Middle East and Asia, but also art historians and textile specialists.

Thomas Allsen is one of the foremost historians of the Mongol empire. His latest book breaks new scholarly boundaries in its exploration of cultural and scientific exchanges between Iran and China. Contrary to popular belief, Mongol rulers were intensely interested in the culture of their sedentary subjects. Under their auspices, various commodities, ideologies and technologies were disseminated across Eurasia. The result was a lively exchange of scientists, scholars and ritual specialists between East and West. The book is broad-ranging and erudite and promises to become a classic in the...

Thomas Allsen is one of the foremost historians of the Mongol empire. His latest book breaks new scholarly boundaries in its exploration of cultural and scientific exchanges between Iran and China. Contrary to popular belief, Mongol rulers were intensely interested in the culture of their sedentary subjects. Under their auspices, various commodities, ideologies and technologies were disseminated across Eurasia. The result was a lively exchange of scientists, scholars and ritual specialists between East and West. The book is broad-ranging and erudite and promises to become a classic in the...

In the thirteenth century the Mongols created a vast transcontinental empire that transported skilled artisans from one cultural zone to another. Among those transported were Muslim textile workers, resettled in China, where they made clothes for the imperial court. In a fascinating account, the author considers the significance of cloth and color in the political and cultural life of the Mongols. Situated within the broader context of the history of the Silk Road, the book will interest not only historians of the Middle East and Asia, but also art historians and textile specialists.

The Royal Hunt in Eurasian History Thomas T. Allsen From antiquity to the nineteenth century, the royal hunt was a vital component of the political cultures of the Middle East, India, Central Asia, and China. Besides marking elite status, royal hunts functioned as inspection tours and imperial progresses, a means of asserting kingly authority over the countryside. The hunt was, in fact, the "court out-of-doors," an open-air theater for displays of majesty, the entertainment of guests, and the bestowal of favor on subjects. In the conduct of interstate relations, great hunts were used to train...

The focus of Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi is on the political, social, economic and linguistic history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from late antiquity to the Mongol Empire and its successor states. Among its primary concerns are questions regarding the Iranian steppe peoples, the Huns, the Oghur and Bulghar Turkic peoples, the Sabirs, the Avars, the Khazars and other peoples of the Turk Empire, the Hungarians, Pechenegs, Cumans and peoples of the Mongol Empire. The periodical will also touch on many points in the history of the Slavic world, Crimea, Byzantium,...

The focus of Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi is on the political, social, economic and linguistic history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from late antiquity to the Mongol Empire and its successor states. Among its primary concerns are questions regarding the Iranian steppe peoples, the Huns, the Oghur and Bulghar Turkic peoples, the Sabirs, the Avars, the Khazars and other peoples of the Turk Empire, the Hungarians, Pechenegs, Cumans and peoples of the Mongol Empire. The periodical will also touch on many points in the history of the Slavic world, Crimea, Byzantium,...

The focus of Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi is on the political, social, economic and linguistic history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from late antiquity to the Mongol Empire and its successor states. Among its primary concerns are questions regarding the Iranian steppe peoples, the Huns, the Oghur and Bulghar Turkic peoples, the Sabirs, the Avars, the Khazars and other peoples of the Turk Empire, the Hungarians, Pechenegs, Cumans and peoples of the Mongol Empire. The periodical will also touch on many points in the history of the Slavic world, Crimea, Byzantium,...

The focus of Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi is on the political, social, economic and linguistic history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from late antiquity to the Mongol Empire and its successor states. Among its primary concerns are questions regarding the Iranian steppe peoples, the Huns, the Oghur and Bulghar Turkic peoples, the Sabirs, the Avars, the Khazars and other peoples of the Turk Empire, the Hungarians, Pechenegs, Cumans and peoples of the Mongol Empire. The periodical will also touch on many points in the history of the Slavic world, Crimea, Byzantium,...

The focus of Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi is on the political, social, economic and linguistic history of the peoples of the Eurasian steppes and adjoining regions from late antiquity to the Mongol Empire and its successor states. Among its primary concerns are questions regarding the Iranian steppe peoples, the Huns, the Oghur and Bulghar Turkic peoples, the Sabirs, the Avars, the Khazars and other peoples of the Turk Empire, the Hungarians, Pechenegs, Cumans and peoples of the Mongol Empire. The periodical will also touch on many points in the history of the Slavic world, Crimea, Byzantium,...