The Legend Of Ancient Tea And Horse Road

The Legend Of Ancient Tea And Horse Road

Among the snow-capped mountains and deep gorges between Tibet and Yunnan, there are 
some mysterious footpaths winding through the mountainsides, some are even carved 
into cliff face crossing one of the most dangerous terrain and uninhabitable area 
in the world.  These footpaths have been called the Ancient Tea-Horse Road. Hardly
 to be called a road, it begins from  Yunnan Province in Southwest China, runs
 along the eastern foothills and deep canyons of several grand rivers, then heads
 into Tibet spanning the two highest plateaus of China (i.e. the Qinghai-Tibet
 Plateau and the Yunnan-Guizhou plateau), and finally reaches India, south of 
the Himalayas. But why have these ancient footpaths been called the Tea-Horse 
Road, who discovered this ancient route into Tibet, and what was the role it
 played in the history?

It can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Tibetan people liked
 drinking Pu'er tea (Pu'er is a name of a prefecture in south Yunnan where 
 farmers raise teas; a kind of fermented or caffeine-free tea is produced 
 there, and is named as Pu'er tea which is normally compressed into shapes 
of cakes, bread, pumpkins and bricks, etc.) because they ate high-calories
 food such as yak butter, Tsamba (Tsampa), beef, and lamb but consumed very
 little vegetables which are a big restriction in Tibet; Pu'er tea not only 
helped them digest the heavy food but also offered vitamins needed. Nevertheless,
 Tibetans did not drink the Pu'er directly but mixed the tea with the yak butter
 creating a salty and rich tea which is still popular today (Yak-butter tea), 
but the environmental situation of Tibet made tea plantation impossible.
 Fortunately, the neighboring Yunnan was an ideal land for growing tea, and 
they made Pu'er tea of great quality.  Thus, those who could manage to transfer
 the tea from Yunnan into Tibet were going to make good money. On the other
 hand, Tibetans bred very strong horses, and they also had access to Middle 
Asia where the horses are of quite excellent breed.

However, it was almost a job impossible to exchange goods between Tibet and 
Yunnan, because any possible land connection between the two regions was almost 
 cut off by the harsh terrain; the natural border between Tibetan plateau and 
Yunnan is formed of endless snow mountains and deep gorges with steep cliffs, 
which is tough for any land animals to cross the area. Finally, the irresistible
 temptation of making huge profit had given the merchants enough courage to make
 their way through cleverly however dangerously. If the mountains could not be
 climbed they went around them on the mountainsides; by following the rivers
 they could take advantage of the narrow river banks under the cliffs. In 
continuous and collective efforts of years, the trading link was set up.
 Through this route, Yunnan merchants traded Pu'er tea for strong horses
 from Tibetan, and resold these horses to the rest of China. On the other
 hand, Tibetan merchants also made good money by selling the tea to India 
 and Middle Asia. Finally, the Tea-Horse Road appeared as a trading route.

Therefore, the ancient Tea-Horse Road plays a similar role as the Silk Road,
 and is a significant part of the international trade in the history (between
 China, India and Middle Asia). Besides, as a road of wealth, it was also a 
road of cultural exchange that created cultural bonds between Tibetans and
 other Chinese in the history, and promoted the propagation of Buddhism.
 Even today, when people are trekking on this ancient route into Tibet,
 they can still sense the spirit, the courage, and the wisdom devoted to
 this road, and marvel at this great legacy of our ancestors.