February 8-May 11, 2003
THE GLORY OF THE SILK ROAD:
Art from Ancient China
Organized by The Dayton Art Institute
Sponsored by NCR Corporation

The Silk Road, the greatest ancient trade road, traversed the massive expanse of Asia, linking the west and the east for over one thousand years. This exhibition celebrates the diversity and integration of art and cultures. On view are 176 artworks including gold, silver, bronze, jade, clay, silk and paper, with forms ranging from sculpture, ceramics, paintings, to textiles and manuscripts, dating from the first to ninth centuries with a focus on the Tang dynasty. These works including new archaeological finds are selected from fourteen museums and archaeological institutes in China.

Organized geographically and chronologically, the exhibition explores the themes of cross-cultural influence and interaction among China, Central Asia, and the Near East. The presentation focuses on the spread of Buddhism, textiles from China and Central Asia, rare manuscripts from Turfan, gold and silver with Roman and Persian forms and mofits, as well as across cultural influence in dance and music.

The exhibition is organized by The Dayton Art Institute with the collaboration of the National Museum of Chinese History and the support of the museums and archaeological institutions in Shaanxi, Xinjiang and Gansu. The exhibition is curated by Li Jian, Curator of Asian Art at The Dayton Art Institute,

The exhibition is funded by NCR Corporation. An indemnity is granted by the Federal Council on the Arts & Humanities. Additional support is provided by Mrs. Virginia W. Kettering, Dayton Marriott Hotel and the Getty Foundation.

The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue, published by The Dayton Art Institute; edited and written by Li Jian, with contributions by Valerie Hansen (Yale University), Angela Sheng, Katherine Tsiang (University of Chicago) and Wang Binghua (Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology). The catalogue is available online at the Museum Store.

The exhibition is accompanied by a symposium “Recent Discoveries and Research on the Silk Road” held at The Dayton Art Institute on April 26, 2003, featuring the following speakers: Albert Dien (Stanford University), Valerie Hansen (Yale University), Aleksandr Naymark (Hosfstra University) and Daniel Waugh (University of Washington). This symposium is funded by the Docent Organization of The Dayton Art Institute, the Tang Research Foundation and Nancy & Edward Rosenthal.

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