The Silk Road and China’s Expanding Worldview

Two centuries after Zhang Qian’s pioneering westward missions, another intrepid Chinese diplomat embarked on an even more ambitious journey. In 97 CE, during the Eastern Han Dynasty, Gan Ying set forth toward the distant land the Chinese called Da Qin – the Roman Empire. This expedition marked a crucial chapter in the ancient world’s globalization, when silk had already transformed from a commodity into a currency of cultural exchange between civilizations.

The Chinese fascination with Rome began when silk first reached Europe shortly after Zhang Qian’s expeditions. By the 1st century CE, Chinese merchants and officials knew that beyond Parthia lay another sophisticated civilization. The Han court’s desire to establish direct contact with Rome reflected both commercial interests and imperial prestige. Gan Ying’s mission represented China’s most serious attempt to bridge the Eurasian continent before the Mongol era.

Mapping Gan Ying’s Extraordinary Route

Appointed by the legendary general Ban Chao, Protector-General of the Western Regions, Gan Ying departed from Itu City (near modern Aksu in Xinjiang). His exact route remains debated among historians, but scholar Yang Gongle’s reconstruction has gained wide acceptance. The journey took Gan Ying through some of the world’s most treacherous terrain:

First, he followed the southern Tian Shan foothills to Kashgar, then turned south to Shache before confronting the formidable Congling (Pamir) Mountains. Ancient accounts describe paths barely two feet wide with sheer drops where many travelers and animals perished. Surviving these “hanging passes” – primitive rope bridges spanning deadly gorges – Gan Ying entered Jibin (Kashmir) and continued through northern Pakistan to Sistan in eastern Iran.

This southern route through the Karakoram offered a direct path to India, later used by Buddhist pilgrims like Faxian. Unlike earlier Han envoys who turned back in Central Asia, Gan Ying pressed westward across the entire Parthian Empire, reaching Mesopotamia and finally the Persian Gulf at a place called Tiaozhi (likely ancient Antioch in modern Iraq).

The Parthian Obstruction and the Sea That Never Was

At the Persian Gulf, Gan Ying’s historic mission faced its decisive moment. According to the Book of Later Han, Parthian sailors dissuaded him from continuing by sea to Rome. They described a nightmarish voyage: three years against contrary winds, deadly diseases, and supernatural dangers that made men “homesick to the point of madness” until they jumped overboard.

Modern scholars recognize this as Parthia’s deliberate deception. As middlemen in the lucrative silk trade, Parthians had every reason to prevent direct Sino-Roman contact. The fantastical warnings likely drew from Greek mythology – particularly the Sirens from Homer’s Odyssey who lured sailors to their doom with enchanting songs. This cultural transmission through Parthian interpreters created one of history’s great “what if” moments.

Had Gan Ying continued, he might have reached Roman Syria via the established Arabian trade routes. Instead, his journey ended at the western edge of the Parthian Empire, still thousands of kilometers short of Rome.

Cultural Encounters and Lost Knowledge

Though failing to reach Rome, Gan Ying gathered unprecedented intelligence about western lands. He documented strange customs, exotic goods, and geographical knowledge far beyond previous Chinese records. The Book of Later Han mentions he collected information on “local conditions not found in the Classic of Mountains and Seas” and recorded “all kinds of marvelous things.”

Tragically, most of these observations were lost when Ban Yong’s Records of the Western Regions disappeared. Traditional Chinese historians prioritized political over cultural reporting, so Gan Ying’s accounts of foreign wonders – including those mysterious sea dangers – survive only as fragments. What might have been China’s first detailed ethnography of the Hellenistic world vanished into history.

Gan Ying’s Legacy in World History

Gan Ying’s journey represented several milestones:

Geographically, he advanced China’s western frontier by nearly 1,000 kilometers beyond previous records, reaching Mesopotamia when few Eurasians had crossed so many cultural boundaries. His southern route through Kashmir and Iran became an important alternative to the northern Silk Road.

Diplomatically, his mission reflected Han China’s global awareness at its peak. Though Rome remained elusive, Gan Ying’s reports helped shape Chinese perceptions of the West for centuries. Later dynasties would continue seeking contact with “Da Qin,” though mostly through intermediaries.

Culturally, his encounter with the Siren myth represents one of the earliest transmissions of Greek lore to China. This cross-cultural exchange, filtered through Parthian interpreters, hints at the rich intellectual traffic along the Silk Roads.

Today, Gan Ying’s story offers valuable perspective on ancient globalization. His journey reminds us that even failed expeditions expanded horizons, and that cultural barriers often proved more formidable than geographical ones. In an era of renewed Eurasian connectivity, this forgotten explorer deserves recognition alongside Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta as a pioneer of East-West understanding.

The next time you trace a finger along the Silk Road’s winding paths on a map, pause at the Persian Gulf – where one man’s thwarted ambition marked the farthest reach of China’s ancient westward gaze.