This terracotta figure of a merchant dates from seventh-to-eighth century Tang China and is testimony to the role of long-distance trade along the Silk Road and other conduits. I also think this guy looks like Dr. Strange, so there’s that.
The interpretation of art highly depends on context. This figurine from the late Classical Maya world (600-900CE), for instance, might appear to modern viewers as…
This wild grass was of the first plants humans intentionally harvested. Einkorn’s seeds scatter more easily than modern wheat, and they are smaller as well.…
Buddhist stele with the Thousand Buddhas motif, from the Northern Wei Dynasty, about 521 CE. Notice the Chinese-drapped sleeves of the historical Buddah in the…
