Two Female Musicians

These figures show the meeting of two cultures through the common love of music. Music was very much a part of every day life on the Silk Road, and as different musical traditions travelled along it, they met and intertwined, bridging cultural differences.

The two women can be differentiated through their dress and hair styles; the figure on the right is a Kuchean musician playing a pipa (lute). This instrument originated in Iran and reached China via the Silk Road, becoming popular in the 5th century. The Chinese woman on the left plays a jiegu, a drum that originated in India and was made from skin stretched over a wooden frame. Kuchean music was famed along the Eastern Silk Road and many melodies were played using these two instruments.

SRE Cat. no. 200a and b, mid 7th century, glazed terracotta, Musée des arts Asiatiques - Guimet, MA 4015 &MA 4016