New English book explores ancient links between Pakistan and China

BEIJING, Sep 17 (APP):A Chinese research project examining ancient seals and symbols from Pakistan’s Harappa and Mohenjo-daro civilizations is reaching a wider international audience with the release of its English edition in Beijing.

Launched at the Embassy of Pakistan in China, the English edition of Study of Ancient Seal Script Symbols from Harappa and Mohenjo-daro: Exploration of the Indus Valley Script Origins brings the research of Chinese scholar Zhou Yushu and his team to international readers, adding a new dimension to China-Pakistan academic and cultural exchanges.   The publication was unveiled by Pakistan’s Ambassador to China Khalil Hashmi and Zhou, president of Inner Mongolia Honder College of Arts and Sciences.

The Chinese edition was published in 2024 by China Overseas Chinese Publishing House, with funding from the Inner Mongolia Social Sciences Fund. The new English edition is intended to make the research accessible to a wider group of scholars and readers interested in the Indus Valley civilization, one of the world’s earliest urban civilizations.

For Pakistani researchers and readers, the publication also offers access to a Chinese research project focused on archaeological materials from Harappa and Mohenjo-daro, two of Pakistan’s most important ancient sites. According to Zhou, his research team conducted a systematic study of 401 relatively complete seals from Harappa and Mohenjo-daro and interpreted 132 individual characters. The symbols were classified into 10 thematic categories, including ancestors, fertility, thunder gods and totem worship.

The research also compares some of the seal symbols with elements found in prehistoric cultures in China, including the Hongshan culture.

Zhou said his team identified what it considers to be similarities between some of the symbols and traditional Chinese cultural motifs, including the dragon, phoenix and Xuanniao, a legendary bird in ancient Chinese tradition. The researchers also proposed possible connections between certain symbols and ancient clan names such as “Shang” and “Zhou.”

According to the author, the findings indicate possible cultural exchanges around 5,000 years ago between prehistoric communities in the Liaohe and Yellow River regions of China and those in the Indus Valley region.

During the event, Hashmi congratulated Zhou and his research team on their achievements, noting that the book examines seals and symbols unearthed from Harappa and Mohenjo-daro and compares them with China’s prehistoric Hongshan culture, CEN reported on Thursday.

The ambassador also highlighted the significance of the publication for China-Pakistan academic and cultural exchanges, saying it opens up the possibility of rethinking the ancient historical links between the two countries.

The launch comes during the 75th anniversary year of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. Zhou said the English edition would help share the research with scholars overseas and encourage greater attention to the study of the Indus Valley civilization.

Inner Mongolia Honder College of Arts and Sciences has maintained educational and academic cooperation with Pakistani universities and institutions for more than a decade, covering areas including higher education, student and faculty exchanges, and academic research.

The English edition adds another dimension to the college’s long-standing academic exchanges with Pakistan.