Stone Cattle Road
Encyclopedia
The Stone Cattle Road was an ancient Chinese road over the Qinling Mountains
used by the state of Qin
to conquer the Sichuan
in 316 BC.
on the Wei River
wished to conquer the kingdom of Shu
to the south over the Qinling Mountains
in the Sichuan Basin
. He therefore had his sculptors make five life-sized stone cows. He decorated their tails and hindquarters with gold and placed them where the Shu ambassadors could see them. When the king of Shu heard of this he thought it would be good to fertilize his treasury with golden cowpats, so he asked the king of Qin to send him some cattle. The king of Qin replied that the cattle were delicate and that to deliver them it would first be necessary to build a gallery road
over the mountains. When this Stone Cattle Road was completed in 316 BC he used it to invade and conquer Shu. Sage gives a slightly different version of the story. Another source mentions a Golden Ox (Jinniu) Road which passes through the western end of the Qinling Mountains
over the Tianshaling and Wuting passes. Legend says it was built to seize oxen of a similar nature that lived in the mountains.
to the Sichuan Basin
. Naturally there were footpaths, but sending an army, and the later extraction of tribute, required a road suitable for wheeled vehicles. For the more difficult sections a gallery road
had to be constructed. Horizontal holes were bored into the rock and logs inserted in them. Where possible, vertical logs were placed to support the outer ends and the whole was covered with planks. (In 1979 Chinese archeologists located 56 horizontal holes and 190 vertical holes in 22 different locations.) If the Qin invasion of 316BC was a sudden decision provoked by the Marquis of Zu's quarrel with the King of Shu then the road, or part of it, must have been in place before this. The more difficult northern part was in Qin territory, the southern part in Shu and the middle part in Ba, although the exact boundaries are not clear. Most of the expense and engineering must have come from Qin. Given that the distance from the Wei valley to Chengdu
is about 500 kilometers, it is unlikely that the whole road was built at once.
Sage remarks that "determining the Qinling portion of the route was once one of those perennial quibbles like the attempts to find Hannibal's path through the Alps." His view is that the Qinling portion corresponds to the Baoxie Plank Road. This ran from southeast of the Qin capital of Yong
, up the north-flowing Xie River, over a pass west of Mount Taibai
and southwest down the Bao River to Hanzhong
on the Han River. From there it went west-southwest over the Daba Mountains using the Wu Deng Pass ('Wu Deng' were the 'Five Strongmen' who carried the cattle to Shu) and entered the Sichuan Basin at the Jian Men or Sword Gate, a route that is similar to the modern Xi'an-Chengdu highway. Sage thinks that the Stone Cattle Road proper was the segment south of the Daba Mountains, although the term was used loosely for the whole route. There was also an 'old road' ('gu dao') west of the Qinling portion which Liu Bang used for his initial breakout of the Han valley. This probably corresponds to the modern S210 highway. After the conquest there was a 'Rice Granary Road' that went south from Hanzhong and then swung west. As Sichuan became more developed there were other roads of greater or lesser importance.
Qinling Mountains
The Qin Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi province, China. The mountains provide a natural boundary between the North and South of the country, and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on Earth.To the north is the...
used by the state of Qin
Qin (state)
The State of Qin was a Chinese feudal state that existed during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Periods of Chinese history...
to conquer the Sichuan
Sichuan
' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
in 316 BC.
The story
The story goes that King Huiwen of QinHuiwen of Qin
King Huiwen of Qin , also known as Lord Huiwen of Qin or King Hui of Qin , personal name Ying Si , was the ruler of the Qin state from 338 BC to 311 BC during the Warring States Period of Chinese history.-Early life:...
on the Wei River
Wei River
The Wei River is a major river in west-central China's Gansu and Shaanxi provinces. It is the largest tributary of the Yellow River and very important in the early development of Chinese civilization....
wished to conquer the kingdom of Shu
Shu (state)
The State of Shu was an ancient state in what is now Sichuan, China. It was conquered by Qin in 316 BC. Shu was based on the Chengdu Plain, in the western Sichuan basin with some extension northeast to the upper Han River valley. To the east was the Ba tribal confederation. Further east down the...
to the south over the Qinling Mountains
Qinling Mountains
The Qin Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi province, China. The mountains provide a natural boundary between the North and South of the country, and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on Earth.To the north is the...
in the Sichuan Basin
Sichuan basin
The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...
. He therefore had his sculptors make five life-sized stone cows. He decorated their tails and hindquarters with gold and placed them where the Shu ambassadors could see them. When the king of Shu heard of this he thought it would be good to fertilize his treasury with golden cowpats, so he asked the king of Qin to send him some cattle. The king of Qin replied that the cattle were delicate and that to deliver them it would first be necessary to build a gallery road
Gallery road
The archaeological gallery roads were roads through remote mountain areas of China. They consisted of wooden planks erected on holes cut into the sides of cliffs. They were most notably used in the Qin Mountains linking the Wei River and the Han River valleys. The first gallery roads were built...
over the mountains. When this Stone Cattle Road was completed in 316 BC he used it to invade and conquer Shu. Sage gives a slightly different version of the story. Another source mentions a Golden Ox (Jinniu) Road which passes through the western end of the Qinling Mountains
Qinling Mountains
The Qin Mountains are a major east-west mountain range in southern Shaanxi province, China. The mountains provide a natural boundary between the North and South of the country, and support a huge variety of plant and wildlife, some of which is found nowhere else on Earth.To the north is the...
over the Tianshaling and Wuting passes. Legend says it was built to seize oxen of a similar nature that lived in the mountains.
The history
What lies behind this foolish story? In order to reach Sichuan from Qin one must travel south over the difficult Qinling Mountains to the Han River basin and then southwest over the Daba MountainsDaba Mountains
Daba Mountains, or Dabashan is a mountain range in Central China, north of the Yangtze River.-Geography:The Daba Mountains run in the general west-northwest to east-southeast direction, along the border between, on the one side Sichuan and Chongqing, and on the other side Shaanxi and Hubei...
to the Sichuan Basin
Sichuan basin
The Sichuan Basin is a lowland region in southwestern China. Despite its historical name, it is not only synonymous to Sichuan province, comprising its central and eastern portions as well as part of Chongqing Municipality...
. Naturally there were footpaths, but sending an army, and the later extraction of tribute, required a road suitable for wheeled vehicles. For the more difficult sections a gallery road
Gallery road
The archaeological gallery roads were roads through remote mountain areas of China. They consisted of wooden planks erected on holes cut into the sides of cliffs. They were most notably used in the Qin Mountains linking the Wei River and the Han River valleys. The first gallery roads were built...
had to be constructed. Horizontal holes were bored into the rock and logs inserted in them. Where possible, vertical logs were placed to support the outer ends and the whole was covered with planks. (In 1979 Chinese archeologists located 56 horizontal holes and 190 vertical holes in 22 different locations.) If the Qin invasion of 316BC was a sudden decision provoked by the Marquis of Zu's quarrel with the King of Shu then the road, or part of it, must have been in place before this. The more difficult northern part was in Qin territory, the southern part in Shu and the middle part in Ba, although the exact boundaries are not clear. Most of the expense and engineering must have come from Qin. Given that the distance from the Wei valley to Chengdu
Chengdu
Chengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
is about 500 kilometers, it is unlikely that the whole road was built at once.
Sage remarks that "determining the Qinling portion of the route was once one of those perennial quibbles like the attempts to find Hannibal's path through the Alps." His view is that the Qinling portion corresponds to the Baoxie Plank Road. This ran from southeast of the Qin capital of Yong
Fengxiang County
Fengxiang County is a county administered by Baoji City, western Shaanxi Province, People’s Republic of China. The county covers an area of and as of 2004 had a population of 510,000...
, up the north-flowing Xie River, over a pass west of Mount Taibai
Mount Taibai
Mount Taibai is a mountain located on the border between Mei, Taibai and Zhouzhi counties in the south west of Shaanxi Province, China. The mount's highest point, Baxian Tower , rises to a height of 3767.2 meters and is the tallest in the Qinling Range, as well as the watershed between the Han...
and southwest down the Bao River to Hanzhong
Hanzhong
Hanzhong is a municipality in southwest Shaanxi Province, China, occupying a historically significant valley in the mountains between the Xi'an area, home to many Chinese capitals, and the fertile but isolated Sichuan Basin...
on the Han River. From there it went west-southwest over the Daba Mountains using the Wu Deng Pass ('Wu Deng' were the 'Five Strongmen' who carried the cattle to Shu) and entered the Sichuan Basin at the Jian Men or Sword Gate, a route that is similar to the modern Xi'an-Chengdu highway. Sage thinks that the Stone Cattle Road proper was the segment south of the Daba Mountains, although the term was used loosely for the whole route. There was also an 'old road' ('gu dao') west of the Qinling portion which Liu Bang used for his initial breakout of the Han valley. This probably corresponds to the modern S210 highway. After the conquest there was a 'Rice Granary Road' that went south from Hanzhong and then swung west. As Sichuan became more developed there were other roads of greater or lesser importance.