The Dawn of Tibet: The Ancient Civilization on the Roof of the WorldThis unique book reveals the existence of an advanced civilization where none was known before, presenting an entirely new perspective on the culture and history of Tibet. In his groundbreaking study of an epic period in Tibet few people even knew existed, John Vincent Bellezza details the discovery of an ancient people on the most desolate reaches of the Tibetan plateau, revolutionizing our ideas about who Tibetans really are. While many associate Tibet with Buddhism, it was also once a land of warriors and chariots, whose burials included megalithic arrays and golden masks. This first Tibetan civilization, known as Zhang Zhung, was a cosmopolitan one with links extending across Eurasia, bringing it in line with many of the major cultural innovations of the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age. Based on decades of research, The Dawn of Tibet draws on a rich trove of archaeological, textual, and ethnographic materials collected and analyzed by the author. Bellezza describes the vast network of castles, temples, megaliths, necropolises, and rock art established on the highest and now depopulated part of the Tibetan plateau. He relates literary tales of priests and priestesses, horned deities, and the celestial afterlife to the actual archaeological evidence, providing a fascinating perspective on the origins and development of civilization. The story builds to the present by following the colorful culture of the herders of Upper Tibet, an ancient people whose way of life is endangered by modern development. Tracing Bellezza’s epic journeys across lands where few Westerners have ventured, this book provides a compelling window into the most inaccessible reaches of Tibet and a civilization that flourished long before Buddhism took root. |
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Table des matières
Introduction | 1 |
Chapter 1 Discovering the First Civilization of Tibet | 13 |
The Land of Upper Tibet | 29 |
The People of Upper Tibet | 47 |
The History of Zhang Zhung | 75 |
The Citadels and Temples of Zhang Zhung | 111 |
The Burial Grounds of Zhang Zhung | 139 |
The Artistic Treasures of Zhang Zhung | 167 |
The Cultural Life of Zhang Zhung | 241 |
Zhang Zhung Reigns in Contemporary Upper Tibet | 271 |
Conclusion | 297 |
Notes | 301 |
321 | |
337 | |
About the Author | 349 |
The Religion of Zhang Zhung | 203 |
Autres éditions - Tout afficher
The Dawn of Tibet: The Ancient Civilization on the Roof of the World John Vincent Bellezza Aucun aperçu disponible - 2014 |
The Dawn of Tibet: The Ancient Civilization on the Roof of the World John Vincent Bellezza Aucun aperçu disponible - 2017 |
Expressions et termes fréquents
all-stone corbelled animals appears archaeological archaic Bellezza Bellezza 2002a bird bonpo Buddhist burial castles cave celestial Central Tibet century Changthang Chinese chorten citadels civilization clans corbelled cultural deer deities demons divine dralha Drenpa Namkha drokpas Dunhuang Dzogchen Dzong early historic period Eternal Bon Eternal Bon literature Eternal Bon texts funerary Gekhö goddess gods Guge highland horned eagle horse human Ibid Khyung known Ladakh Lake Dangra Lamaist located magical monuments Mount Tise mountain Muchoi Tromdur north Inner Asia ofthe ofTibet ofUpper Tibet Old Tibetan petroglyphs pictographs prehistoric priests protohistoric Purgyal region religion religious residents rock art royal Ruthok shamans sheep shen Shenrab Nyiwo shrines steppes stone structures swastika Tashi temple-tombs temples Tibetan literature Tibetan Plateau Tibetan upland tiger Tisei Karchak tombs Tönpa Shenrab traditions Tsenpo turquoise Upper Tibet walled-in pillars water spirits western Tibet wild yaks Zhang Zhung cultural Zhang Zhung king Zhung and Sumpa