Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c5.s1.11

v1.c5.s1.11

During this period, trade in silk between India and China continued. During 80-89 CE, a Greek who resided in Egypt had recorded that Chinese silk and silk products were sold to the West via Bactria after reaching there from India. This is similar to the narrative about the Former Han Dynasty when it was revealed that cloth from Shu (Sichuan) and Qiong bamboo cane were transported to Bactria via India, via the Yunnan-Burma route. Although India in this case was just a point en route for trade with regions further west, silk and silk fabrics were also consumed in India. In sections 11 and 168 of the Indian work *Manu Smrti*, it was said that whoever stole silk would be punished with no food and only milk for three days.