Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c13.s3.t2.128

v2.c13.s3.t2.128

Ladakh’s importance in the cultural and commercial exchanges between India and China lay both in its role as an entrepot where traders from Kashmir, Tibet and Xinjiang met and exchanged goods and also in the fact that trade routes connecting these places passed through it. There were two main branches of the trade linking Ladakh with China. One was the Leh-Lhasa trade and the other was the Trans-Karakoram trade to southern Xinjiang. Ladakh also served as an artery for trade between Xinjiang and Tibet, with silver ingots from Xinjiang being one of the main