As its name suggests, the Chamagudao, literally translated as “Ancient Tea-Horse Road” was a central trade route for exchanging Tibetan horses and Chinese tea. The corridor came to play a crucial role in communication and exchange between the cultures of present-day Yunnan, Sichuan and Tibet. For thousands of years, travelers have been lured across its snow-capped mountai...
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During the Song Dynasty (960-1127) the Tea-Horse Road flourished and posts saw up to 2,000 traders per day. Annual volume of tea going to Lhasa and often beyond reached 7,500 tons, carried over the laborious 2,300 km trek from Xishuangbanna to the Lhasa. Each war horse fetched between 20 and 60 kgs of tea depending on quality and the going rate. During the formalization o...
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According to some records, all professional horse caravans before liberation had a rigorous organization including three grades of No.1 Guotou, No.2 Guotou and Guanshi. Daguotou (No.1 Guotou) was head of the whole caravan and was brave and resourceful, familiar with business information, folk customs and road posts, and could manage household and financial affairs such as managing housekeepers, beasts and propert...
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According to some records, all professional horse caravans before liberation had a rigorous organization including three grades of No.1 Guotou, No.2 Guotou and Guanshi. Daguotou (No.1 Guotou) was head of the whole caravan and was brave and resourceful, familiar with business information, folk customs and road posts, and could manage household and financial affairs such as managing housekeepers, beasts and propert...
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