Historians noted that Yongchang residents’ European features were unsurprising, as records indicate that European traders intermarried and settled in Western China. - Photo: Douyin
BEIJING: In the remote village of Liqian, nestled in northwestern China’s Gansu province, a captivating myth once captured global attention and sparked an intriguing question: are the local people descendants of a lost Roman legion?
In the 1990s, the presence of Romanesque architecture and the villagers’ European traits – evident in their facial features – fuelled speculation regarding these potential connections. However, subsequent DNA testing and historical research have since debunked this myth.
The Post delves into the origins of this theory and its eventual discrediting.
In 1957, American sinologist Homer Dubs proposed in his paper, A Roman City in Ancient China, that Liqian village could be linked to a Roman legion. He asserted that after their defeat in a battle in 53 BC, some Roman soldiers fled to the territory of the Xiongnu, which corresponds to modern Central Asia and northwest China.
Dubs noted that the Han dynasty (206 BC-220) employed a unique “fish-scale formation” in their army and wooden defences – military tactics strikingly similar to those used by the Romans. He speculated that captured Roman soldiers were brought to what is now Liqian village in Yongchang county, where they settled and imparted combat skills to the Han people.
Dubs’s theory garnered acceptance among Western and Chinese scholars at the time. In 1993, the state media outlet Xinhua Daily Telegraph published a report claiming evidence suggesting that descendants of ancient Roman soldiers still inhabited Liqian.
The discovery of villagers with distinct European features deepened the mystery surrounding this theory. Mainland media outlet Evening News reported that Liqian resident Cai Junnian had brown hair, green eyes, and ruddy skin, while another villager, Song Guorong, was photographed with wavy hair, a particularly long hooked nose, and stood six feet tall (1.8m).
Despite scepticism from historians, the allure of Roman culture quickly permeated China, giving rise to a surge of TV dramas and novels inspired by the legendary journey of a Roman legion to the East.
Local officials seized the tourism potential, constructing a Roman-style pavilion and erecting statues of Roman soldiers in Liqian. In 2007, the Gansu government even published a picture book titled The Lost Roman Legion, featuring 150 images of local historical sites and customs.
As the 21st century progressed, several prominent Chinese historians, including Zhang Xushan from Tsinghua University, Wang Shoukuan, and Liu Guanghua from Lanzhou University, contended that the story of a Roman legion in Liqian was fictitious.
The Post reached out to these scholars, who shared their insights with us.
Zhang’s research in 2002 highlighted that historical records indicate Han army captives were dispatched to regions in central Asia, not to the Chinese mainland, thereby dismissing claims of Roman soldiers within Han territory.
He further noted that the European features observed among Yongchang residents were not surprising; historical records from the Han dynasty acknowledged the presence of Europeans who traded in Western China, many of whom intermarried and settled.
DNA testing conducted by Lanzhou University in 2008 further undermined the myth. Of the 87 Liqian villagers tested, only three exhibited West Asian traits distinct from the Mediterranean characteristics associated with Roman legions, revealing a diverse ancestry from various regions and eras.
Proponents also claimed that the Han army’s “fish-scale formation” was akin to the Roman testudo. In Wang’s 2012 book, The Broken Dream of Liqian, he countered this idea, clarifying that Chinese historical texts describe the formation as soldiers closely aligned together, resembling fish scales, but not necessarily linked to Roman war tactics.
Supported by substantial historical evidence, Wang’s work identified contradictions and fabrications within the hypothesis, attracting considerable backing from the academic community in China.
Ultimately, the once-sensational narrative of Roman settlement in China was thoroughly discredited by scholars. Historian Gao Kebing from Langfang Normal University remarked that contacts between ancient Rome and ancient China were “exceedingly rare”.
“With vast distances, challenging terrain, and volatile, war-torn regions in between, diplomatic connections held little allure for the two empires,” Gao explained to the Post.
Before the 5th century and the fall of the Roman Empire, recorded interactions between Rome and China included a Roman envoy visit in 166 AD and Roman merchants arriving by sea in 226 AD.
Yet, even today, Liqian’s tourism remains heavily influenced by Roman culture. In October 2012, Yongchang county erected a monument commemorating the “Eastward Journey of the Roman Legion”.
On Xiaohongshu, many tourists share photos of “Roman-style” buildings and sculptures in Liqian, with some still under construction as of this August. - South China Morning Post
