摘要
The earliest known Chinese envoy to the Abbasid Caliphate was the Yang Liangyao mission during the Zhenyuan Era of Emperor Dezong of the Tang Dynasty,as recorded in the Inscription of Yang Liangyao's Spirit Way.Mr.Rong Xinjiang surmises,“As an official envoy of the Tang Dynasty,Yang Liangyao would likely have chosen to use the dynasty's ships”So,what did Yang Liangyao's sailboat look like?The Inscription of Yang Liangyao's Spirit Way provides only this basic description of Yang Liangyao's sea voyage:“Raising sails to cut through the mist-filled air,rowing across the vast expanse of water.By night,guided by divine lamps for direction.By day,led forward by mythical beasts”.
