HISTORICAL REFERENCES TO PEKINGESE TYPE 



sections, lasted nearly two centuries, down to A.D. 589-605, 

 when the reunion of China was cemented under Yang Ti. 

 In these two full centuries Chinese culture, including poetry 

 and art, was entirely recreated." * 



After the almost simultaneous blotting out of the Roman 

 and Han Empires, the Tartars and Huns largely blocked the 

 trade-route and cut off peaceful traffic to a period as late as 

 the middle of the fifth century of our era. Communications 

 then for a second time became possible up to the end of the 

 T'ang Dynasty (A.D. 907), when they were again disjointed 

 by the spread of Islam, which no doubt interfered with 

 ambassadorial and trading missions to China, but did not 

 necessarily completely interrupt exchange of dogs. Islam, it 

 is true, classes dogs as unclean, but Katmir, the watchdog, 

 was admitted to heaven by Mohammed for guarding the 

 Seven Sleepers. The Turks were not averse to presents of 

 rare canine specimens. In the seventeenth century they 

 succoured starving dogs and used dogs for hunting. The 

 women, too, prized and reared Maltese dogs. The Venetian 

 Ambassador in Constantinople wrote to the Doge and Senate 

 in 1583 that the Ambassador of Queen Elizabeth of England, 

 " in spite of all the opposition offered to him by the French 

 Ambassador, has this morning kissed the Sultan's hands. He 

 has presented His Majesty with a most beautiful watch set 

 with jewels and pearls, two pretty lap-dogs, thirteen pieces 

 of silver gilt. . . ." f In 1594 he wrote that " two great 

 sporting dogs " were requested of the Venetian Government 

 in the Sultan's name. The Doge and Senate appear to have 

 had difficulty in satisfying the Sultan, for in 1607 the Venetian 

 Ambassador at the English Court wrote that he would 

 execute the order of His Serenity the Doge to buy " two big 



* Fenollosa, " Epochs in Chinese and Japanese Art," vol. i, p. 35. 

 f " Calendar of State Papers. Venice." 



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