210 



ON THE ANCIENT 



As long as Eome was the sole capital of the Empire, Indian 

 goods went from Alexandria mainly to Eome, but when the 

 Empire became divided, Byzantium, or as it was now called 

 Constantinopolis, participated in the receipt of the eastern 

 articles. Among the merchants who met in Alexandria, 

 many Hindus were to be found ; though the statue of the 

 river god Indus, in that town, was probably the gift of a 

 Greek and not of a Hindu. The presence of Brahmans is 

 even reported from Constantinople. But the Byzantine 

 Emperors had to encounter the opposition of the new Persian 

 dynasty, which wanted to monopolize the Indian trade. This 

 happened also in Yemen, whence Justinianus tried to get 

 Chinese silk through an alliance with the Homerites, until at 

 last in 536 some monks succeeded in bringing silkworms to 

 Europe. 



The Persian seaports, Teredon and Charax, whose position 

 near the mouth of the Tigris was not far distant from 

 Ktesiphonand Dastagard, the residence towns of the Sassanides 

 received directly the merchandize of India. This trade was 

 very lively, and being lucrative, the Persian kings did not 

 brook any rivalry. From the description of the spoil found 

 by the Emperor Heraklios in the palace of King Khosru 

 Perviz, we gather, that a great many Indian articles were 

 consumed in Persia. The relations between these two 

 countries were friendly. Bahram Gror of Persia visited the 

 Xing of Kanyakubja, and married one of his daughters. He 

 became, it is said, so fond of Indian music that as his 

 country did not possess any accomplished musicians, he sent 

 for 12,000 Indian musicians. One of his successors, Khosru 

 Anushirvan, the Conqueror of Beluchistan despatched his 

 learned physician Barzuyeh to India, to obtain a plant which 

 could restore to life again murdered persons, and which was 

 reported to grow in that country. His search was, as can 

 well be guessed, in vain. At last he was informed that that 



