唐代長安洛陽道驛程考

A Study on the Ch'ang-an-Lo-yang Post Route of the T'ang Dynasty

嚴耕望(YEN KENG-WANG)

《中國文化研究所學報》 3卷1期 (1970/09) Pp. 77-134

https://doi.org/10.29708/JCS.CUHK.197009_3(1).0017

並列摘要

The T'ang dynasty following the Sui dynasty established Ch'ang-an as its capital and Lo-yang as the eastern capital. The two capitals were centres of the communications network for the whole country. Between them a post route was built as the east-west axial route of communication, which became the biggest of its kind with the heaviest of traffic. Wei Shu, a scholar in the Tang dynasty, wrote a book entitled Liang Ching Tao Li Chih (The Roads Between Two Capitals) with a detailed description of this post route. Unfortunately, the book is nowhere to be found now. I have collected those minute fragments of whatever historical data is available and tried to ascertain its passage by identifying the names and locations of the post stages, passes and bridges along the route. According to my findings, the post route started from Ch'ang-an eastward, running roughly along the south bank of the Wei River, past Hua-chou (now Hua-hsien) and through T'ung-kuan. Then it somewhat followed the south bank of the Yellow River to Shan-chou (now Shan-hsien). East of Shan Chou it departed from the Yellow River until it reached Hsiao-fan. Along the six hundred li from Ch'ang-an to Hsiao-fan, twenty-two or twenty-three post stages were set up. All but three or four of the names of these stages can be identified. East of Hsiao-fan the route was divided into two. The northern route led alongside the River of Ku (now Chien) eastward, past Mien-chih-hsien and Hsin-an-hsien to Lo-yang, and was about two hundred li in length. The southern route led from Hsiao-fan southeastward, past Yung-ning-hsien (about forty to fifty li to the northeast of present Yung-ning-hsien), more or less along the Lo River eastward to Lo-yang, and was about two hundred and fifty li in length. The southern route was the post route and carried heavy traffic; while the northern route, more of a highway than a post route, was to be a short cut for military purposes. Whereas it had taken an ordinary traveller ten days to travel from one capital to the other, it took an official courier only two days to cover the same distance, dispatching urgent decrees from the emperor on a fast steed at the speed of five hundred li a day.