Hans-Ulrich Seidt
Hans-Ulrich Seidt is currently Director-General for Culture and
Communication in the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. His interest
in Central Asia goes back to the late 1980s when he was working as a
young diplomat at the West German embassy in Moscow. At that time he
had the opportunity to visit the Central Asian republics of the
former Soviet Union. It was a fascinating experience and he has
returned to Central Asia many times.
His chosen item is the
wallpainting MIK III 8426 from the collections of the Museum of Asian Art, Berlin.
Hans-Ulrich Seidt writes:
The object I have chosen for the webpage of the International
Dunhuang Project is not from the area of the former Soviet
Union. It comes from China and is today part of the collections
of the Museum of Asian Art in Berlin-Dahlem. The mural was
brought to Berlin during the first decade of the twentieth
century by the German expedition to Turfan. In my eyes this
unique piece of art not only demonstrates the general wealth and
prosperity along the ancient silk roads but also the
multi-ethnic character of their urban trade
centres.
Link to original post on IDP blog.