He was born at Berlin, of a family of French Huguenot origin, as evidenced in his family name. Von Le Coq was heir to a sizable fortune derived from breweries and wineries scattered throughout Central and Eastern Europe, thus allowing him the luxury of travel and study at his leisure. The business he owned survives today as the A. Le Coq brewery in Tartu, Estonia.
Left image:Two Buddhist monks on a mural of the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves near Turpan, Xinjiang, China, 9th century AD; although Albert von Le Coq (1913) assumed the blue-eyed, red-haired monk was a Tocharian,[2] modern scholarship has identified similar Caucasian figures of the same cave temple (No. 9) as ethnic Sogdians,[3] who inhabited Turpan as an ethnic minority community during the phases of Tang Chinese (7th–8th century) and Uyghur rule (9th–13th century).[4] Right image: Pranidhi scene, temple 9 (Cave 20), with kneeling figures praying in front of the Buddha who Albert von Le Coq assumed were Persian people (German: "Perser"), noting their Caucasian features and green eyes, as well as the donkey and Central-Asian Bactrian camel loaded with tributary goods.[5] However, modern scholarship has identified praṇidhi scenes of the same temple (No. 9) as depicting ethnic Sogdians,[3] an Eastern Iranian people who inhabited Turfan as an ethnic minority community during the phases of Tang Chinese (7th-8th century) and Uyghur rule (9th-13th century).[4]
Albert von Le Coq once lived in this house when he was in Turpan.
Von Le Coq was convinced that the influence of Ancient Greece could be found as far in the east as China. However, organising expeditions to Central Asia and China was beyond his means. The German archaeologist Hermann Parzinger has found a letter in the Prussian State Archive which reveals that the financial backing to von Le Coq's expedition came from no one else than the last German emperor Wilhelm II. Wilhelm was obsessed with Greek culture and supported one of the expeditions with 32,000 German gold marks.[1]
Von Le Coq was associated with the Museum für Völkerkunde (now called the Ethnological Museum of Berlin) in Berlin. Serving as assistant to the head of the museum, Professor Albert Grünwedel, Le Coq helped plan and organize expeditions into the regions of western Asia, specifically areas near the Silk Road such as Gaochang. When Grünwedel fell ill before the departure of the second expedition, Le Coq was assigned to lead it. His account of the second and third German Turpan expeditions was published in English in 1928 as Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan.
The expeditions found extensive networks of Buddhist and Manichaean cave temples in the Xinjiang region of Northwest China. Although many of the manuscripts found in the cave were destroyed during the excavation, von Le Coq speculated that he had discovered a major Manichaean library. Some of the paintings also led him to believe that he had found evidence of an Aryan culture, related to the Franks.
Le Coq said that the depictions of figures with apparently blue eyes, red hair and cruciform swords resembled Frankish art: "Such more striking are representations of red-haired, blue-eyed men with faces of a pronounced European type. We connect these people with the Aryan language found in these parts in so many manuscripts.. These red haired people wear suspenders from their belts.. a remarkable ethnological peculiarity!"[citation needed]
With the help of Theodor Bartus and his other assistants, Le Coq carved and sawed away over 360 kilograms (or 305 cases) of artifacts, wall-carvings, and precious icons, which were subsequently shipped to the museum. In Buried Treasures ..., Le Coq defends these "borrowings" as a matter of necessity, citing the turbulent nature of Chinese Turkestan at the time of the expeditions. Chinese consider this seizure a "colonial rapacity" comparable to the taking of the Elgin Marbles or the Koh-i-Noor diamond.[6] The collections from the German expeditions were initially kept at the Indian Department of the Ethnological Museum of Berlin (Ethnologisches Museum Berlin). The artifacts were put on display at the museum and were open to the public until 1944 when the relics were destroyed in British bombing raids during World War II.[6] The Ethnological Museum was bombed seven times in Allied bombing raids, destroying the larger wall murals which had been cemented into place and could not be moved; 28 of the finest paintings were totally destroyed. Smaller pieces were hidden in bunkers and coal mines at the outbreak of war and survived the bombings. When the Russians arrived in 1945 they looted at least 10 crates of treasures that they discovered in a bunker under the Berlin Zoo which have not been seen since. The remaining items have been collected together and are housed in a new museum in Dahlem, a suburb of Berlin,[7] the Museum of Indian Art (Museum für Indische Kunst) from 1963 and finally combined into a single location at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften, BBAW), since 1992.
^von Le Coq, Albert. (1913). Chotscho: Facsimile-Wiedergaben der Wichtigeren Funde der Ersten Königlich Preussischen Expedition nach Turfan in Ost-Turkistan. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer (Ernst Vohsen), im Auftrage der Gernalverwaltung der Königlichen Museen aus Mitteln des Baessler-Institutes, Tafel 19. (Accessed 3 September 2016).
^ abGasparini, Mariachiara. "A Mathematic Expression of Art: Sino-Iranian and Uighur Textile Interactions and the Turfan Textile Collection in Berlin," in Rudolf G. Wagner and Monica Juneja (eds), Transcultural Studies, Ruprecht-Karls Universität Heidelberg, No 1 (2014), pp 134-163. ISSN 2191-6411. See also endnote #32. (Accessed 3 September 2016.)
^ abHansen, Valerie (2012), The Silk Road: A New History, Oxford University Press, p. 98, ISBN978-0-19-993921-3.
^von Le Coq, Albert. (1913). Chotscho: Facsimile-Wiedergaben der Wichtigeren Funde der Ersten Königlich Preussischen Expedition nach Turfan in Ost-Turkistan. Berlin: Dietrich Reimer (Ernst Vohsen), im Auftrage der Gernalverwaltung der Königlichen Museen aus Mitteln des Baessler-Institutes, p. 28, Tafel 20. (Accessed 3 September 2016).
^ abDigby, T. (2002-05-09). . Shanghai Star. Archived from the original on 2011-06-11. Retrieved 2010-11-26.
^From the Introduction by Peter Hopkirk in the 1985 edition of Von Le Coq's Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan, p. ix-x.
References and further reading
von Le Coq, Albert (1928), Barwell, Anna, trans. (ed.), Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan: An Account of the Activities and Adventures of the Second and Third German Turpan Expeditions, London: George Allen & Unwin (Repr: 1985, OUP. ISBN0-19-583878-5)
von Le Coq, Albert (1922), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 1: Die Plastik, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1923), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 2: Die Manichaeischen Miniaturen, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1924), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 3: Die Wandmalereien, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1924), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 4: Atlas zu den Wandmalereien, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1926), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 5: Neue Bildwerke, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1928), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 6: Neue Bildwerke II, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
von Le Coq, Albert (1933), Die buddhistische Spätantike in Mittelasien, vol. 7: Neue Bildwerke III, Berlin: Dietrich Reimer
Hopkirk, Peter (1980), Foreign Devils on the Silk Road: The Search for the Lost Cities and Treasures of Chinese Central Asia, Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, ISBN0-87023-435-8
April 19, 2023
albert, german, pronunciation, albɛɐ, september, 1860, berlin, prussia, april, 1930, berlin, germany, prussian, german, brewery, owner, wine, merchant, began, study, archaeology, contents, background, career, archaeologist, notes, references, further, readingb. Albert von Le Coq German pronunciation albɛɐ t le kok 8 September 1860 Berlin Prussia 21 April 1930 Berlin Germany was a Prussian German brewery owner and wine merchant who at the age of 40 began to study archaeology 1 Albert von Le Coq Contents 1 Background 2 Career as archaeologist 3 Notes 4 References and further readingBackground EditHe was born at Berlin of a family of French Huguenot origin as evidenced in his family name Von Le Coq was heir to a sizable fortune derived from breweries and wineries scattered throughout Central and Eastern Europe thus allowing him the luxury of travel and study at his leisure The business he owned survives today as the A Le Coq brewery in Tartu Estonia Career as archaeologist EditMain article German Turfan expeditions Further information Bezeklik Caves Aided by his wealth von Le Coq became a famous archaeologist and explorer of Central Asia Left image Two Buddhist monks on a mural of the Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves near Turpan Xinjiang China 9th century AD although Albert von Le Coq 1913 assumed the blue eyed red haired monk was a Tocharian 2 modern scholarship has identified similar Caucasian figures of the same cave temple No 9 as ethnic Sogdians 3 who inhabited Turpan as an ethnic minority community during the phases of Tang Chinese 7th 8th century and Uyghur rule 9th 13th century 4 Right image Pranidhi scene temple 9 Cave 20 with kneeling figures praying in front of the Buddha who Albert von Le Coq assumed were Persian people German Perser noting their Caucasian features and green eyes as well as the donkey and Central Asian Bactrian camel loaded with tributary goods 5 However modern scholarship has identified praṇidhi scenes of the same temple No 9 as depicting ethnic Sogdians 3 an Eastern Iranian people who inhabited Turfan as an ethnic minority community during the phases of Tang Chinese 7th 8th century and Uyghur rule 9th 13th century 4 Albert von Le Coq once lived in this house when he was in Turpan Von Le Coq was convinced that the influence of Ancient Greece could be found as far in the east as China However organising expeditions to Central Asia and China was beyond his means The German archaeologist Hermann Parzinger has found a letter in the Prussian State Archive which reveals that the financial backing to von Le Coq s expedition came from no one else than the last German emperor Wilhelm II Wilhelm was obsessed with Greek culture and supported one of the expeditions with 32 000 German gold marks 1 Von Le Coq was associated with the Museum fur Volkerkunde now called the Ethnological Museum of Berlin in Berlin Serving as assistant to the head of the museum Professor Albert Grunwedel Le Coq helped plan and organize expeditions into the regions of western Asia specifically areas near the Silk Road such as Gaochang When Grunwedel fell ill before the departure of the second expedition Le Coq was assigned to lead it His account of the second and third German Turpan expeditions was published in English in 1928 as Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan The expeditions found extensive networks of Buddhist and Manichaean cave temples in the Xinjiang region of Northwest China Although many of the manuscripts found in the cave were destroyed during the excavation von Le Coq speculated that he had discovered a major Manichaean library Some of the paintings also led him to believe that he had found evidence of an Aryan culture related to the Franks Le Coq said that the depictions of figures with apparently blue eyes red hair and cruciform swords resembled Frankish art Such more striking are representations of red haired blue eyed men with faces of a pronounced European type We connect these people with the Aryan language found in these parts in so many manuscripts These red haired people wear suspenders from their belts a remarkable ethnological peculiarity citation needed With the help of Theodor Bartus and his other assistants Le Coq carved and sawed away over 360 kilograms or 305 cases of artifacts wall carvings and precious icons which were subsequently shipped to the museum In Buried Treasures Le Coq defends these borrowings as a matter of necessity citing the turbulent nature of Chinese Turkestan at the time of the expeditions Chinese consider this seizure a colonial rapacity comparable to the taking of the Elgin Marbles or the Koh i Noor diamond 6 The collections from the German expeditions were initially kept at the Indian Department of the Ethnological Museum of Berlin Ethnologisches Museum Berlin The artifacts were put on display at the museum and were open to the public until 1944 when the relics were destroyed in British bombing raids during World War II 6 The Ethnological Museum was bombed seven times in Allied bombing raids destroying the larger wall murals which had been cemented into place and could not be moved 28 of the finest paintings were totally destroyed Smaller pieces were hidden in bunkers and coal mines at the outbreak of war and survived the bombings When the Russians arrived in 1945 they looted at least 10 crates of treasures that they discovered in a bunker under the Berlin Zoo which have not been seen since The remaining items have been collected together and are housed in a new museum in Dahlem a suburb of Berlin 7 the Museum of Indian Art Museum fur Indische Kunst from 1963 and finally combined into a single location at the Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities Berlin Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften BBAW since 1992 Most of the manuscripts collection survived stored in salt mines After the war the major part of the collection was given in 1946 to the newly founded Deutsche Akademie der Wissenschaften A smaller portion found its way to the Mainzer Akademie der Wissenschaften und Literatur Notes Edit a b Schatzjagd an der Seidenstrasse A film by Susanne Rostosky A production of Story House Productions GmbH in cooperation with Logo ARTE and ZDF Enterprises c ZDF 2013 Presented in Finland on YLE TV 1 on 16 March 2014 with the title The surprising finds of the Silk Road von Le Coq Albert 1913 Chotscho Facsimile Wiedergaben der Wichtigeren Funde der Ersten Koniglich Preussischen Expedition nach Turfan in Ost Turkistan Berlin Dietrich Reimer Ernst Vohsen im Auftrage der Gernalverwaltung der Koniglichen Museen aus Mitteln des Baessler Institutes Tafel 19 Accessed 3 September 2016 a b Gasparini Mariachiara A Mathematic Expression of Art Sino Iranian and Uighur Textile Interactions and the Turfan Textile Collection in Berlin in Rudolf G Wagner and Monica Juneja eds Transcultural Studies Ruprecht Karls Universitat Heidelberg No 1 2014 pp 134 163 ISSN 2191 6411 See also endnote 32 Accessed 3 September 2016 a b Hansen Valerie 2012 The Silk Road A New History Oxford University Press p 98 ISBN 978 0 19 993921 3 von Le Coq Albert 1913 Chotscho Facsimile Wiedergaben der Wichtigeren Funde der Ersten Koniglich Preussischen Expedition nach Turfan in Ost Turkistan Berlin Dietrich Reimer Ernst Vohsen im Auftrage der Gernalverwaltung der Koniglichen Museen aus Mitteln des Baessler Institutes p 28 Tafel 20 Accessed 3 September 2016 a b Digby T 2002 05 09 Nests of the Great Game spies Shanghai Star Archived from the original on 2011 06 11 Retrieved 2010 11 26 From the Introduction by Peter Hopkirk in the 1985 edition of Von Le Coq s Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan p ix x References and further reading Editvon Le Coq Albert 1928 Barwell Anna trans ed Buried Treasures of Chinese Turkestan An Account of the Activities and Adventures of the Second and Third German Turpan Expeditions London George Allen amp Unwin Repr 1985 OUP ISBN 0 19 583878 5 von Le Coq Albert 1922 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 1 Die Plastik Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1923 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 2 Die Manichaeischen Miniaturen Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1924 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 3 Die Wandmalereien Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1924 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 4 Atlas zu den Wandmalereien Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1926 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 5 Neue Bildwerke Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1928 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 6 Neue Bildwerke II Berlin Dietrich Reimer von Le Coq Albert 1933 Die buddhistische Spatantike in Mittelasien vol 7 Neue Bildwerke III Berlin Dietrich Reimer Hopkirk Peter 1980 Foreign Devils on the Silk Road The Search for the Lost Cities and Treasures of Chinese Central Asia Amherst University of Massachusetts Press ISBN 0 87023 435 8 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Albert von Le Coq amp oldid 1120912621, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
