In the seventh century, during the Chinese Tang Dynasty, Tibetans began drinking fermented black tea, a valuable addition to their restricted diet of meat and milk. Beginning as an aristocratic delicacy, it quickly became a staple, but it had to be imported, first from southern Yunnan, with a secondary route from Ya'an in Sichuan. The Chinese on the other hand, had a need for war horses and the sturdy Tibetan horses were ideal. As a result a two-way trade route arose during the Song Dynasty and became known as the Cha Ma Dao, the Tea-Horse Road, a 2,300 kilometre journey from southern Yunnan to Lhasa at its core.

About the Author

Michael Freeman, whose previous publications with 'River Books' include 'Ancient Angkor' and 'Palaces of the Gods', has specialised in Asia for most of his career, and has published more than 100 books.