Bactrian Camel

In a similar vein to the sculptures of horses during this period, figures of camels reveal an equal care in representing the physical characteristics of animals. Camels were the beast of burden used along the Silk Road linking Chang'an (capital of China under the Tang dynasty) and the west.
The camel with two-humps was introduced to China from the Xiongnu region and used as a pack animal to cross the Gobi desert and the Tarim Basin. The Uighurs, Tibetans and Turks sent camels to Chang'an as a tribute. The camels were not only beasts of burden in the trading caravans, but were also taken along on military expeditions, hunting campaigns and festive processions.