A man wearing an overcoat and a huge hat sidles up to me. Stones he whispers, barely audible above the cacophony of the street, as if he’s letting me into a secret. There’s an edge to his voice and he repeats stones a little louder and loaded with urgency. I’m intrigued. This is my introduction to the stone market at Khotan bazaar.
A few streets later and all around me there are hundreds of vendors selling magnificent collections of the stones for which the town is famous. As impressive are the different kinds of headgear being sported by shoppers and vendors alike. I check out some stones and the stall-holder busily oils the stone to show me its “true quality”, playing for the not insubstantial crowd which has now gathered. A few pebbles in my pocket and I try and find the sheep market.
Striking up a conversation with a man leading a sheep seems to be a likely option, so I approach the shepherd and ask the way. His response is ambiguous and could be taken to mean either that he’s going to market to sell the sheep or that he’s just bought the sheep and is going home. He’s a nice chap and we walk together for a while until we’re approached by a tall man with a large mustache who wants to buy the sheep. So I’m on the right track. The tall man inspects the sheep for quality as a connoisseur might address a fine wine, albeit with far more rough handling and tail grabbing. After some boisterous bartering the deal is done and both men decide to go home which leaves me back where I started, but fascinated.
The tall man speaks some Chinese and points me in the direction of the sheep market and soon herds of sheep and a mighty dust trail lead the way. Sheep bums stretch in lines as far as the eye can see and their handlers keenly clip the wool on their behinds like dog beauticians preening poodles. Groups of men with elegant knives slung in their belts walk the line and grab the odd bum, stopping for further inspection if the feel is right. This is just the first market of many to follow on my research route across the Silk Road and I think I can already smell the next!
