X. A SOUTH INDIAN EMBASSY TO CHINA C. 510 A.D.
“In the time of Seuen-woo, of the dynasty of the later Wei (A.D. 500-516), South India sent an ambassador to offer as presents some horses of a fine breed. This ambassador stated that the kingdom produced lions, leopards, panthers, camels, rhinoceroses and elephants; that there was a species of pearl there, called ho-tse, similar to talc (yun-moo), the colour of which was yellowish red (tse, reddish blue); if it is divided, it disperses like the wings of the cricket, if it is heaped up, on the other hand, it becomes compact, like threads of silk strongly woven. There were diamonds resembling amethysts (tse-shih-ying). When purified a hundred times in the fire, without melting, this diamond is used to cut Jasper (yu stone). There were also tortoise-shell (tae-mei), gold (kin), copper (tung), iron (tee), lead (yuen), tin (seih), fine muslins embroidered with gold and silver; there were also a variety of odoriferous plants, yuh-kin, sugar-canes, and all kinds of products; honey-bread (or solid honey), pepper, ginger and black-salt.”
— “Chinese account of India. Translated from the Wan-heen-t’hung-kaou, or Deep Researches into Ancient Monuments;” by Ma Twan-lin; book 338 fol. 14. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, vi. p. 66; cf. JRAS., vi. p. 458; IA ix, p. 18.