Tea-for-horse exchange between China and Tibet

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From the Tang period, tea from the south-western provinces was carried by mule and porter into Tibet and exchanged for horses, which Chinese dynasties needed in quantity for cavalry and could not breed adequately themselves. The Song state formalised the exchange through dedicated tea and horse offices, and the arrangement persisted under the Ming and Qing. The first long-distance movement of tea was therefore overland, mountainous and strategic — a state procurement system rather than a maritime luxury trade.

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