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The Giraffe of Bengal: A Medieval Encounter in Ming China
Abstract
This paper chronicles the development of diplomatic relations between China and Bengal in the early-fifteenth century, culminating in the pre sentation of a giraffe by Bengal to the court of China in 1414. It examines Chinese sources that recorded the visits of envoys from Bengal to China and from China to Bengal during the period of the Chinese maritime ex peditions from 1405 to 1433. Discussion centres on the historical context for these exchanges in the two countries, the relationship between the Chinese maritime expeditions and these diplomatic missions, and the reliability of Chinese sources in recording the events and rulers of Bengal. An effort is made to elucidate the many complexities that surrounded this seemingly straightforward event.
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“The painting by Shen Du included a laudatory note about the emperor saying: When a sage possesses the virtue of utmost benevolence so that he illuminates the darkest places, a qilin appears.”
From The impact of Zheng He's expeditions on Indian Ocean interactions (2016) · cites this paper as Church 2004: 34
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Musgrave, P., & Nexon, D. H. (2018) · International Organization · doi:10.1017/s0020818318000139 · Cited by 172
The impact of Zheng He's expeditions on Indian Ocean interactions
Sen, T. (2016) · Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies · doi:10.1017/s0041977x16001038 · Cited by 57
Self-correction, control and accountability in the ancient Melaka Kingdom (1401–1511 AD)
Mustafa, H., & Ibrahim, M. I. (2023) · Accounting Auditing & Accountability Journal · doi:10.1108/aaaj-04-2020-4512 · Cited by 4
Zheng He’s Military Interventions in South Asia, 1405–1433
Sen, T. (2019) · China and Asia · doi:10.1163/2589465x-00102003 · Cited by 4
Vergnaud, G., Antwerpen, M. H., & Grass, G. (2025) · Pathogens · doi:10.3390/pathogens14101041 · Cited by 2
Metadata
- Authors
- Church, S. K.
- Affiliations
- Fellow of Wolfson College, Cambridge CB3 9BB, UK
- Corresponding author
- Church, Sally K.
- ORCID
- Church, Sally K.
- Venue
- The Medieval History Journal
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2004-04
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-37
- ISSN
- 0971-9458 (ISSN-L)
- 0973-0753
- OpenAlex
- W2011429386
- Cited by
- 17
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 1
- FWCI
- 0.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Medieval History Journal (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Global Maritime and Colonial Histories
- Social Sciences › Political Science and International Relations › Historical Influence and Diplomacy
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History › Eurasian Exchange Networks
- Keywords
- giraffe, Ming China, Bengal, diplomatic relations, Zheng He, envoys, Chinese sources, 15th century, India-China relations
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- CoChat. (2026). Citation check: The Giraffe of Bengal: A Medieval Encounter in Ming China. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1177/097194580400700101
- The paper
- Church, S. K. (2004). The Giraffe of Bengal: A Medieval Encounter in Ming China. The Medieval History Journal. https://doi.org/10.1177/097194580400700101
