First used in the late nineteenth century, "Silk Road" designates the ancient land routes that connected the Mediterranean world, the Middle East, and parts of northern India, Central Asia, and China. Although trade routes had long existed, the flowering of the Silk Road can be traced to the rise and expansion of two great empires—Rome in the west and Han China (206 B.C.–A.D. 220) in the east—which provided the peace and stability to link existing routes into one great road, separated into northern and southern branches by the Taklamakan Desert. Travel along the Silk Road, which was always perilous, included traversing towering mountains and grasslands as well as deserts. Merchants traveled part way, meeting their counterparts to exchange such luxury goods as glass, metalwork, spices, fragrances, and textiles. Silk served as both a luxury good and a form of money, and the term Silk Road reflects the importance awarded this fabric in the international trade that united much of the world for centuries.

Textiles, such as this fragment, have been preserved in some number in the Turfan region due to its dry climate. Derived from Iranian traditions, pearl roundels were popular in the Tang period and are found on textiles, sculpture, and decorative arts. Paired birds also reflect Iranian taste. Some of the birds wear scarves, and some do not, indicating that the pattern repeats only horizontally (the weft direction) but not vertically (the warp direction). Characteristic of Iranian weaving, this patterning method spread east along the Silk Road into China.