Following a Mediterranean Clue. A Reconsideration of the Sources about the Country of Haixi 海西國 (2nd - 3rd Century CE)

Beginning with Zhang Qian’s mission during the reign of Emperor Wu, the Han
expansion westwards brought new geographical knowledge. Gan Ying’s arrival on the shores
of the Persian Gulf in 97 CE established a new and extreme boundary for knowledge of the
West: the purpose of his mission was direct contact with the political entity known as Da
Qin. Within the historiographical sources where references to Da Qin and the West appear,
the toponym Haixi 海西 recurs in Hou Hanshu 後漢書, Hou Hanji 後漢紀, and Weilüe 魏
略. This chapter lists the historical sources on Haixi to discuss some related issues and
proposes some hypotheses for identifying the place names in these texts, potentially aiding
in locating Haixi geographically. Finally, a concluding paragraph addresses a previously
neglected source, which appears to support the hypothesis identifying Haixi with Egyptian
territory, thereby associating it with a region within the Mediterranean area.