尼雅遺址=Niya site; 發現與研究史=history of discovery and study; 文書=documents; 學術問題=academic subjects
摘要
Archaeological researches on the Niya site were begun from Aural Stein’s survey and excavation in 1901.Through work in the past 100 years,valuable field archaeological data have been accumulated in a large amount,including those of remains of houses,temples,cemeteries,handicraft workshops,farm fields,walled towns and bridges.Of them the most interesting for researchers are Kharosthi and Chinese documents,through which some scholars made historico-geographic researches and other studies with unearthed vestiges and objects.The geographic environments of the site and the rich- ness and multiformity of its remains determine its importance in archaeological studies.In the future, special attention should be paid to the typological and chronological researches,the subjects on the set- tlement pattern and its evolution,the shape of early Buddhist buildings and the unearthed documents,as well as the study of ancient ecological environments and desert archaeological methodology.