楼兰俗称汉时西域的鄯善国，是一个历史悠久的文明古国。2100多年前就已见诸文字的古楼兰王国在丝绸之路上曾作为中国、波斯、印度、叙利亚和罗马帝国之间的中转贸易站，当时它是世界上最开放、最繁华的大都市之一。公元500年左右，古楼兰王国于一夜之间在中国版图上神秘消失。
1. Kroraina：Historical changes and people’s fate of the prosperous state
A 3，800-year-old female mummy， the first of a series of mummies now known as the Tarim mummies， was discovered in Loulan in 1980， indicating very early settlement of the region. Loulan was on the main route from Dunhuang to Korla， where it joined the socalled "northern route"， and was also connected by a route southwest to the kingdom’s seat of government in the Charkhlik oasis， and from thence to Khotan and Yarkand.
楼兰：繁华古城的历史变迁与人民命运
1980年，在楼兰发现了一具3800岁的女性木乃伊，即所谓的塔里木系列干尸中的第一个木乃伊，表明这个地方早就有人居住。楼兰位于从敦煌到库尔勒的主要路线上，在那里加入了所谓的“北方路线”，连接着一条从西南方通往若羌绿洲中的王国政府所在地，并从那里到达和田与叶尔羌。
General History and the people’s life
One of the great mysteries in Chinese history is the disappearance of the ancient city of Loulan. The city was located about 300 km northeast of charkhlik County， Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and adjacent to another early city of northwest China， Dunhuang in Gansu Province. Like Pompeii in ancient Rome which drowned in a sea of volcanic ash， Loulan fell victim to an incredible natural disaster that transformed the once beautiful city into a barren and perilous desert landscape. This inexplicable event has whetted the curiosity of many archaeologists and other scientists over the years. Tourists， too， have been intrigued by this site and many venture there despite adverse weather and terrain conditions.
Loulan was established as a kingdom in 176 BC and flourished for over 800 years. Over 1，600 years ago， Loulan was a sprawling kingdom of 360，000 square kilometers， whose domain bordered Dunhuang in the East and Niya city in the West. The city was like an oasis traversed by a limpid river and situated next to a bountiful lake. The city had a population of over 14，000 including an estimated 3，000 soldiers guarding the safety of the kingdom. Many residents made a living fishing and hunting. As one of the major stops on the old Silk Road， the city was a center for the trading of silks， teas， fruit and jewels with the inland. Merchants also used Loulan as a stopover in their travels. As a key traffic hub on the ancient Silk Road， it served as an important trading center between China and the West， welcoming streams of camels loaded with exotic goods from many parts of the world. Many visitors and caravans were from the Mediterranean region. In short， the kingdom was booming economically while serving as a peaceful and paradisiacal environment for its citizens and visitors.
历史概况和人民生活
中国历史上的伟大奥秘之一便是消失的楼兰古城。古城位于新疆维吾尔自治区若羌县东北部约300公里处，它和中国西北另一个早期的城市，也即甘肃省的敦煌相邻。就像在古罗马的庞贝城被淹灭在火山灰中一样，楼兰也是一场令人难以置信的自然灾害的受害城，这场自然灾害将瑰丽一时的楼兰变成了荒芜而危险的沙漠景观。多年来，这件令人百思不得其解的谜案激起了众多考古学家和其他科学家的好奇心，尽管气候恶劣和地形条件不利，古城遗址仍深深吸引了大量游客。
公元前176年，楼兰作为一个王国得以建立。历经了800多年蓬勃发展，到1600多年以前，楼兰已是一个覆盖了36万平方公里的庞大王国，它与东方的敦煌和西方的尼雅城市接壤。楼兰古城像个绿洲，它毗邻一个水量丰富的湖泊，一条清澈的河流贯穿其中。这个古城人口超过14000人，其中包括约3000名守卫国土安全的士兵，古城许多居民以捕鱼和狩猎为生。作为古丝绸之路上的主要站点之一，这个古城是一个与内陆进行丝绸、茶叶、水果和珠宝交易的贸易中心，商人也将楼兰作为他们行程中的驻足地。作为古丝绸之路上的一个重要的交通枢纽，楼兰充当中国和西方国家之间重要贸易中心的角色，每天迎接并招待载有来自世界各地的异国情调商品的骆驼群，他们中许多游客和商队都来自地中海地区。楼兰古城的经济蓬勃发展，为其居民和游客提供了和平与天堂般的环境。
Early Han Dynasty：Loulan bent to Han court and Xiongnu
The first historical mention of Loulan was in a letter from the Chanyu of the Xiongnu to the Chinese Emperor in 126 BC in which he boasted of conquering the Yuezhi， the Wusun， Loulan， and Hujie， "as well as the twentysix states nearby." In 126 BC， the Chinese envoy， Zhang Qian described Loulan as a fortified city near Lop Nur.
Because of its strategic position on what became the main route from China to the West， during the Former Han and Later Han， control of it was regularly contested between the Chinese and the Xiongnu until well into the 2nd century AD. In Hanshu， the early interactions of Loulan with the Han court were described in some details.
In the second century BC， the Emperor Wu of Han was interested in extending contact with Dayuan （Fergana） after receiving reports of the country from Zhang Qian， however the contact was made difficult due to harassment of Han envoys by Loulan and Gushi. Loulan was therefore attacked in 108 and its king captured， after which Loulan agreed to pay a tribute to Han China. The Xiongnu， on hearing of these events， also attacked Loulan. The king of Loulan therefore elected to send one of his son as a hostage to the Xiongnu， and another to the Han court.The king of Loulan was then taken to the Han court and interrogated about his association with the Xiongnu. The Han emperor was satisfied with the statement and released the king.
In 92 BC， the king of Loulan died， and his countrymen requested that the king’s son be returned to Loulan. However， the Han court had castrated his son for infringement of Han laws and so it refused the request， claiming that the Han Emperor had grown too fond of him to let him go. Another king was installed in Loulan， and again a son was sent as hostage to the Han court. After the death of this king， the Xiongnu returned the hostage son sent to them， named Chang Gui or An Gui， back to Loulan to rule as king. The Han， on hearing this， demanded that the new king present himself to the Han court. This the king refused， on account of the fact neither of the hostage sons sent to the Han court had been returned.
In 77 BC， the Chinese envoy Fu Jiezi was sent to kill the Loulan king after several Han envoys were killed or kidnapped. He arrived on the pretext of carrying gold and valuables to the outer states and intending to present the king with gifts， but stabbed the Loulan king to death while he was drunk. The king’s younger brother Wei-tu-qi was then installed as the king of Loulan by the Han court， and the kingdom was renamed Shanshan.