Read more
The Silk Road is a route from the edges of the European world to the central plains of China. For thousands of years, its history has been a traveller's history, of brief encounters in desert towns, snowbound passes and nameless forts. It was the conduit that first brought Buddhism, Christianity and Islam into China, and the site of much of the 'Great Game' between Victorian empires. Jonathan Clements guides the reader through the trackless wastes of the Taklamakan Desert, its black whirlwinds and dead lakes, its shimmering mirages, lost cities and mysterious mummies, but also its iconic statues and memorable modern pop songs. He explains the truth behind odd tales of horses that sweat blood, defaced statues and missing frescoes, and Marco Polo's stories of black gold that seeps from the earth.
List of contents
1. The Invention of the Silk Road
Beginnings and Endings
Geography and Topography
Names and Naming
Barbarians, Minorities and the Historical Record
2. From the Tarim Mummies to the Early Han Dynasty (Prehistory to AD 6)
The Discovery of Silk
Moths and Worms
Horse-riders and Horse-traders
3. The Western Regions: From Han to Tang (AD 6-618)
Armies Reach Kashgar
Silk Reaches Khotan
Buddhism Reaches China
4. The Tang Dynasty (618-907)
Tripitaka
The Christians
The Jewelled Surnames
The Tragedy of Yang Guifei
5. The Uyghurs and the Mongols (907-1408)
Barchuq Switches Sides
Marco Polo
The Muslims
6. The New Frontier (1408-1912)
Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Kalmuks
Yaqub Beg and Kashgaria
The Tomb Raiders
7. Autonomy and Hegemny (1912-2012)
The Republic of China
The ‘Republics’ of Xinjiang
The People’s Republic of China
Whose Song is it Anyway?
8. The Silk Road Today
Ecology and Erosion
Religion and Races
Tourism and Tradition
History and Heritage
Further Reading and References
Chronology of Major Events
Index
About the author
Jonathan Clements is an author and TV presenter specializing in the history and cultures of the Far East. Previous books by him include
A Short History of Tokyo,
The Emperor's Feast,
Anime: A History, and a biography of Gustaf Mannerheim,
Mannerheim: President, Soldier, Spy. He lives in Finland.
Summary
The author explains the truth behind odd tales of horses that sweat blood, defaced statues and missing frescoes, and Marco Polo's stories of black gold that seeps from the earth.
