Where is the Silk Road, what countries does the ancient route run through and where does it begin and end?
It was the world's first global superhighway where people like Marco Polo helped spread new ideas, cultures and religions which helped create the world we know today
THE ancient Silk Road was a route from China to Europe dating back more than 2,000 years, through which textiles and other good were brought - silky fabric to Europe and carrots for the Chinese.
Ideas were also exchanged between the Asian and Roman and Middle Ages civilisations.
Where is the Silk Road?
The Silk Road was a network of trade routes connecting China and the Far East with the Middle East and Europe.
It was not a road as such, rather a collection or network of tracts and sea routes on which goods were shipped by merchants.
Few travelled the entire route because goods were mostly handled by middlemen.
It stretched along the Originating in China the 4,000-mile road followed the Great Wall of China to the northwest, bypassed the Takla Makan Desert, climbed the Pamirs mountains before crossing Afghanistan and then on to the Levant.
From there the merchandise was shipped across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe.
What countries does the ancient route run through?
The route travelled from the ancient capital of China, Xi'an, to Rome.
It went through many countries like Syria, Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan.
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When did the Silk Road begin and when did it stop?
It was established when the Han Dynasty in China officially opened trade with the West in 130 BC.
Venetian trader Marco Polo made a vast fortune during his two decades travelling in China — and described the wonders of Asia to westerners for the first time, including spectacles and paper money.
The routes remained in use until 1453 when the Ottoman Empire boycotted trade with China and shut them down.
It’s been nearly 600 years since the Silk Road was used for international trade.
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