◊.Out of the mist and hum of that low land,
Into the frosty starlight, and there moved,
Rejoicing, through the hushed Chorasmian waste,
Under the solitary moon: — he flowed
Right for the polar star, past Orgunjè,
Brimming, and bright, and large: then sands begin
To hem his watery march, and dam his streams,
And split his currents; that for many a league
The shorn and parcelled Oxus strains along
Through beds of sand and matted rushy isles—
Oxus, forgetting the bright speed he had
In his high mountain-cradle in Pamere,
A foiled circuitous wanderer: — till at last
The longed-for dash of waves is heard, and wide
His luminous home of waters opens, bright
And tranquil, from whose floor the new-bathed stars
Emerge, and shine upon the Aral Sea."
The Silk Road is a name given by the Adventurer Archaeologist Ferdinand von Richthofen (the uncle of guess who) to the overland luxury trade routes between China and the Mediterranean. It was not a "road" per se; more like a "web", a web that shifted to and fro, as natural, economic and political circumstances favored one route above another. Its name came from the Chinese silk traded along the road, which was more valued then any silk manufactured at the time. There were other goods transported along the way, such as jade, glass, porcelain, horses, spices, and what not. In fact, from China's point of view, it might be called the "jade route", as Chinese for a long time valued jade as much as westerners valued silk. Ideas and customs were also carried back and forth along the routes. For instance, Greek colonies descended from veterans of the army of Alexander the Great have left traces of merging of Oriental and Occidental art forms. From the other direction, "Arabic" (actually Indian) numerals, both by the Indian Ocean commerce and through the Silk Road were carried largely by Islamic traders (the reason for the name "Arabic") to the west. On the whole, the Silk Road was inclined toward the desert and mountain areas of Central Asia because, hazardous as those were, they were usually less hazardous than the steppes riddled with constant clan wars among the nomads dwelling there.
Few traders actually went all the way across. Not only were the perils great, but the tariffs charged by each prince along the way mounted up until they became unaffordable, not least because there were few occasions in which the entire route was ruled by one empire; in normal times, each petty prince got a piece of the action, so to speak. Thus, the trade along the Silk Road naturally formed a sort of relay system where one trader would sell to another, and so on taking his own cut at the end of his journey. The Silk Road, like much of Central Asia, resembled an "ocean" in which each city was an "island". The names of the cities have become famous in romance and poetry and are well remembered, names like Samarkand, Bactria, Kashgar, and so on. The Silk Route also isn't limited to land
.
The end of the Silk Road as remembered in the past came when the Cape of Good Hope was circumvented by the Portuguese and the luxury products from China could be gotten cheaper. Much of the Silk Route declined. Still, to this day, it is a notable trade route and caravans frequently cross. Usually with trucks instead of camels, but often carrying the same kind of goods as their ancestors. Currently, China's "Belt and Road Initiative" aims to create modern Silk Roads.
A number of famous people had part of their lives associated with the Silk Road. These include, but are not limited to Alexander the Great, Fitzroy Maclean, Genghis Khan, Gustav Mannerheim, and most famously of all Marco Polo.
Works associated with the Silk Road:
Historical:
- The Silk Road: A History, by Irene Franck and David Brownstone
- To the Ends of the Earth by Irene Franck and David Brownstone
- The Great Game series by Peter Hopkirk
Memoir:
- Eastern Approaches by Fitzroy Maclean
Fiction:
- The Golden Dream of Carlo Chuchio takes place in a setting rather like the Silk Road and seems to have allusions which might be caught by someone familiar with the history of the area.
- The Silk Road was simulated in Crusader Kings II (requires the Horse Lords or Jade Dragon expansion). It depicts the trade routes as "streams" starting in Tibet; wars that erupt "upstream" will interrupt the flow of trade downstream, and streams which are unaffected by wars can see increases in trade volume as trade is diverted away from warring areas. The Road passes through the steppes, India, Persia and ends in the Levant. To take advantage of the routes, owners of counties where the routes pass through can build trading posts (previously, only patricians can build trading posts and only in coastal counties). Ambitious (or pragmatic) rulers would often try to bring as many counties along the routes under their (or loyal vassals') control.
- The early (and sadly lost) Doctor Who story "Marco Polo" sees The First Doctor, Susan, Ian, and Barbra accompany the titular explorer on his expedition.
- Where A Bride's Story takes place along.
- The Legend of Silkroad is a Korean Beat 'em Up duology where player heroes must journey along the titular road and battle their way through bandits, rebels, the undead and even demons.
- The Old World of Darkness supplement Blood & Silk, which attempts to connect Kindred of the East to Dark Ages: Vampire by way of the Road.
- Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom: The Silk Road's existence is vital to many a city's existence, especially those set along the northern border or in the Taklamakan desert. Not only are you intended to import silk from China and sell it at a markup to other cities (usually represented by the distant city of Kashgar), you also get jade (which you then carve into expensive trinkets and resell) and spices (which can be sold or used to provide better food to your people).
- Golden Sun has its own version of the Silk Road that follows a similar route more or less: it starts in Xian, a small village modeled after a medieval Chinese settlement in the Angara continent where merchants buy silk, going through Kalay, a Port Town roughly equivalent to either Constantinople (modern day Istanbul) or Samarkand and ending in Tolbi, the Rome analogue in the setting, where merchants sell the silk.
