Silk Road Cities: Past

and Present

Silk Road Trade Centers: Xian, Dunhuang, Samaqand,

Bagdad, and Istanbul

Cities Along the Silk Road:

Past and Present
O Eastern Terminus: Changan (Xian

today)
O One of the four great ancient cities of China,

more than 3100 years of history

O Capital city of Qin, Han, Sui and Tang
dynasties
O Home of Terracotta Army
O fusion of cultures

Big Wild Goose Pagoda (

) a Buddhist wooden
pagoda built in 652 during
the Tang Dyansty in Xian

The Great Mosque of Xian (

) built in 742 in Xian

Muslim quarter in Xian today

Fusion of cultures

O Dunhuang
O A strategically important frontier town in the

Hexi Corridor
O A major communication and commercial hub
between China and Central Asia on the Silk
Road
O Mogao Caves ( )
O Tourist locations today such Yueya Lake

A Han Dynasty Watchtower in Dunhaung

Trade along the Silk Road

Mogao Caves

Bodhisattva,
painting on silk,
Mogao Caves
Mogao Caves

Sand dunes on
the edge of
Dunhuang today

Yueya
Lake

Dunhuang
Train Station

O Samarkand---2nd largest in Uzbekistan today

O Ancient city

O Central position on the Silk Road

O Crossroads of cultures
O Center of Islamic studies

Trades on the Silk Road in Samarkand, around 7th century

Camel Caravans in
Samarkand in the
early 20th century

Registan, an
icon and a
public square in
Samarkand

O Bagdadcapital of Iraq today

O Strategic location over trade routes, hub of great

learning and commerce

O Center of Arabic culture for a long and illustrious
history
O Probably the largest city in the world before 10th
century
O Many of One Thousand and One Nights took place
in Bagdad between the 8th and 13th centuries
(also known as the Islamic Golden Age)

Trade
Caravans to
the West

Ali-Baba and
One Thousand
and One Nights

Qasr-al-Khalifa or
Abbasid Palace in
Samarra (125 KM
from Bagdad) , built
in 836AD

City View of Bagdad, across Tigris River, 2007

O Istanbul
O West Terminus of the Silk Road, strategic

location between Europe and the Middle East

and a gateway to the Black Sea
O A Transcontinental city, an economic, cultural,
and historical center
O capital for famous empires(Constantinople)
such the Roman Empire, Byzantine Empire,
and Ottoman Empire

Originally a church, later a mosque, and now a museum,

the Hagia Sophia was built in the 6th century.

City views of
Istanbul
Today

Maritime Silk Road Trade Routes & Major Trade Centers

Malacca

Voyages of Zheng He 1421 the Year China

Discover the World? by F Menzies

Maritime Silk Road

O Quanzhou
O Southern part of Fujian province today

O The starting point of the maritime silk road

O Also known as Zaitun, Zayton ()
O One of the largest seaports during the Song

and Yuan dynasties

O Host city of many foreign inhabitants during
that period

Qingjing Mosque in Quanzhou, built in 1009 (Song Dynasty)

City view of Quanzhou today

O Malacca (Melaka in Malay)

O Southern part of Malay peninsular, next to

the Straits of Malacca

O An important stop for Zheng Hes fleet that
he stopped here on all of his 7 voyages

A stamp from Malaysia shows Zheng

He in Malacca in 1405

A statue of Zheng He to the entrance of Cheng Ho (Zheng He)

Cultural Museum and his temple in Malacca today

O Calicut (also known as Kozhikode), India

O Southern India on the Malabar Coast

O City of Spices
O Ibn Battuta visited 6 times
O Zheng He also stopped here for trade

View of Calicut, on the Malabar coast, 16th century

Arrival of Europeans
for spices