The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia

The Silk Road, by Frances Wood is a wonderfully detailed account of the history of what is probably the most famous "road" in history. Of course we soon learn that this "road" is actually a series of roads running here and there through many countries and many cultures. I must admit that when I first received this book, I had a sinking feeling. It appeared to be just another coffee table book. It certainly looked and felt like one. How wrong I was. Just goes to show you indeed cannot judge a book by its cover nor by its shape. I cannot remember reading a book, in particular on this subject, which was so filled with wonderful facts and obscure bits of knowledge. What was even nicer was the fact that it is so well written and so well researched. Also, unlike many of the books on this subject, it is not Eurocentric by any means. Most of the story of this famous trade route took place in the far and Middle East and this is where the author places the majority of emphasis. While the author certainly touches on the types of goods which were carried along this route, and does address the economic aspect of trade in this part of the world over the past several thousand years, the majority of this work focuses on the various civilization, many of them completely lost, and on the travels of quite a number of important, but seldom heard of travelers and traders. This is NOT a rehash of all the old tales of Marco Polo, who, thank goodness, was not mentioned all that much. The study of Marco is interesting and enjoyable, but to learn the truth of these days and times, his writings are probably not the most accurate. Besides, if you want to learn of Marco and his family, there are certainly enough other books out there that more than cover the subject. Now before I continue, the reader should take note. As the author fully admits, this is a very complicated work, made even more so by the spelling of place names and the various rise and fall of numerous civilizations. I must admit that at many times I was completely clueless as to where, who and when the author was referring to. This is not the author's fault, it is mine. I had no idea just how ignorant I was of the geography of the area concerned, and how ignorant of the history of that area. If you do not know what and where Zhou, Xiongnu, Yarkland, Loulan, Zhibin, Parthis, Chang'an, Qin, Gaozong, Dunhuang, Xuanzang, and several hundred other locations are, then you will be in big trouble like I was. Many of these place names are further complicated because of name changes over hundreds of years and by numerous different spellings of the same place. There is obviously a large gap in my education. I had the same problem with names of various tribes and the names of people. Even maps are not that much help, as many of the places mentioned in the author's narrative simply no longer exist. Actually and surprisingly, this did not distract from the overall work all that much. And, when you t

This is the best of all the many books I've read about "the" silk road, since I have been visiting Gansu province, China, for the past ten years. It is very informative, as well as beautifully illustrated and engagingly written. Wood adeptly covers the subject from varied perspectives: historical, geographical, cultural, artistic, political,etc. Superb!

Fraces Wood's SILK ROAD is a highly readable if somewhat compact survey of the Silk Road which manages to encompass history (interesting discussion of Marco Polo among other things), geography, and culture. This is an excellent introduction to an area of the world, Central Asia and the Roof Of The World, which is likely to become increasingly important as well as accessible. I would suggest reading this book before starting to read very much about The Great Game (Peter Hopkirk's Central Asia books, Meyer's TOURNAMENT OF SHADOWS), or indeed about Central Asia in general. Documentation appears excellent as one would expect of a scholar of Wood's background and credentials. The writing style is exemplary; this is am far more readable treatiste on the subject than the English ranslation of Luce Boulnois' SILK ROAD (which seems to have lacked vigourous or at least effective editing.)

The Silk Road follows the caravan routes taken during the history of the jade trade. It gives interesting historial stories, great photos of art, architecture, people places, over two thousand years of cultural, political and grographical changes along this vast corridor. The information in the book is surprising and tantalizing. One wants to find out more about certain historiacal figures, cultural transformations, and changing attitudes. I enjoyed it tremendously.

The ancient trade network between East and West known as the Silk Road is one of history's great melting pots, and the world's most dynamic mixture of culture, language, and knowledge. Frances Wood uses the Silk Road as mostly a conceptual backdrop for more specific historical vignettes here, as a complete history of all the different cultures and societies involved, over the course of at least three millennia, would be prohibitively huge. Though there is some discussion of actual trade and the goods transported long distance and sold in the area's bazaars, Wood focuses on specific areas of interest, such as the mysterious Xiongnu people of ancient times, or the more modern dramatic journeys of explorers like Sven Hedin. A nice bonus is a debunking of some of the claims of Marco Polo, who surely traveled through the area but made many dubious descriptions of particular locations he probability didn't really see. Instead we hear the fascinating stories of other less-known but arguably more impressive travelers of the time, like Bento de Goes. Some of Wood's narratives get worrisomely far away from the Silk Road backdrop, and the tail end of the book is a bit of a slog with tedious coverage of latter-day explorers. However, the general appreciation for the importance of the Silk Road is the larger achievement of this book, and the frequent illustrations and photographs of forlorn landscapes and ancient masterpieces make this book a visual treat as well. [~doomsdayer520~]