The Silk Road

The Silk Road was anything but a route predetermined by nature. Running from the Mediterranean to China through arid regions and deserts, it is one of the most inhospitable routes on earth, passing through scorched, waterless land and connecting one oasis to the next. Mesopotamia, the Iranian highlands and the lowlands of Turan lie along the way. Once you reach the Tarim Basin with the Taklamakan Desert, you are surrounded by the highest mountain ranges on earth: the Tian Shan rises in the north, the Pamir in the west, the Karakorum in the south-west and the Kunlun in the south. Only a few icy passes, which are among the most difficult in the world with their deep gorges and 5000 metres of altitude to overcome, lead through the mountains. The climate is also harsh: sandstorms are frequent, in summer the temperature rises to over 40 °C and in winter it often drops below -20 °C.

Due to the geographical nature of the region, only a few fixed transport and trade routes developed. There were alternatives and alternative routes in many places. (Source: Wikipedia)

It is planned to reconstruct the entire historical route of the Silk Road from Byzantium or Tyre via Palmyra and Babylon, Samarkand and Kaxgar, Dunhuang and Xi'an to Beijing or Hangzhou at road level with a precise description of the single stages.

The route is already shown here at road level (avoiding motorways and other modern traffic routes) with mountain passes and desert stretches (magenta), so that you can zoom up to the highest level. Wherever possible, historical routes were favoured. In addition, the individual segments of the Great Wall of China have been added to the map (light green).

Further content will follow in the course of time.