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From time immemorial the Silk Road, with its hundreds of byways, was considered the highway that linked the worlds of East and West. In the middle of the twentieth century scholarly research revealed the crucial role played by oases in linking the North to the South; these oases, even more than the transversal lines of the Silk Roads, played the role of crossroads where successive waves of nomads, farmers, pastoral groups and city dwellers met. Today, thanks to UNESCO, we are working on land and sea to secure a different destiny for this network of roads. By balancing warp and woof, each side can give back some of its native wealth and help realize the ancient dream of peace.
Vadim Eliseyev President of the International Consultative Committee on The Silk Roads
The aim of the UNESCO project "The Silk Roads" is to study the cultural exchanges that took place between East and West in order to stimulate both sides to find new paths of dialogue. Using a variety of approaches, researchers, political authorities, media outlets, artists and others, in collaboration with UNESCO, are helping to elucidate--through expeditions and seminars, scientific studies and exhibitions--the nature of these exchanges, with the goal of building together a culture of peace.
The Expeditions: A Synergy in Service to the Dialogue of Cultures
In the summer of 1990, at the invitation of China, the first expedition of "The Silk Roads" project took place. Entitled "The Desert Road," it followed a route that led from Xian to Kashghar. In October of that same year, and for a period that lasted four months, "The Sea Road" expedition took place. On board the Fulk al Salamah (The Ark of Peace), the participants traveled from Venice to Osaka. In April of 1991 the expedition called "The Steppe Roads" took place, crossing Central Asia from Ashkhabad to Almaty. The fourth expedition, "The Nomads' Road," crossed Mongolia in the summer of 1992.
The aim of these expeditions was to mobilize the international scientific and university community; to stimulate research; to reveal the shared heritage and manifold identity of the peoples in the countries traversed; to plan and promote cultural projects that would promote development; and to the confirm the visibility and strengthen the image of...