First Aired: April 7th, 1980
Status: Ended
Genre: Documentary
Network: NHK
Summary: For thousands of years, the fabled Silk Road, as travelled by Marco Polo, was the link between the people of Europe and the vast riches of mysterious China. Spanning the deserts, grasslands, and seas between Istanbul and the major cities of China, the Silk Road witnessed an ongoing parade of goods and traders, carrying with them their art, religion, and culture. The impact of the Silk Road is immeasurable - giants such as Alexander the Great and tyrants such as Genghis Khan created our world's history while striding along its path!
Now, the Silk Road comes alive, in all its glorious colours, sounds, and historical drama, in an unparalleled documentary achievement. The first co-production of China Central TV and the outside world, this series was ten years in the making, and produced at a cost exceeding 50 million. The entrancing soundtrack made the composer/performer Kitaro a worldwide star, and has sold millions of records to date. Silk Road has been aired to huge critical acclaim in over 25 countries, and remains to this day the highest rated documentary series in Japan's television history.
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# of Episodes: 17
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Season 1
Episode 1: Glories of Ancient Chang-An
Air Date: April 7th, 1980
Summary: In "The Glories of Ancient Chang-An," you'll visit the starting point of the Silk Road.
Chang-An, the world's largest city in the seventh century, you'll see the incredibe clay army. Buried for almost 2,000 years, the discovery of these 6,000 statues is an archaeological triumph, and The Silk Road crew were the first foreigners allowed to photograph it.
Thrill at the sculptures buried in the world's largest tomb. And then, enter China's most hallowed Buddhist temple, and examine the hidden underground murals of a legendary princess, and walk the only man-made object visible from outer space, The Great Wall of China.
Episode 2: A Thousand Kilometers Beyond the Yellow River
Air Date: May 5th, 1980
Summary: In "A Thousand Kilometers Beyond the Yellow River," you'll cross the Yellow River in a goat skin raft. Gaze in awe at the same giant Buddha that Marco Polo saw 700 years ago.
Look with amazement at the giant water wheels that irrigate miles of Chinese croplands, and visit the secret caves of Bing Lui Si, never before photographed by a television crew.
Then, transverse the Forbidden Corridor between the mountains and the Gobi Desert, where the Huns battled the Chinese for control over the most prized horses in the world.
Episode 3: The Art Gallery in the Desert
Air Date: June 2nd, 1980
Summary: In this episode - The Art Gallery in the Desert, the Silk Road crew go to the Gobi Desert and look around the Mogao Caves at Dunhuang. The Mogao Caves consist of over 500 caves, more than 30 miles in length. There are thousands of murals and statues in the caves from 366 AD, encompassing the art styles of Greece, India and the many dynasties of China. These caves hand-tunnelled into the Mingsha Mountains are a tour-deforce of religious art. They exemplify man's striving to create a legacy of his accomplishments and beliefs.
Episode 4: The Dark Castle
Air Date: July 7th, 1980
Summary: The Silk Road crew travel to Khara-khoto, 250 miles from the oasis of Jiu-chang, near the Qilian Mountains in the Gobi Desert. Buried by the Gobi sands, the lost city was unearthed by the Russian explorer Koslov, who took its artworks to the Hermitage. A person of Tangut tribe tells a story about the last king of Khara-khoto - Batir. Khara-khoto was rich and prosperous before its ruins by the the Mongol invasion of the thirteenth century. The episode focuses on why and how the ancient city got ruined.
Episode 5: In Search of the Kingdom of Lou-Lan
Air Date: August 4th, 1980
Summary: The journey continues in search of the lost kingdom of Lou-Lan. The Silk Road crew leave Yan-guan for Lou-Lan on the west side of Lake Nop Nur in the Taklamakan Desert, accompanied with Chinese military people. They look around the Lake Lop Nur, which is now dried up and has been vanishing into the sands of the desert. Through sandstorms of the desert, they arrive at the region of the legendary kingdom and find many archaeological objects - coins, Roman beads, written texts, and even mummified bodies.
Episode 6: Across the Taklamakan Desert
Air Date: September 1st, 1980
Summary: The Silk Road crew reach Miran discovered by British explorer Aurel Stein, Buddhist city, in southwest part of the Lou-Lan kingdom. Pictures in the mixture of Chinese and western culture are shown. And then they arrive at the oasis town of Cherchen, where they visit a family in Uyghur tribe and see the family's life and economy. And then they try to reach Niya across the Taklamakan Desert by camels. Niya was once a major commercial place on the Silk Road even though the place has been buried for long time into the sands of the desert.
Episode 7: Khotan-Oasis of Silk and Jade
Air Date: October 6th, 1980
Summary: This episode tries to introduce local cultures and industries in the region of Khotan, an oasis town in the southwest part of the Taklamakan Desert and largely populated by Uyghurs. It starts with a camel caravan bringing big chunks of jade down from the Kun-Lun Mountains. This Kun-Lun Mountains has been a main place to collect jade in China. Some jade products like a jade armor suit are shown. Through the Silk Road, jade as well as silk were carried - jade to Chan An; silk from Chang An. And then it tells the famous tale of the "Silk Princess" who smuggled silkworms out of China and the silk industry - weaving and spinning, in the region.
Episode 8: A Heat Wave Called Turfan
Air Date: November 3rd, 1980
Summary: The Silk Road crew explore the hottest region on the Silk Road - Turfan, once called Land of Fire - Mud lake below sea level; people's life in the hot weather - sleeping in open air on roofs; reddish mountains known as Fire Mountains; its local economy - grape harvest and drying grapes; and underground water supply system - Karez. And also they take us on a journey to Gaochang, an ancient oasis town on the Silk Road - ruins of the town; paintings and artifacts showing the cultures of Gaochang.
Episode 9: Through the Tian Shan Mountains by Rail
Air Date: December 1st, 1980
Summary: In this episode, the Silk Road crew travel from Turfan to Korla by train - starting in the Gobi region, crossing the eastern Tian Shan and down into the northern Tarim Basin oases. On the way of their journey, they experience how difficult camel travel over the mountain passes would have been for historic Silk Road travelers. And they visit some historical sites on the journey - fortifications built during Tang dynasty; a Mongolian tribe living in high Tian Shan Mountains; and ruins of Buddhist caves at the outskirts of Yanqi (Karashahr), an oasis town on Yanqi plain.
Episode 10: Journey into Music-South Through the Tian Shan Mountains
Air Date: January 5th, 1981
Summary: The Silk Road crew reach Kucha, used to be called "Qiuzi". It was a prosperous place and was an ancient Buddhist kingdom. Now Kucha is famous for two things - music and fresh fruits. They find people in Kucha enjoy music and dancing everywhere - farmers sing harvesting crops and processing them; Kucha people enjoy dancing with music after finishing harvest. They try to present why Kucha people enjoy music in everyday life so much with historical evidences. They visit Buddhist caves near Kucha and find paintings and artifacts related to music - a wooden box with paintings of ancient "orchestra" in bright colors; paintings of angels playing musical instruments.
Episode 11: Where Horses Fly Like the Wind
Air Date: February 2nd, 1981
Summary: In this episode, the Silk Road crew take a journey along the north Tian Shan route of the Silk Road. They arrive at Hami by train from Xian, and there they take a journey by cars along the north Tian Shan route. On the way, it is narrated, "The north Tian Shan road starts from Hami, passes through Barkol, and crosses the lli River, and ends in Rome". Their journey ends in the border between China and Kazakhstan, just before crossing the lli River. During the journey, they meet Kazakhs, a nomadic tribe, near Lake Barkol. There they experience the ethnic group's culture - wedding ceremony, making cheese using horse's milk, and sports like sheep catching. And then they visit a yearly market opened near Lake Sairam and find ethnic diversity - people are from many different ethnic groups including Uyhurs, Kazakhs and Uzbeks.
Episode 12: Two Roads to the Pamirs
Air Date: March 2nd, 1981
Summary: The Silk Road crew take a journey from Kashgar, via Tashkurgan in the Pamir Plateau, to the border between China and Pakistan on the Karakoram Highway, along the Silk Road route from China to Pakistan. The half of the episode is devoted to people's life in Kashgar including religion and culture. There live many different ethnic groups together in Kashgar such as Uzbeks, Uyhurs, Tajiks and Kyrgyz. Most of them are in Muslim. The Silk Road crew arrive at Kashgar at the end of Ramadan and find thousands of people praying in a mosque and also enjoying the celebration in streets. Then they explore local workshops and craftsman stores - making jewelry, musical instruments, and making pots using metals. And also they see modern truck caravan from Gilgit in Pakistan arrive, and trade - dried fruits and nuts, nylon scarves, medicine etc from Pakistan; silk, ceramics, tea, etc from China. Their journey continues to Tashkurgan in the Pamir Plateau and ends in the border between China and Pakistan on the Karakoram Highway.
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