The Silk Road . Road of Dialogue
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THESILK ROAD . ROADOF DIALOGUE: THEPAST AND THE PRESENT The world science'sinterest in the studyof the Silk Road is, in its way,countdown, a glance deep intocenturies; an attemptto retracelandmarks of historyand "changeof generations"... The InternationalProject "The Silk Road- Roadof Dialogue"was approvedin 1987at the 24th sessionof the UNESCOGeneral Conference. The Silk Roadis a systemof caravanroads that in the ancienttimes and the MiddleAges traversedEurasia from the Mediterraneanto Chinaand did muchto fosterthe establishment and developmentof trade and culturalrelations between peoples and statesinvolved. The implementationof the Projectis expectedto answera question:how the mankind'smaiden peace contactsbetween peoples of the East and the West were realized.Besides, the study aims to back the collaboration,both scientificand cultural,between scholars that had once been involvedin the ancientroute sphere of influence.lt was UNESCODirector-General FedericoMayor who gavean all-embracingappraisal to researchers'mission: "The Silk Road that traversedsteppes, seas and deserts providedevery to establishcontacts and dialogue, conduceto the mutualenrichment of outstandingcivilizations. The objectiveof the complex researchof the Silk Road is to makepeoples realize the necessityof resumingthe dialogue, seizethe historicalopportunity of developmutual understanding, expand contacts and mutually enrichcivilizations within the Silk Roadframework". In 1988,the UNESCOlaunched a project"lntegral Study of the Silk Roads- Roadsof Dialogue"as a part of the UnitedNations World Decade of CulturalDevelopment. The purpose was to throw lighton complexcultural interactions arising from contactsbetween the Eastand the West;to assistin shapingmany-sided and richcultural heritage of Eurasia.Five international scientificexpeditions under the UNESCOaegis were carriedout: - Desertroute from Xian to Kashgar(July-August 1990); - Sea routefrom Veniceto Osaka(October 1990 - March1991); - Stepperoute in the CentralAsia (April-June1991); - Nomadicroute in Mongolia(July-August 1992); - Buddhistroute in Nepal(September 1995). Historically,geographically and culturologically,the Silk Roadis knownto havebecome a subjectof studyas far backas in the secondhalf of the 19 century.Greatly contributing to the subjectwere West European, Russian and Japanesescholars. ln 1877,a classicalscientific work "China"by Germanscholar von Richthofenpresented the Silk Roadas a systemof routesthat connectedvarious parts of the vast Eurasianmainland. Later on, a term "SilkRoad" became firmlyestablished. Bibliography of scientificand popular-scienceworks aboutthe Silk Road numbersthousands of titles,including monographs; collected works; albums; booklets and articles.They providethe historyof the Silk Road;description of mainand subsidiaryroutes; ethniccomposition of population;description of towns;enumeration of goods;architecture and ProminentArchaeological Sites of CentralAsia on the Great Silk Road HdTGOLIA .|r' | ilq!-A-'1-.+. TheSilk and SpiceRoutes art; musicand epos;religion. Over the pasttwo decades,scientific and publicinterest in the historyof transcontinentalroad has visiblyincreased. It shouldbe notedthat internationalscientific conferences and seminarswere heldwithin the frameworkof the Project.These include. "Formation and Developmentof SilkRoad Routes in the CentralAsia: the Ancientand MedievalPerlods" (Samarkand, October 1990); "lnteraction of Nomadicand SettledCultures on the Silk Road"(Alma-Ata, 15-16 June, 1992); "Epos of the Statesalong the Silk Road"(Turku, Finland, 3-7 June,1993); "Languages and Written Languagesalong the SilkRoad" (Cyprus, 30 September- 1 October,1994); "Revitalization of the SilkRoad: Development of CulturalTourism and Protectionof CulturalHeritage in Uzbekistan" (Bukhara,21-22 February, 1996). Of interestis the factthat special research institutions were set up in somecountries of the East(lndia, China, Sri Lanka)to studythe SilkRoad: Institute of Hirayamain Kamakura(Japan) issuinga yearbook'Archaeology and Art of the Silk Road";International lnstitute for Central AsianStudies in Samarkand(llCAS); International Institute for Studyof NomadicCivilizations in Ulan-Bator. An emphasishas to be laidon the publicationof UNESCOworks on universaland regional history.A specialinternational scientific committee for the "Historyof civilizationsof the Central Asia"has issued6 volumes,the 4th of whichappeared in two books.The historyof civilizations dealswith a vastexpanse from the CaspianSea to the Chineseborders. lt was locationof the regionin the centerof the Asiancontinent that madeit the heartof greatmigration of peoples, disseminationof religionsand ideas,culture and art, strengthening of originalunity of the region. Nevertheless,reliable sources on the lifeand cultureof the reviewedperiod remain to be very scanty.The UNESCOpublications proved to be the quintessenceof long-termexplorations of archaeologists,orientalists, philosophers and culturologists and thus gave weight to the region's The Silk Road - Road of Dialogue: the past and the present potential,its abilityto preservecenturies-long identityand take part in adoptinggeopolitical decisions. In additionalto scientificand cultural programs,transport and economicprojects are underwayto revivethe Silk Road.Thus, the greattranscontinental railway is intended to connectcountries of Europewith the Far East.In May 1997,a sectionMeshed-serahs was over to enable the countriesof the CentralAsia to get an accessto the Persian The Great llall of China Gull and the countriesof Europe- to the CentralAsia. The Silk Roadin its "railway"version fromthe Atlanticto the PacificOceans is goingto be revived.In 2009,construction of a highway WesternChina - WesternEurope viaKazakhstan and the RussianFederation started. Besides,it was interestcaused by the project"Silk Road"that made it possibleto put the wholeor a part of the Projecton the World HeritageList. In particular,several expert seminars were carriedon in the CentralAsia China.In November2005, participantsof the UNESCO "Regionalseminar on periodicalreportinf within the frameworkof the Conventionon the World Culturaland NaturalHeritage Protection" adopted a plan of actionsto prioritizethe serial nomination"China - CentralAsian Silk Road".This conceptderived support from a seminar held in Turfan(China, August 2006). Attending the seminarwere fifty participantsfrom the CentralAsiancountries, China and the UNESCO.The Chinaseminar results made it possible to nominatethe Silk Road Project.In October2006, a UNESCOregional seminar on the serial nomination(Samarkand, Uzbekistan) approved a strategyof the nominationof the Silk Road section"China - CentralAsia". The strategyprovided for: 1. Elaboratinga universalconceptual document on the entireSilk Roadto substantiateits world significance.The documentwill be submittedto the World HeritageCommittee. 2. Revisingand agreeingpreliminary lists of monuments- nomineesof the CentralAsian countriesat a meetingto be held in one of these countries. 3. Agreeingapproaches and terms of the first nominationof objectsin the CentralAsia and China. 4. Drawingup a packageof documentsto develop"a template"(standard format) for Silk Roadnominations. 5. Developingagreed approachesto managementand strategyof management. 6. Drawingup a generalplan of necessary resources. 7. Preparinga sponsorshipapplication. 8. ldentifyingcoordination between the CentralAsian countries and China. The concept was approved in April 2007 in Dushanbe,(Tajikistan) by five participating countries:Republics of Kazakhstan,Kyrgyzstan, Chinese court ladies in the silk dress ProminentArchaeoloeical Sites of CentralAsia on the Great Silk Road Tajikistan,Uzbekistan and the People' Republicof China. It was universallyadmitted that the serial transnationalnomination of theSilk Road is one of the most promisingconceptions to givea correctassessment to the importance of the richestcultural heritage of the Central Asia.This document dealing with Silk Road objectsin specificcountries notwithstanding, it is, nevertheless,recognized that a network Caravun of merchonts from the West of roadsthat embracesthe verv definition of the Silk Road had traversedborders of, at least,fifteen modern countries on the expanse betweenChina and the Mediterranean.The documentis expectedto providea paradigmfor subsequentidentification and nominationof culturalobjects throughout the SilkRoad. After the conceptwill be approvedby the WorldHeritage Committee, it is suggestedto nominate,in thefirst turn, monuments situated in the CentralAsia and China; to examineserial monuments westwards,in the Mediterranean,as wellas monumentsof the Indiansubcontinent, including Afghanistan,India and Pakistan.When nominating objects, experts are committed to recognize and respectthe culturaldiversity, interaction and integrationof variouscultures. The objects in questionare expectedto demonstratemutual exchange and assistancein trade,science andtechnologies, as wellas in art and culturalheritage. The SilkRoad nomination has been initiatedto urgecountries and peoplesto recognizecommon history, cultural interrelations; to propagandizecommon development of humancivilizations to complywith diversity principles. The conceptionwas discussedat internationalseminars in Xian(November 2007); Xian (May 2008);Almaty (May 2009). The firstsession of the coordinationcommittee on puttingthe SilkRoad serial nomination on the UNESCOWorld Heritage list was heldin Xian,November 2009. The Silk Road:History and Routes Throughthe