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Silk and the Silk Road

One of the luxuries traded during the Byzantine Era was silk yarn or silk textiles. Silk, made from the filaments of the cocoons of moths such as the Bombyx Mori, was highly prized. The process of cultivating silk was called sericulture, and had been practiced in China since ancient times.

The Silk Road, a travel route on which the finished silk made its way from Asia to Europe, stretched from China to Constantinople. There were branches which went to Italy in the West, and Southeast Asia in the East.

Other goods traveled Silk Road, such as gold, ivory, plants, jade, iron, furs, glass, precious stones and exotic animals. And not just trade of goods occurred along the route, but the transmission ideas as well - for example, the Buddhist religion, which spread from India to China along the Silk Road.

In this mini unit, you can: learn more about the history of the Silk Road and silk production, read about Marco Polo’s travels on the silk road, view a map of the Silk Road routes, see a timeline of events along the Silk Road, look at modern-day pictures from the route, see how silk is produced today and learn more about the geography and cultures of the Silk Road in a series of activities.

Reading

History of the Silk Road

History of Silk

Marco Polo, Traveler on the Silk Road

Map and Timeline

Silk Road Route Map

Timeline

Fun

Pictures along the Silk Road

Silk Production (pictures of the process)

Projects and Activities

48-page Teacher's Guide on the Silk Road - PDF file. (Activities for students of various ages)

Recommended Resource

Stories from the Silk Road

In seven stories, the lively Spirit of the Silk Road takes readers through the culture, history, and folklore of the ancient trade route that stretched from China to Persia and was used from 200 B.C. to the fourteenth century.

The retellings, from humorous to creepy, feature an assortment of kind and vengeful gods, spirits, animals, and human travelers. "Clever Ashik" illustrates how cultures adapt and recreate familiar stories; "The Magic Saddlebag," a morality tale, shows the rewards of generosity and kindness;

"The Enchanted Garden" presents a nightmarish experience resulting from greed.

The conversational tone of the tellings evokes a tourist's sight-seeing expedition, with brightly colored, intricately patterned illustrations of exotic places and characters providing visuals and context. An introduction gives general background about the Silk Road and traded goods; endpaper maps detail the route. (Booklist)

Book (Paperback)
Authors: Cherry Gilchrist, Nilesh Mistry

Amazon Price: $11.04

Read more about the book on Amazon