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The Ancient Silk Road

READING AND TRAVEL GUIDE

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The Silk Roads, A Route and Planning Guide

The Silk Roads, A Route and Planning Guide

by Paul Wilson

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2011
  • PAPER
  • 447 PAGES

A compact, practical guide to the network of ancient trade routes extending from Turkey and the Mideast across Central Asia to China. (CAS21, $24.95)

The Great Game

The Great Game

by Peter Hopkirk

  • HISTORY
  • 1994
  • PAPER
  • 565 PAGES
  • FAVORITE
  • HARD TO FIND ELSEWHERE

Hopkirk's spellbinding account of the great struggle for European supremacy in Central Asia takes us over the high mountain passes and through the scorching deserts and caravan towns of the Silk Road, capturing the glamour, intrigue, treachery and adventure of the time. (CAS09, $18.00)

The Lost Heart of Asia

The Lost Heart of Asia

by Colin Thubron

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 374 PAGES

In this classic account, Thubron recounts his travels to Samarkand, Bukhara and throughout Central Asia in the wake of the breakup of the Soviet Union. A fine writer, intrepid traveler and insightful observer, he's an outstanding guide to the history, people and culture of the region. (CAS07, $15.99)

Central Asia Map

Central Asia Map

by Nelles

  • 2011
  • MAP

An up-to-date, double-sided shaded relief map at a scale of 1:1,750,000. (CAS37, $13.95)

China Map

China Map

by International Travel Maps

  • 2006
  • MAP

A double-sided shaded-relief map of China, at a useful scale of 1:3,800,000, indexed with an inset map of central Beijing. (CHN06, $11.95)

 
Lonely Planet Central Asia

Lonely Planet Central Asia


by Lonely Planet

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2010
  • PAPER
  • 528 PAGES

A comprehensive, detailed guide to travel in the region, including Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. (CAS42, $32.99)

Lonely Planet Central Asia Phrasebook

Lonely Planet Central Asia Phrasebook


by Justin Jon Rudelson

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 239 PAGES

A handy pocket phrasebook, which focuses on pronunciation, basic grammar and essential vocabulary for the traveler on the Silk Road. (CAS38, $8.99)

Odyssey Guide The Silk Road, Xi'an to Kashgar

Odyssey Guide The Silk Road, Xi'an to Kashgar


by Judy Bonavia

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 352 PAGES

With its photographs, maps, essays and lively sidebars on people, literature, food, religion, nature and customs, this is a terrific guide. (CAS13, $24.95)

Odyssey Guide Xi'an, Shaanxi & the Terracotta Army

Odyssey Guide Xi'an, Shaanxi & the Terracotta Army


by Kevin Bishop

  • GUIDEBOOK
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 336 PAGES

With color photographs, insightful essays on culture and history, site plans and places of interest in and around China's ancient capital. (CHN34, $24.95)

Foreign Devils on the Silk Road

Foreign Devils on the Silk Road


by Peter Hopkirk

  • HISTORY
  • 1984
  • PAPER
  • 252 PAGES

Hopkirk's rousing tale of Sven Hedin and other larger-than-life archaeological raiders of the early 20th century captures the excitement of discovery -- and the glories of the Silk Road. (CAS22, $24.95)

Genghis Khan, His Life and Legacy


by Paul Ratchnevsky | Thomas Nivison Haining

  • HISTORY
  • 1993
  • PAPER
  • 336 PAGES

This scholarly biography of the 12th-century conqueror, ably translated from the German, offers great insight into life on the steppes of Central Asia and expansion of the Mongol empire. With illustrations, maps, chronology and dynastic tables and a new introduction. (MGL24, $34.95)

Kashgar, Oasis City on China's Old Silk Road

Kashgar, Oasis City on China's Old Silk Road


by John Gollings

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2008
  • HARD COVER
  • 160 PAGES

George Mitchell and colleagues capture the history, character and import of Kashgar in this in-depth portrait of the legendary city featuring 200 color photographs by John Golling. (CAS166, $50.00)

Odyssey Guide Xinjiang


by Jeremy Tredinnick

  • HISTORY
  • 2012
  • PAPER
  • 304 PAGES
  • COMING IN APRIL

This beautifully, authoritative illustrated guide covers with authority the archaeological and cultural riches, Silk Road legacy and fascination of China's enormous Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. (CHN508, $29.95)

Religions of the Silk Road

Religions of the Silk Road


by Richard C. Foltz

  • RELIGION
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 186 PAGES

A scholarly survey of cultural traditions, and especially religions, along the trade routes through China and Central Asia from antiquity to the 15th century. (CAS52, $26.00)

The Forbidden City, Center of Imperial China

The Forbidden City, Center of Imperial China


by Gilles Beguin | Dominique Morel

  • HISTORY
  • 1997
  • PAPER
  • 144 PAGES

This slim volume is packed with maps, archival photographs and illustrations. With a useful chronology and a carefully chosen selection of writings over the ages, it's an indispensable guide to the Forbidden City and the history of Imperial China. (CHN32, $15.95)

The Mongols (Peoples of Europe)

The Mongols (Peoples of Europe)


by David Morgan

  • HISTORY
  • 1990
  • PAPER
  • 256 PAGES

A short, readable treatment of the medieval Mongols, their administration, military, religion and economy. Includes chapters on the predecessors of the Mongols in Central Asia, Chinghiz Khan's rise to power, and the Mongols in China, Russia and Persia. (MGL15, $34.95)

The Silk Road, Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia

The Silk Road, Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia


by Frances Wood

  • CULTURAL PORTRAIT
  • 2004
  • PAPER
  • 270 PAGES

Wood draws on hundreds of archival photographs, manuscripts and paintings from the British Library in telling this lively story of the art, culture and history of diverse trade routes. With chapters on jade and silk, trade during the Han Dynasty, Dunhuang, the Great Game, explorers and the Silk Road today. (ASA36, $28.95)

Cave Temples of Mogao, Art and History on the Silk Road


by Roderick Whitfield | Susan Whitfield | Neville Agnew

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 138 PAGES
  • OUT OF PRINT

A magnificently illustrated survey of the history and art of the ancient Buddhist monastery along the Silk Road. (CAS60, $29.95)

Hundred Thousand Fools of God

Hundred Thousand Fools of God


by Theodore Levin

  • MUSIC
  • 1999
  • PAPER
  • 346 PAGES

An engaging account of adventures in ethnomusicology in contemporary Central Asia, Levin is a wonderful guide to musical traditions in Uzbekistan and Tajikistan. With an accompanying CD featuring the traditional music of Central Asia. (CAS59, $29.95)

Islamic Arts

Islamic Arts


by Jonathan Bloom | Sheila Blair

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 1997
  • PAPER
  • 445 PAGES

A comprehensive survey of 1,000 years of Islamic architecture, design and decoration. Illustrated throughout with color photographs, maps and site plans. (ISL01, $27.95)

Search for Ancient China

Search for Ancient China


by Corinne Debaine-Francfort

  • ARCHAEOLOGY
  • 1999
  • PAPER
  • 160 PAGES

With information on everything from jewelry to emperors' tombs, the Great Wall and the dazzling 400-year Han empire, this shirt-pocket survey of discovery features 150 illustrations. (CHN69, $15.95)

The Arts of China

The Arts of China


by Michael Sullivan

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 352 PAGES

A lively survey of Chinese visual arts and culture through the ages, thoroughly illustrated and accessible. With a new chapter on the 20th century and beyond, this fifth edition covers bronzes, ceramics, painting and architecture from the Neolithic to now. (CHN16, $39.95)

The Golden Peaches of Samarkand, A Study of T'ang Exotics


by Edward Schafer

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 1985
  • PAPER
  • 399 PAGES

A marvelous study of the court of T'ang Dynasty China, and the many splendid works of art that were given in tribute. (CAS53, $34.95)

The Mummies of Urumchi

The Mummies of Urumchi


by Elizabeth Wayland Barber

  • ARCHAEOLOGY
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 240 PAGES

An overview of the culture of ancient people of the Silk Road based on the extraordinarily well preserved Caucasoid mummies unearthed in Urumchi in the Tarim Basin of Central Asia. (CAS34, $19.95)

Traditional Textiles of Central Asia

Traditional Textiles of Central Asia


by Janet Harvey

  • ART & ARCHITECTURE
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 160 PAGES

Harvey surveys the embroidery, silks, velvets, felts and other rich textile traditions of the Silk Road in this spectacularly illustrated guide. (CAS19, $24.95)

In Xanadu, A Quest

In Xanadu, A Quest


by William Dalrymple

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2000
  • PAPER
  • 319 PAGES

An intrepid traveler and entertaining writer, Dalrymple offers an anecdotal history of the people and places he encounters en route on this epic journey in the footsteps of Marco Polo across Central Asia to China. (CAS50, $18.95)

Khubilai Khan, His Life and Times

Khubilai Khan, His Life and Times


by Morris Rossabi

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2009
  • PAPER
  • 348 PAGES

This fascinating, scholarly portrait of the culture and politics of 13th-century Asia examines Khubilai Khan's rise to power, the submission of Korea and the attempted invasion of Japan. (CAS10, $24.95)

Marco Polo, From Venice to Xanadu

Marco Polo, From Venice to Xanadu


by Laurence Bergreen

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 2008
  • PAPER
  • 432 PAGES

Bergreen brings to life ancient traders, despots, conquerors and, especially, the fabled lands of the Silk Road in this vivid tale, weaving his own adventures from Venice to Mongolia and on to China with those of the 13th-century Venetian merchant. (EXP49, $18.00)

Riding the Iron Rooster


by Paul Theroux

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 2006
  • PAPER
  • 528 PAGES

A wry account an utterly exhausting, exasperating travels, mostly by rail, throughout China for an entire year. Theroux gets himself to every corner of the huge country and includes memorable passages on his experiences in Mongolia, Xinjiang, Manchuria and Tibet (where his journey ended). (CHN133, $15.95)

The Rise and Rule of Tamerlane

The Rise and Rule of Tamerlane


by Beatrice Forbes Manz

  • BIOGRAPHY/MEMOIR
  • 1999
  • PAPER
  • 231 PAGES

A portrait of the great nomadic conqueror who rose to power in 1370 on the ruins of the Mongol Empire and led campaigns from Moscow to Delhi. (CAS11, $29.99)

The Travels of Marco Polo

The Travels of Marco Polo


by Marco Polo | Ronald Lantham

  • TRAVEL NARRATIVE
  • 1975
  • PAPER
  • 380 PAGES

The memories of a 13th-century journey to China along the Silk Road, among the most famous travel accounts ever. Describing exotic plants, birds, precious gems, silks, and spices with a merchant's eye, this superb geographer recounts his 20 years of travel. (CAS05, $15.00)

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Longitude provides recommended reading for travelers in partnership with the leading tour operators and travel programs for hundreds of destinations worldwide. We've got the classic, new and hard-to-find books and maps to help you get the most out of your adventures.