"The Silk Road cut across borders - and broke down the borders in our minds," says Dr Sam Willis. In a new three-part series for BBC Four, the historian and writer traces the story of the most famous trade route in history.
This was the Silk Road which ran from China’s ancient capital Xian through the mythical cities of Central Asia and Persia, until it reached the bazaars of Istanbul and the markets of Venice. It was in Venice and other Italian cities that the ideas, inventions and products that trickled down the Silk Road……