Peter Frankopan

The Silk Roads

1. IDEA 1

   History looks different from the centre

   Frankopan argues that world history is usually told from a European point of view. He instead places the lands between the Mediterranean and China, including Persia and Central Asia, at the centre, showing that they were for centuries the crossroads of civilisation.

2. IDEA 2

   Roads carried faiths too

   Frankopan shows how routes across Asia spread religions, including Buddhism, Christianity and Islam. Missionaries, pilgrims and merchants carried beliefs along with silk and spices. Ideas spread as easily as goods along these routes.

3. IDEA 3

   Trade connected distant peoples

   Frankopan describes trade in silk, furs, spices and slaves that linked China, India, Persia and Europe. These exchanges created wealth and connections across vast distances. Cities along the routes grew rich.

All 8 ideas from The Silk Roads →