The Silk Road is a documentary television series produced by the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) that was first broadcast during the 1980s. The travelogue traced the ancient Silk Road from Chang'an (modern day Xi'an) to Rome covering the history, archaeology, culture, religion, and art of countries along the route.
Launched in 1980, NHK's renowned Silk Road series was the first foreign TV program allowed to film Silk Road inside communist China. The series sparked enormous interest. A quarter of a century later, NHK re-visits Silk Road with high-definition cameras. The first half of the journey is to Loolan, Tibet, Taklamakan Desert and Xian. The trip then continues from former Soviet Central Asia to the Middle East and Turkey. With its swirling mix of ethnic identities, this region is now carving out a new period of history led by the resurgence of Islam. NHK provides a new look at this modern-day Silk Road giving you a clear view of the regions' momentous changes.