Silk Road

14 09, 2017

From Xerxes to Alexander – the later Persian Empire

By |2019-10-24T12:52:19-07:00September 14th, 2017|West Asia|Comments Off on From Xerxes to Alexander – the later Persian Empire

The Persian shah, Xerxes, from the 400s BC. Death of Xerxes and revolt In 465 BC, someone killed the Persian King Xerxes. His assassin may have been his son Ardashir [...]

14 09, 2017

Who were the Scythians? Central Asian history

By |2019-09-05T05:39:15-07:00September 14th, 2017|Central Asia|Comments Off on Who were the Scythians? Central Asian history

Scythian history: A Scythian milking a sheep (Tolstaja Mogila kurgan, Ukraine, 400 BC) Scythians lived in Central Asia The Scythians were a large group of loosely connected people who lived in [...]

11 09, 2017

Sofia Baffo and the Ottoman Empire – 1600s AD

By |2019-09-05T06:35:48-07:00September 11th, 2017|West Asia|Comments Off on Sofia Baffo and the Ottoman Empire – 1600s AD

Sofia Baffo Sofia Baffo - a woman in charge Sofia Baffo took control of the Ottoman Empire in 1583 AD. She ruled through her husband Murad III after her aunt and mother-in-law Nurbanu [...]

11 09, 2017

West Asian economy – Safavids and Ottomans

By |2019-09-05T06:36:50-07:00September 11th, 2017|West Asia|Comments Off on West Asian economy – Safavids and Ottomans

A man making paper West Asia entered the 1500s AD in a very powerful position in world trade. Iran, together with the Central Asian state of Uzbekistan and the Mughal Empire, dominated the Silk Road, and the Silk Road [...]

7 09, 2017

Steel history – medieval to modern steel

By |2018-09-10T06:07:42-07:00September 7th, 2017|Central Asia, Science|Comments Off on Steel history – medieval to modern steel

Steel history: a Safavid steel helmet (Iran, 1500s AD) Medieval steel from India and Iran The wars after the collapse of the Mongol Empire in the 1300s stopped steel production in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. [...]

7 09, 2017

What is opium? World history of medicine and drugs

By |2017-09-07T09:33:48-07:00September 7th, 2017|Central Asia, Science|1 Comment

Opium poppy flower Opium comes from a kind of poppy flower. It evolved around 100 million years ago in West Asia and Central Asia. People probably realized as soon as they got to West Asia, about 60,000 [...]

Go to Top