How did willows protect Silk Road caravans?

As seen on PBS and based on the Pulitzer Prize—winning book by Jared Diamond, who traveled the globe for more than 30 years trying to answer one of the big questions in world history: Why is the world so unequal?

The answers he found—that the societies that developed food production techniques first were also the first to develop writing, technology, and government—were simple, yet extraordinary.

This special examines the theories outlined by Gavin Menzies in his best-selling book. An amateur historian and former submarine commander in the British Navy, Menzies poses an argument that could change the way we perceive global history forever—that Chinese admirals discovered America and Chinese junks first circled the earth.

Traveling across the continent, the film combines history, science and technology with adventure and exploration.

Introduction by Anthony Brandt.

Over the course of three decades in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Swedish geographer and explorer Sven Hedin traveled Central Asia's ancient Silk Road, along the way discovering lost cities, mapping uncharted rivers, and seeing more of ''the roof of the world'' than any European before him. Illustrated with 160 sketches by the author, this larger-than-life memoir captures the splendor of now-vanished civilizations, the excitement of unearthing ancient monuments, the chilling terror of snow-clogged mountain passes, the danger of infiltrating Tibet and of outwitting Torgut bandits, and the honor of close friendships with royalty from Peking to London.

Silk Road Travel Jacket

National Geographic®

From the evening cool of the Moroccan desert to the windswept foothills of the remotest plateau, this travel jacket surrounds you in silken strength that rides to far-off places without adding weight or taking up space during passage.

Silk blended with long-staple cotton creates a fabric endowed with both superior strength and incredible softness, one that absorbs moisture to keep you cool in summer and warm in spring and autumn.

Marco Polo Gemstone Earrings

National Geographic®

Venetian explorer and trader Marco Polo was one of the first Westerners to travel the Silk Road, bringing European goods to Asia and returning with, among other things, precious gems. Here, the journey is embodied in garnet, peridot, amethyst, and granulated gold vermeil.

Renaissance designer Benvenuto Cellini's work for the Medici family is adapted by Chinese jewelers using faceted gems mined in India—true fusion of three cultures.

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