It was by accident that the richest western direction was opened. One of the nomadic tribes allied to China was replaced by another tribe, openly hostile to China. Former ally went to the West.The Chinese emperor sent an embassy after him, led by Zhang Qian. Having hardest Taklamakan desert, the mountains of the Tien Shan, surviving ten prisoners, Zhang Qian found former allies in the oases of Central Asia.Zhang Qian was impressed by what he saw: just in the Fergana Valley, he averaged more than 70 large and small urban communities with the development of handicrafts, agriculture. The townspeople traded with India, the Near and Middle East, and the countries of the ancient world.The base of the Silk Road referred to II century BC when the Chinese ambassador Zhang Qian visited the Central Asian countries with a diplomatic mission. Prior to the II century BC route from Europe to Asia stopped at the borders of China, as the mountain ranges of Asia - the Tien Shan, Kunlun, Karakoram, Hindu Kush, Himalayas - hide ancient Chinese civilization from the rest of the world.
Returning to China, Zhang Qian told the emperor about the countries west of China, about whatthey're rich. Reported a pedigree of "winged" horses Davani not going to any comparison with thesmall Chinese horses.The emperor immediately wanted to have these horses, as their possession gave huge advantagesin the fight against the nomads. Soon to Central Asia were sent to the embassy. Among the other giftsthey carried Chinese silk.
Since the ancient civilizations of Central Asia and China met. And later, the Mediterranean countriesand India. Converged into one of two great roads. One who was walking from the West, from the Mediterranean to Central Asia, explored and traversed by the Greeks during the campaigns of Alexander of Macedon.Another leading from the East, from the Han Empire to the Central Asia, explored Zhang Qian, who went through this area from north to south through Davan, Kang-kü/Kangju, Sogdiana, Bactria.However, before that, there had been several roads which were used for trade between the East and the West. Those were separate sectors of the future way Silk Road. The rise of commercial relations was promoted by extraction of semiprecious stones such as lazurites, nephrites, carnelians, turquoises in the mountains of Central Asia. There was even the so-called “Lazurite Way” which was used for taking that stone from Central Asia to Iran, Mesopotamia and even to Egypt. At the same time “Nephrite Way” connected Khotan and Yarkand with Northern China. Besides that, carnelian was taken out to the countries of Westerns Asia from Sogdiana and Bactria, and turquoise - from Khoresm. All those routes, eventually, joined the Silk Road.
There were periods in the history of the Road when it was almost completely controlled by one state: Turkic khaganate in the 6th century, the empire of Genghis Khan in the second quarter of the 13th century and Timurid Empire in the last third of the 14th century. However, because of the huge distance it was practically impossible to control all the sectors.