Silk Road Exploration
Two thousand years ago, the threads of commerce were established and the Silk Road connected Xi'an to the Middle East and Europe, opening China for the first time to the Western world. It was in 138 BC that the Han emperor Wudi sent an emissary westward, not for trade, but to seek allies to defend China against the Huns. From that time until the 14th century, caravans carrying spices, fruits, and all manner of goods from the West routinely crossed the deserts in search of silk, transforming forever China's frontier towns into cosmopolitan trading centers.