The Silk Roads: The Routes Network of Chang'an-Tian Shan Corridor is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It includes the part of the ancient Silk Road between Chang'an and Tianshan, as well as important places along the path. On June 22, 2014, UNESCO named a 5,000 km (3,100 mi) section of the Silk Road network, stretching from Central China to the Zhetysu region of Central Asia, as a World Heritage site. The corridor covers parts of China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. It includes 33 new places and some that were already named as heritage sites.

History

In 1988, UNESCO began a study of the Silk Road to help people understand how cultures spread across Eurasia and to protect important cultural heritage. In August 2006, UNESCO and the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China held a meeting in Turpan, Xinjiang, to discuss how to apply for the Silk Road to be a World Heritage site. At this meeting, China and five Central Asian countries—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan—agreed to work together on a joint application in 2010. These six countries formed a committee in 2009 to prepare for the application.

On March 28, 2008, China sent a list of 48 possible Silk Road sites to UNESCO for review. These sites were in areas such as Henan, Shaanxi, Qinghai, Gansu, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, and Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region for the overland Silk Road, and in Ningbo, Zhejiang, and Quanzhou, Fujian for the maritime Silk Road. On May 2, 2008, Iran submitted a list of Silk Road sites in Khorasan Province. On January 3, 2010, Turkmenistan sent a list of 29 sites along 11 parts of the Silk Road. On January 20, 2010, India submitted a list of 12 parts of Silk Road sites. On February 19, 2010, Kyrgyzstan sent a list of six sites, and Uzbekistan sent a list of 18 sites. Kazakhstan submitted its list on May 3, 2012.

By the end of 2011, UNESCO suggested dividing the Silk Road application into smaller sections called corridors. In December 2011, China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan agreed to work together on one corridor stretching from Central China across the Tianshan Range. Each country chose one government official, one archaeologist, and a national committee to help with the application. Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan planned to apply for another corridor. In 2013, the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor application was completed and submitted by Kyrgyzstan. It included 22 sites in China, 8 in Kazakhstan, and 3 in Kyrgyzstan. Each UNESCO member country can submit one application each year. China had also submitted an application for the Grand Canal. The original sites proposed by China were changed for this application. Sites in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and those related to the Maritime Silk Road were removed. Some of these sites may be submitted in the future.

On June 22, 2014, during the 38th meeting of the World Heritage Committee in Doha, Qatar, the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor application was approved.

Sites

The Silk Road's Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor was approved by the World Heritage Committee in June 2014 as Site No. 1442. It includes 33 new sites in China, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. These sites include ancient capital cities, palace buildings, trading towns, Buddhist cave temples, old roads, posthouses, mountain passes, watchtowers, parts of the Great Wall, fortifications, tombs, and religious buildings. Together, the 33 sites cover an area of 42,668.16 hectares (164.7 square miles) and have protected areas totaling 189,963.13 hectares (733.5 square miles).

The sites are grouped into four regions along the Silk Road by the International Council on Monuments and Sites, which evaluated their importance for World Heritage status:

• Central China: Ancient capital cities in the Central and Guanzhong Plains of China.
• Luoyang City, which was an important city during the Eastern Han and Northern Wei Dynasties, Luoyang, Henan Province
• Dingding Gate, Luoyang City, which was part of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Luoyang
• Hangu Pass, Xin’an County, Henan
• Shihao section of Xiaohan Route, Sanmenxia, Henan
• Weiyang Palace, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province
• Daming Palace, Xi’an
• Giant Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi’an
• Small Wild Goose Pagoda, Xi’an
• Xingjiao Temple, Xi’an
• Bin County Cave Temple, Bin County, Shaanxi
• Tomb of Zhang Qian, Chenggu County, Shaanxi
• Maijishan Cave Temple Complex, Tianshui, Gansu Province

• Hexi Corridor in Gansu Province: This area connects China Proper and Xinjiang.
• Bingling Temple Grottoes, Yongjing County
• Yumen Pass, Dunhuang
• Xuanquanzhi Posthouse, Dunhuang
• Suoyang City Ruins, Guazhou

• North and South of Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang, China:
• Qocho (Gaochang) City Ruins, Turpan
• Jiaohe Ruins, Turpan
• Beshbalik (Beiting) City Ruins, Jimsar County
• Kizil Gaha Beacon Tower, Kuqa (Kucha)
• Kizil Caves, Kuqa
• Subash Buddhist Temple Ruins, Kuqa

• Zhetysu Region of the Ili and Talas Valleys in Kazakhstan and the Chüy Valley in Kyrgyzstan:
• Site of Kayalyk, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan
• Karamergen, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan
• Talgar, Almaty Region, Kazakhstan
• Aktobe, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
• Kulan, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
• Akyrtas, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
• Ornek, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
• Kostobe, Jambyl Region, Kazakhstan
• City of Suyab (Site of Ak-Beshim), Chüy Region, Kyrgyzstan
• City of Balasagun (Site of Burana), Chüy Region, Kyrgyzstan
• City of Nevaket (Site of Krasnaya Rechka), Chüy Region, Kyrgyzstan

Other sites in the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor include the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, which were added to the World Heritage List in 1987, and the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, which have more than 10,000 statues and over 2,800 inscriptions. These sites were added to the World Heritage List in 2000.