July 7 - 16, 2008
The Silk Road, as an interconnected web of trade routes linking the ancient societies of Asia with those of the Subcontinent and the Near East, has contributed to the development of most of the world’s great civilizations. Spend ten days this summer on a virtual journey along these land and sea routes to explore not only the commodities traded, such as textiles and spices, but also to investigate the cultural exchanges and interactions that inevitably accompanied these commercial activities. Through these explorations and more, we shall learn how both the histories and present-day realities of East Asia and the Middle East are deeply intertwined. A two-week field study to Western China and the Arabian Peninsula is being planned for immediately following the New Haven institute.
Registration fee for the New Haven program is $200, and includes all texts and materials. The field study portion will cost approximately $2,500.
This program is sponsored by the Council on East Asian Studies, the Council on Middle East Studies, the MacMillan Center, the Connecticut Geographic Alliance, and the U.S. Department of Education through a Title VI National Resource Center grant with generous support from Saudi Aramco and The Freeman Foundation.