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SHEa 
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RECONSTRUCTION OF COMMERCIAL WAYS AND SILK ROAD IN NURATAU AREA 
I. T. Muminov* 
a IAP, Lab of background monitoring, 100174 Vuzgorodok, House 3a,’Tashkent, Uzbekistan, - iskmumin@mail.ru 
Specific Session 9: Cultural heritage recording and Silk Road 
KEY WORDS: Cultural heritage, Database, Cartography, GIS, History, Reconstruction 
ABSTRACT: 
This manuscript is dedicated to history of economical relations and reconstruction of commercial routes on territory of Nuratau from 
20 century B.C. till beginning of 20 century. This time interval was conditionally divided onto three periods: before, in time and past 
of existing the Great Silk Road (GSR). An attempt to reconstruct commercial routes in the region based on analysis of more than 300 
bibliographical and 14 cartographical sources (4 of which are old maps) and use of historic-geographical GIS approach is made. That 
work resulted an electronic dB (semantical and narrative) on history and commercial relations of Nuratau area. A thematic GIS on 
history of economical development of the area in question was worked out. DEM showing an unique location of Nuratau territory as 
main transit centre of GSR was created. Role of the studied territory in history of development of economical and cultural relations 
between Siberia, Volga sides, China, Persia, India, Afghanistan and Kazakhstan. 
1. INTRODUCTION 
Motivation 
A desire to draw an attention of the scientific public at large to a 
history of development of Nuratau area became one of the 
motives of the work presented. Actually, the area has a many 
thousand years old history of development of trade-economical 
activity. But the main motive was a desire to demonstrate 
possibilities of unique potential of the area for transit 
commercial traffic. “A trade is always carried out by the same 
roads” - told Y.K. Meyendorf at beginning of 19 century 
(Meyendorf, 1975). So, what are the peculiarities of the studied 
area making it interesting for our consideration? The answer is 
very simple. This is unique area. Let us consider some facts 
approving this point. This is one of three oldest centres of 
agriculture (especially fruit-growing) in Middle Asia (Borsuk, 
1988). Human develops Nuratau area since late paleolith 
(Kasimov, 1972; Gulyamov, 1979). A commercial route 
through mountain passages from Ferghana to Zarafshan valley 
and Kyzylkums sands existed in the area since ancient times 
(Gulyamov, 1979). Ancient artifacts, mounds, rock arts, 
toponymical names and caravan-sheds spreaded across the 
entire area are witnesses of this fact (Alimov and etc., 1986; 
Borsuk, 1988; Karaev, 1991; Buryakov, 2003; Nemceva, 2004). 
Most part of them still are not studied, the other have already 
disappeared under waters of Aydar-Amasay lakes system 
(AALS). In mountains and steppes of the area flint, copper, tin, 
silver, gold and turquoise were been mining during tens of 
thousands years (Hanikov, 1843; Vasil’ev, 1947; Mirbabaev, 
1961; Vakturskaya and etc., 1968; Aleskerov, 1974). Nuratau 
area is admitted as a holy place, where due to the legends, 
Noah’s Ark moored (Eversman, 1823) and where a throne of 
Noah’s son Sim places (Skvarskiyi (?), 1896). Famous 
historical persons like Alexander Macedonian, Chzhan Czyan, 
Suan Czan, Fa-Syan, Chingiskhan, elders of Marco Polo, Timur, 
Mirza Ulugbek, Bobur and many the others visited this area. 
Objective 
Goal of the work is to demonstrate a role of the Nuratau area in 
history of development of trade-economical relations of Central 
Asia before, in time and past of existing the GSR. 
Tasks: 1) Collection and systemizing of information on history, 
economics, commercial routes and culture-economical centres; 
2) Working out the structure and creation an electronic dB’s 
(semantical, attributive and narrative); 3) Transformation the 
dB’s into thematic GIS layers; 4) Creation of DEM and final 
version of GIS maps on historic-economical development of 
Nuratau area; 5) To carry out a historical analysis of 
commercial relationships and to demonstrate role of Nuratau 
area. 
Review 
Nuratau area is placed in central part of Uzbekistan at joint of 
Samarkand, Dzhizak, Syrdarya, Navoyi, Bukhara provinces and 
part of south Kazakhstan (south-eastern Kyzylkums). The 
territory, which we associate with Nuratau area, differs a bit 
from conventional borders (Mashrapov, 1968). The reason of 
this difference is that we do not consider the area as a physic- 
geographical location, but we regard it as a historic-cultural 
province. The province has original distinctiveness, in spite of 
fact that it is close to Zarafshan valley (Karmisheva and etc., 
1964) and has close historical relationships with Central 
Kyzylkums and Chardarya steppe. Nuratau area is a place 
where different civilizations of west and east dealt with each 
other. During its long history the area was under influence of 
different states and nations, beginning from Grece, Persia, 
Byzantium and continued by China, Arabs Khalifat, Mongolia 
and later Great Britain, Russian Empire and USA. 
Nuratau area having unique physic-geographical peculiarities 
served as a natural barrier barring a way of nomads moving 
from broad steppes and deserts to Mavarounnahr (Karmisheva 
and etc., 1964). This way, Nuratau area actually was a 
crossroad and a comfortable passage for transit of international 
and regional commercial routes. Having two main mountain 
gates, the area became an important commerce ‘Gate’ into