Position of the Silk Road in Historical Eras of Ancient Iran

Nowadays¡ there is the universal agreement as to the name and significance of «Silk Road». UNESCO recognizes it as the ancient route to the Far and Middle East. According to documents of international organizations¡ the existence of Silk Road is linked to the beginning of trading over this route¡ and UNESCO has determined its existence since Parthian period onwards to the end of Safavid period. According to UNESCO¡ Silk Road is open to multiple fields of study¡ and it could be characterized as universal¡ inter-disciplinary and multiple-disciplinary. The long history of the Road in Iran¡ its existence in different historical periods¡ and its importance from various aspects¡ including cultural¡ economic¡ geopolitical aspects is strong evidence to its being a heritage. Nevertheless¡ In Iran recognizing different aspects of the Silk Road has been incomplete. This study tries to portray the developments of the Silk Road in the course of history¡ based on the issue of commerce in the past. Methods of data collection are documentary and library¡ and the results show that over two thousand years¡ Silk Road has been a pathway for integration¡ exchange¡ and dialog between East and West¡ and has greatly contributed to the growth and development of humanity. In Iran¡ its importance has helped to the stability of regimes in different historical periods¡ and its global importance is also reflected by the attempt to register it in the UNESCO World Heritage List.