%S Thematic study = Étude thématique
%A Tim Williams
%T The Silk Roads: an ICOMOS thematic study
%X ICOMOS thematic studies are a synthesis of current research and knowledge on a specific theme. The aim of this study is to provide an analysis of sites along the Silk Roads that could be used by States Parties participating in the Serial transnational World Heritage nominations of the Silk Roads as a basis for comparative analyses when nominating series of sites. The scale of existing research on this topic is extensive, ranging from synthetic works and maps, to studies of individual regions and sites. The inclusion of sites in this paper is not an indication of their individual significance, or their potential as part of World Heritage serial properties, but rather as part of a wider overview of the nature of sites along these vast routes. The study does not attempt to recommend any specific series of sites for Tentative Lists or for nomination. This study specifically aims to: * Provide an analysis of sites along the Silk Roads that could be used by States Parties participating in the Serial transnational World Heritage nominations of the Silk Roads as a basis for comparative analyses when nominating serial properties. * Profile the distribution and distinctiveness of Silk Roads sites in order to understand how sites are manifestations of the shifting systems of power and patronage that prevailed over time along the Silk Roads, in relation to the organisation of flourishing trade and the protection of trade routes. * Define the distribution of Silk Roads sites, in order to understand: what sites are common to the whole extent of the Roads; what sites are specific to the whole Silk Roads or to certain parts of the Roads; what sites are unique or exceptional; which sites are plentiful and how their form varies in time and space ; what sites are persistent over time; what sites reflect specific periods of history, power systems or cultural traditions; consider whether certain sections or corridors of the Silk Roads, through the assembly of sites within them, are distinctive from other sections of the Silk Roads, in terms of being manifestations of particular geo-cultural systems, and whether a case could be made for considering the Silk Roads as a collection of World Heritage properties, linked by a concept, instead of one single World Heritage serial property.
%K world cultural heritage
%K world heritage sites
%K world heritage list
%K thematic studies
%K nominations
%K archaeological sites
%K serial properties
%K cultural routes
%K cultural roads
%K silk roads
%K corridors
%K maps
%K definitions
%K gis
%K information systems
%K documentation
%K nomads
%K hydraulic structures
%K fortifications
%K grottoes
%K deserts
%K mosques
%K buddhism
%K islam
%K chine
%K kyrgyzstan
%K kazakhstan
%K iraq
%D 2014
%C Charenton-le-Pont, France
%I ICOMOS
%L icomos1487