Empires de légendes Série-Collection : Les Empires oubliés

Karel Prokop
2001 - 52 min - Betacam - Couleur - France

Lost in the desert and steppe between Russia and China, with access long forbidden, the ancient crossroads of the silk routes, centres of science and art, are today opening up to the world. Samarkand, Khiva, Merv, Boukhara, etc.
Trade is the source of the wealth of the cities of Central Asia, unavoidable places, until the discovery of the maritime routes, in all exchanges between the West, India and China. With the passage of time, this way became an extraordinary channel for the exchanging of ideas, cultures and religions. The towns which line it testify to this rich past thanks to innumerable monuments. Today, the new Central Asian republics are rediscovering and claiming this cultural heritage with pride.
The last part of the film is devoted to the discovery of Turkmenistan, the most secretive of the "Islamic ex-republics" of the USSR. Considering himself easily as the spiritual heir of the emperors of yesteryear, its life president, Saparmurad Niazov, reigns absolutely over this country with its underground abundance of gas. While famine threatens certain regions, in the capital, palaces worthy of the Thousand and One Nights are growing like mushrooms.