Tashkurgan
This article is about the town on the Silk Road in western China. For the town in northern Afghanistan formerly called Tashkurgan, see Khulm. Tashkurgan is a Tajik town in western China. Tashkurgan means stone tower, and a tower on this spot is mentioned on many early accounts of travel on the Silk Road. It marked the midway point between Europe and China. Today Tashkurgan is on the Karakoram Highway which follows the old silk road route from China to Pakistan. Travelling from China it is the last town before the border with Pakistan, and 120km over the Khunjerab Pass from Sust in Pakistan, which is the border crossing town. It is almost on the borders of both Afghanistan and Tajikistan, and close to the borders of Kyrghizia and Kazakstan. It is a recommended overnight stop for travellers from China in order to have the best chance of crossing the snow-prone Khunjerab Pass in daylight. However accomodation is primitive. Tashkurgan is a market town for sheep, wool and woollen goods, particularly carpets, and is surrounded by orchards. Tashkurgan was the capital of Sarikol, a kingdom of the Pamirs, and later of Qiepantuo under the Persians. Nearby is a fortress known as the Princess Castle dating from the Yuan dynasty, and the subject of many colourful local legends.
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