Episode Information

Located in one of the most inaccessible places on earth, Guge was once the home of one of Asia’s most vibrant civilizations. It was here that the Golden Age of Tibetan Buddhism began in the 10th century. So how, 700 years later, did Guge disappear almost over-night?

It was the centre of the route from Persia to China, and a hub for trade and commerce, art and religion; its remarkable opulence funded by its wealth of gold mines. But all that wealth needed protection, and Tsaparang, the capital, was a web of complex defensive walls, secret passageways and an intricate network of armoires caves.

As well as celebrating Guge’s glory years, we consider the ultimate reason for its decline: the arrival of Jesuit missionaries and how the eventual splintering of the community along religious lines.

This film brings to life the rise and fall of an empire which at the height of its glory introduced to the world some of the richest art and culture of the epoch.