Long time ago The Silk Road ran through the desert area and several cities were built on it.
It was and is a network of trade routes connecting the East and West allowing different civilizations to exchange goods, knowledge and culture. It lasted from 2nd century BCE to 18th century.
During the period 3000-1500 BC, the Minoan culture developed on Crete.
The Minoans are one of the symbols of Crete. They probably came to the island from Asia Minor and settled there long before the appearance of the Greeks.
In 2011, researchers discovered two new species of freshwater stingrays in the Amazon River.
The Heliotrygon (rosai and gomesi), commonly referred to as the Pancake stingrays, is the first new genus of stingrays from the Amazon described since 1987.