The Silk Road

The Silk Road

The Silk Road was a trade route in historical times (200 BC- 1400) between Asia and Europe. While it is referred to as a road, the Silk Road was actually a route. Going across many countries and two continents, the Silk Road was a path that people followed in order to trade goods.

One big risk when trading these goods across such a large area was the challenges from the area’s physical geography. Traders often had to go around mountains and deserts in order to reach their destinations. A second challenge traders faced included the possibility of being robbed of their trade goods, food/water, and supplies by gangs along the route. The risk of catching new diseases from Asia was a third challenge. In fact, traders from Asia brought the Bubonic Plague, also known as the “Black Death”, from Asia to Europe in the 1300s. It was responsible for the deaths of 25 million people… almost 50% of Europe’s population. But the possibilities from getting rich from the trade of these Asian products presented an offer many couldn’t refuse.

Europeans desperately wanted the sort of things they couldn’t get in Europe but could in Asia. It was a classic example of supply and demand. Some of the goods that were traded included silk, spices such as salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and gunpowder.

The reason why silk was so important is because, at the time, the only fabric available was cotton. Cotton is thick and hot while silk is light and breathable. Europeans sweating through long, hot summers now had a much more comfortable clothing option. The very wealthy and royals of Europe would also use silk as table cloths and wall decorations. The more silk you could afford became a very important status symbol in Europe. Today, silk is still used for curtains, ties, bedding, scarves, and other clothing.

Spices like pepper and nutmeg were important because they added flavor to bland (flavorless) European food. Salt was important because, at this time, people could not refrigerate their food. Covering raw meats in salt preserved it for a longer amount of time.

The Chinese used gunpowder for fireworks, but Europeans were interested in them for different reasons. Gunpowder led to the invention of guns and cannons. Gunpowder provided the tiny explosion inside each weapon’s chamber to launch the bullet or cannon ball. Wars, previously fought with swords and arrows, were about to get a whole lot more deadly.

Besides items you could buy, traders on the Silk Road exchanged parts of their culture as well. Because the Silk Road stretched across such a large area, people who traveled the route began meeting other people from across the world. They saw the practices and beliefs of different Asian religions such as Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam. They heard new ideologies and learned new languages. This was significant because this was one of the first times that people across the world saw many diverse cultures.

Silk Road Map Exploration

Use the Google map below to "travel" along the Silk Road and answer questions about what you see and experience. You can click on the box in the upper, right-hand corner to make it full screen.