When it comes to trade routes, the Silk Road is the King of them all! Connecting the largely isolated Chinese markets with the rest of Afro-Eurasia, the Silk Road facilitated the exchange of new technologies, ideas, and lots of new paper money.

Learning Objectives for 2.1 The Silk Roads

• Explain the causes and effects of growth of networks of exchange after 1200.

Historical Developments in 2.1 The Silk Roads

• Improved commercial practices led to an increased volume of trade and expanded the geographical range of existing trade routes---including the Silk Roads---promoting the growth of powerful new trading cities

• The growth of interregional trade in luxury goods was encouraged by innovations in previously existing transportation and commercial technologies, including the caravanserai, forms of credit, and the development of money economies. (silk, cotton textiles, porcelain, spices, precious metals, gems, slaves, exotic animals)

• Demand for luxury goods increased in Afro-Eurasia. Chinese, Persian, and Indian artisans and merchants expanded their production of textiles and porcelains for export; manufacture of iron and steel expanded in China

Articles

Maps & Visuals - 2.1

Additional Resources - 2.1