AROUND THE AP WORLD DAY 72: THE SILK ROAD(S)
Introduction to Unit 2: The Networks of Exchange
Overview of Trade Routes
- The Silk Road is introduced as the most significant trade route, likened to a popular boy band like Justin Timberlake or Harry Styles due to its prominence in history.
- The speaker expresses a controversial opinion that the Silk Road is their least favorite trade route, despite acknowledging its historical importance.
Critique of the Silk Road
- The speaker humorously critiques the Silk Road, comparing it unfavorably to other notable roads such as Incan and Roman roads. They describe it as "not even a cool road."
Key Aspects of the Silk Road
Trade Cities
- The Silk Roads led to an increase in large trade cities across Asia, which are crucial for understanding this network. Two illustrative examples provided are Kashgar in Western China and Samarkand in modern-day Uzbekistan. These cities served as major hubs along the trade routes.
New Technologies
- Innovations such as caravans (protected inns for travelers) and bills of exchange emerged from this period:
- Caravans allowed merchants to travel safely while transporting goods.
- Bills of exchange were early forms of paper money used by Tang dynasty merchants, facilitating easier trading practices compared to heavy coins. By 1200, these became widespread across China and eventually reached Europe by the 1600s.
Goods Traded Along the Silk Road
Items Traded
- A variety of valuable items were exchanged on the Silk Road including:
- Porcelain, gunpowder, steel, Champa rice, compasses, paper, and even diseases like the bubonic plague flowed through these routes.
Cultural Exchanges
- Significant cultural exchanges occurred alongside material goods:
- Buddhism spread into China and throughout East Asia.