INTRODUCTION
Medieval trade and
exchange affected not
just merchants and the
governments that taxed
and regulated them.
Trade within a country or
culture and trade with
people of other lands
affected almost
everyone. The open,
protected trade routes
fostered by the early
Islamic world, for
example, were essential
to the agricultural boom
that began in the 700s.
Still, trade was about
more than bringing food
to market.
Underlying trade was people’s desire to purchase goods not to
be found locally; merchants who understood what their markets
wanted could prosper. The most spectacular examples of this in
the medieval world were probably the trade in silk and the trade in
spices. Silk was a product that drove much international trade in
Asia before the medieval era. In the early medieval period China
sought to militarily dominate the trade routes of central Asia, out
of a desire to ensure that the trade routes for its silk remained
open. In the Near East and Europe governments tried to learn the
secret of making silk; when they did, they began silk-making
industries in their own lands. In this were elements of modern
trade and exchange, because not all silk was equal in quality.
The Silk Road represents an early phenomenon of political and
cultural integration due to inter-regional trade. The route
experienced its prime periods of popularity and activity in differing
eras at different points along its length.
The Middle Ages saw the rapid expansion of Medieval trade
and commerce. The most important factor in the expansion of
trade and commerce were the Crusades. The Crusades, which had
facilitated the relations with Eastern countries.
THE SELJUKS and EUROPEAN TRADE
 The Seljuk were a Turkish
dynasty that ruled parts of
Central Asia and the Middle East
from the 11th to 14th centuries.
They established an empire, the
Great Seljuq Empire, which at its
height stretched from Anatolia
through Persia and which was
the target of the First Crusade.
Developed a taste in the West
for their indigenous
productions, gave a fresh vigour
to this foreign commerce and
trade, and rendered it more
productive by removing the
stumbling blocks which had
arrested its progress.
Two Islamic men on a silk
trade route with camels
Picture of medieval
merchants meeting a trade
ship at the local dock.
 Local manufacture of goods was
highly encouraged by the
Seljuks. The many Christian Greek
and Armenian businessmen and
merchants present in Anatolia at the
arrival of the Turks were allowed by
them to continue living and working
in their towns. They formed a very
active sector of economic
importance in the areas of
metalwork, textiles, and
construction, and even taught these
trades to the Seljuks. By the second
quarter of the 13th century the
Seljuks had become an export
nation, although they still imported
more that they exported. They had
also developed many local industries
and traded their own goods among
the cities of the Empire. These
industries included the production of
alum (an important mordant for
dyeing wool) and refined sugar.

Parallel to this mercantile activity inland
was an extensive shipping trade, based in
the ports of Antalya and Alanya on the
Mediterranean and in Sinop on the Black
Sea. The capture of Antalya in 1207 had
signaled a major triumph for the Seljuks,
as it opened trade with Europe. The
capture of Alanya in 1221 was an even
greater asset, as the natural harbor
provided the opportunity to set up a naval
base in addition to the establishment of
commercial activities, notably with
Florence and France. The bulk of the trade
was of a transient nature. Major trading
originated in the cities of Konya, Sivas
and Kayseri, and was often handled in
these urban centers by Greeks and
Armenians. In a later time, the Venetians
and merchants of Constantinople set up
elaborate trade agreements, notably for
luxury items such as textiles and gems.
Trade was also maintained with the east
to Syria and Iraq, as well as with the
Kipchak Empire of Southern Russia via
the active port of Sinop.
Depiction of a medieval market fair with
round topped stalls from which
livestock, textiles, and household tools
are being sold.
 Patterns of trade were
varied. Merchants bought
and sold along the way,
bumble-bee style, or drove
specific convoys of goods
to a specific client, urban
market or port of call.
Trade went on inside of the
han as well, where
merchants could meet
with local clients and
negotiate prices and
orders.
The Turks were heavy exporters, and sent out more goods than
they imported. In addition to the tin, alum and other goods
mentioned above, what exactly was sold along these routes? What
was unloaded from the tired camels tethered at the end of the day
in the courtyards of the great Anatolian hans?
Many of these items could eventually have made their way to
Europe as well, transported by the Latins and Byzantines from the
maritime ports of Antalya, Alanya and Sinop.
What did they export?
sugar from the refineries of Alanya
soap
thoroughbred horses
livestock
produce: fruits (notably apricots), grains, olives, wheat, salted fish
textiles and carpets
dried wheat
chemical and mineral compounds: alum, salt, borax, yellow arsenic orpiment ("King's
yellow" arsenic trisulfide pigment). Alum, an essential mordant for dyeing wool, was a
particularly important export.
metals: silver, lead, tin, zinc, copper, iron
lapis lazuli
leather, wool, mohair
gum Arabica, pine resin, timber
slaves, taken captive in war or raid, usually supplied by the Kipchaks.
Slaves appeared to be the most valuable commodity of the Black Sea
route. The Seljuks were the middlemen in the trade of slaves. Circassians
and Kipchaks of Southern Russia were sold in the great markets of the
Crimea to the Egyptians who imported them to become Mamluk slave
servants.
Mail, and documents of official and governmental nature were also
transported along these routes.
 Venetian and Genoese merchants set
up prosperous trading posts on the
Black Sea that benefited from a flow
of goods from central Asia. These
merchants traded for spices, silk and
luxury goods with slaves, iron, wine,
light wool, linen and metal
wares. European wines from Italy,
France and Germany were highly
prized, but it was European wool,
linen and other textiles that were
particularly valued. England, the
Netherlands and northern Italy
produced high quality woolen cloth
in various luxurious weaves using
technology unknown outside of
Europe. Similarly, European linen
was another sought after import.