Chapter 8
Review and Discussion
The Silk Road
Connected China to the Mediterranean and
drew together the different regions of
Eurasia
Route of the Overland Silk Road
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Linked China and the Holy Roman Empire
 The two extreme ends of Eurasia
Started in the Han capital of Chang’an and went west to the
Taklamakan Desert
 There the road split into two main branches that skirted the desert
to the north and south
Taklamakan Desert:
“The Desert of Death”
The Silk Roads avoided the Taklamakan Desert and passed
through the oasis towns on its outskirts
Organization of Long-distance
Trade
Individual merchants usually did not travel
from one end of Eurasia to the other
 Instead they handled long-distance trade
in stages
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Chinese, Parthians, Persians, Indians,
Romans, and others would dominate the
caravan or maritime trade routes within their
empire or territory of influence
Silk Road Trade to the West
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Silk and spices traveled west
from southeast Asia, China,
and India
 China was the only country
in classical times where
cultivators and weavers had
developed techniques for
producing high-quality silk
fabrics
 Spices served not just to
season food but also as
drugs, anesthetics,
aphrodisiacs, perfumes,
aromatics, and magical
potions
Chinese silk making
Silk Road Trade to the East
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Central Asia produced large, strong horses and
jade that was highly prized by Chinese stone
carvers
The Roman empire traded glassware, jewelry,
works of art, decorative items, perfumes, bronze
goods, wool and linen textiles, pottery, iron tools,
olive oil, wine, and gold and silver bullion
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Mediterranean merchants and manufacturers often
imported raw materials such as uncut gemstones
which they exported as finished products in the form
of expensive jewelry and decorative items
Hybrid Camel and Stirrup
What were some of the technological advances
that the Silk Road was responsible for?
Agriculture
 Exchange of agricultural products led to
diversifying people’s diet
 Advancement in Camel and horse breeding
 Hybrid camels (designed to overcome
limitations of the road’s climate and length
 Warfare
 Stirrup (gave mounted troops enormous
advantages over their opponents)
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Why can the Silk Road be described as a social
system rather than simply as a transportation
route?
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Exchange of ideas and cultures
Evident in religion (Buddhism, Islam, Christianity,
Zoroastrianism)
affected both the peoples along the road and those
far beyond.
Was the silk road dominated by any state or culture?
Because of its size and isolated nature, it was not
dominated by any one culture or state.
What impact did it have on the movement of people?
trend toward moving from the countryside to the
cities and trading centers
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thus fundamentally altering people’s lives.
Spread of Disease
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The Antonine Plague (165-180 A. D.) was a
plague of either smallpox or measles brought
back to the Roman Empire by troops returning
from campaigns in the Near East
 Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
was among the victims
The disease broke out again nine years later
and the Roman historian Dio Cassius reported it
caused up to 2,000 deaths a day at Rome
Total deaths have been estimated at five million
Indian Ocean Trade
Indian Ocean Trade
Indian Ocean has larger waves and the
boats were more resilient than the ones
used in the Mediterranean Sea.
 The traders learned how to understand the
monsoon seasons and the direction of
winds, and scheduled their voyages
accordingly.
 Sailors often married women at the ends
of their trade routes, cultures started to
intermix rapidly.
 Many sailors took foreign wives home and
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Mediterranean
Trade
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incapacitated sailors used square sails and long banks
of oars to sail to the many islands and into small
harbors.
sailors were rarely out of sight of land
traders also often established colonies to galvanize
trade contacts
Mediterranean basin was also smaller and more
competitive because of a smaller number of goods—
copper, tin, wine, olive oil, and pottery
The competition sparked recurrent warfare and rivalry
in the Mediterranean
Compare the Indian Ocean trade with the Mediterranean
Sea trade. Are they different worlds?
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Indian Ocean
vessels used lateen (triangular) sails and rode the
winds rather than using oarsmen.
sailors sailed long distances entirely at sea.
contacts were less frequent and therefore seldom
resulted in political ties.
Indian Ocean world was primarily concerned with
population movements and the exchange of goods
and ideas.
the volume of goods in the Indian Ocean was lower
than in the Mediterranean Sea, the trade in the Indian
Ocean included a large variety of highly valued goods.
Geography & Climate of Africa
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Varied climate
zones and
landforms have
encouraged the
development of a
wide variety of
cultures
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Explain sub-Saharan cultural diversity between
300 B.C.E.. and 1100 C.E.
Cultural Diversity
the vastness of the African continent and its many
distinct environmental regions.
natural barriers
contributed to cultural diversity by helping form
distinctive regional economies and modes of
subsistence
they also prevented large-scale military conquest.
Africa’s great size and low population density reduced,
but did not eliminate, contact and exchange between
African peoples.
Sub-Saharan Africans did not share a common
language or legal, social, or economic systems.
Waves of Migration
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One wave moved through east Africa
One wave moved through the center of the
continent
Possible 3rd wave- Bantu ancestors of the
modern Swahili mastered sailing technology
and made canoes and boats that travel the
Zambezi river
Slow but steady- people are not speeding
across the landscape, they are moving
slowly, gradually inhabiting areas that were
good for farming and raising livestock
Bantu Migrations
Sahara used to be so
well watered its
wildlife included
elephants, giraffes,
rhinoceros and
crocodiles
Bantu Migration
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Rather than arriving all at once like conquerors, the
migrations were sporadic with small groups of people
moving from one point to another.
It is not clear how the Bantu reacted when they came
upon existing communities but it is likely that new
groups merged with existing groups. Both groups took
on parts of each other’s cultures and practices.
The Bantu were armed with superior weapons and
their iron tools allowed them to plant crops and clear
forests efficiently.
Historians believe there was social interaction,
intermarrying and trade between Bantu communities.
Trading Gold and Salt
Two products, gold and salt,
dominated the Sahara
trade route
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Gold was plentiful in the West
African savanna.
Salt, which people need in their
diet, was scarce in the savanna
but abundant in the Sahara.
West Africans sent gold across
the Sahara to markets in North
Africa and Europe. In return for
gold, they received salt.
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Through warfare and trade, many
outside influences helped to shape
North Africa
Under Roman rule, Christianity
spread to the cities of North Africa.
The Romans also built roads, dams,
aqueducts, and cities across the
region.
Camels brought from Asia
revolutionized trade across the
Sahara.
In the 600s, Arab armies carried
Islam to North Africa. Islam replaced
Christianity as the dominant religion
of the region, and Arabic became the
primary language.
North Africa
“Ships of the Desert”
Kingdom of Ghana
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Located in Western Africa
between Saharan salt mines and
tropical gold mines.
Two-way traffic by caravan
between cities in North Africa
and Ghana (camels became
very important)
The salt and gold trade through
Ghana brought Islamic ideas
and customs to the kingdom
Muslim group from North Africa
attacked Ghana trade centers
that led to decline of the
kingdom.
Easy African City-States
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When Axum declined, a string
of commercial cities gradually
rose along the Easy African
coast
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Trade helped local rulers build
strong states.
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Under the protection of local
rulers, Arab and Persian
merchants set up Muslim
communities in east Africa.
East African Kingdoms &
Trading states
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Religion played an important role in the development of
Axum and Ethiopia.
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Ethiopians were descendents of the Axumites.
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Despite their isolation, Ethiopian Christians kept ties
with the Holy Land.
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The kings of Ethiopia claimed to be descendents of
Israelites. One group of Ethiopians, known as Falasha,
practiced Judaism.