The Silk Road

Sarah Qin

Heather Mckey

Humanities 9^th

Mar. 22 2015

Things we need to know about the Silk Road

Culture is something most meaningful to a country. It is important for every country to learn other countries’ knowledge, culture and religion. Because it is the easiest way to develop from learning others’ strong point to offset our weakness. Every country learned more about another country by human trade. The Silk Road made the cultural exchange between the East and the West come true. The Silk Road began in Ancient China. It is a road that was started by Zhangqian in 119BCE. The Silk Road connected Asia, Africa and Europe. The many countries that made up these continents had different cultures. The Silk Road made all of these continents become globalized. They traded some products and culture to other countries, for example, the silk, spices and different religion. This new connection between East and West shaped history. It helped China, Rome and the Middle East to know each other’s culture, religion, economy, invention and philosophy.

Constantinople was an important city on The Silk Road, because it connected traders from The East and The West. This city is a bridge between Europe and Asia. At that time, there was a lot of different empires lived in the city. It used to be the capital of the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, the Latin Empire and the Ottoman Empire. Constantinople (present day Istanbul) was the best location for crossing the East to the West, because it lies at a point where Asia and Europe meet. Because of this reason, all of people wanted to travel on it. Beside its important location, its religion was also important and complicated. After the Roman Empire fell, The Byzantine Empire appeared and continued the Roman Empire’s religion, Christianity. Christianity is this city’s first religion. This religion is continue the Rome Empire’s. After Christianity, because of location, this city has new religion: Islam. The capital of Constantinople housed both the religious Orthodox leader as well as the emperor, Basil II. Both Islam and Christianity have dominated the city at different times in its history.

Because of the location of Constantinople and the mixing of traders from all over Europe and Asia, the markets gathered color and spice and life from all over the world. Many products were traded in Constantinople. Oil, salt, fish, meat, vegetables and other alimentary products, ceramics, linen, and woven cloth were items of trade. Luxury items, such as silks, perfumes and spices were also important. Goods came from other countries to Constantinople. Silk came from China, wool from the British Isles, cotton and grain from Africa, spices from India and furs from Russia. These markets were the seed of the desire for trade between The East and West that still shapes the economies of The East and The West today.

Spice was one of the most popular goods during that period in the transaction of the Silk Road. India was the country produced the highest quality of spices, and species were traded to many other countries. People bought spices and used them in many ways. For example, they burned spices daily in their homes, and they were used also in cooking and some other ways.  There were many different spices. They had many different good uses. Cloves were used in curing meats, cooking and medicine. As well as being used in food, spices were included in the ingredients of oils, incense and medicine, and were also much in demand. There were many other spices, like Ginger, Turmeric, Nutmeg and Mace traded along the Silk Road. Because the spices were so valuable for people, so that is reason why spices became one of the most important goods in the transaction of the Silk Road.