The Silk Road: Connecting China with The Mediterranean Essay

The Silk Road which have been known as a major trade route in the ‘old world’ and sparked numerous conflicts in its existence. It brought the goods and the bads like the plagues, cultural diffusion, introduction of new technologies and brought new religions to different part of that world. The Silk Road shape the world we have

The Silk Road was an intricate and evolving network of overland trade routes that linked China, India, and western Eurasia for centuries. The trade route was key to the diffusion and transportation of technology, goods, religions, and language throughout Asia, the Mediterranean, Africa and southern Europe. As the strongest link between major population centers in the largest landmass on earth, the Silk Road was one of the most important of all long-distance trade routes in human history.

Despite Christianity and Buddhism's contrasting fundamental values, they are similar in the sense that trade, from 600 to 1400 BCE, caused a significant change in their beliefs and practices, as well as aided them in their diffusion. The Silk Road, an international trade route between China and the Mediterranean, played an important role in the spread of both Christianity and Buddhism. The Silk Road was responsible for facilitation of the movement of goods between regions and peoples, but it also served a bigger purpose in exposing otherwise isolated towns and villages to ideas and beliefs from which they had previously been excluded from. Trade, overall, impacted Christianity and Buddhism by creating a means of diffusing and spreading their

Established in 200 BCE, the Silk Road was a very prominent influence on the trade and the spread of ideas throughout Eurasia. Its original purpose was to link faraway lands and make trade a more accessible and important part of society, and while it served that purpose, it also had many other drastic effects on the societies and cultures of the involved lands. During the period 200 BCE - 1450 CE, the order of social structures and gender roles fluctuated, while the concept of the social construct remained unchanged in most societies. Culturally, religious customs and beliefs continued to play a prominent role throughout the region, but many traditions and values of different religions were influenced and altered due to their exposure to foreign cultures along the Silk Road.

The Silk Road came to fruition during the Han Dynasty thanks to an interdependent demand of high end goods in Chinese and Roman markets. Since there was no direct trading route for goods between these two locales, goods instead traveled through an interconnected network of Chinese and Central Asian merchants. The route for good would take more than half a year, and the journey was treacherous. These routes began in the Chinese capital of Chang’an and would then travel northeast to Lanzhou, where they would then cross into either Yumen or Dunhuang. From there the goods would cross into the Tarmin basin, and then on to the Kashi. From Kasha the trade route either continued North (stopping at Tashkent, Samarkand, and Bukhara), or South (stopping

Silk, which was traded among Central Asia in 3rd millennium B.C.E. contributed to the name of route- Silk Road. Silk Road trade caused profound change in Asia. Buddhist monks instilled a new doctrine from India through Tibet to the contemporary Afghanistan. Buddhism reached up to China. Buddhism played a significant role on the Silk Road by the development of art included music, architecture, paintings, and numerous statues of Buddha and spread Buddhist customs, such as food, Buddhist rituals and laws.

On the other hand, the Chinese made significant inventions in gunpowder, compass, printing and paper making. These innovations

The Silk Roads were an established trading route between Western Rome and China`s Han Dynasty. This trade network included land and maritime routes. Due to these various trading mechanisms, many products could be traded to many different locations. The patterns of interaction that occurred along the Silk Road from 200 B.C.E. to 1450 C.E. show that changes and continuities regarding the Silk Road included products traded, cultural expressions and diffusion, and religion.

The Silk Road helped join together the eastern and western parts of Afro-Eurasia. China was able to secure and expand the Silk road which enabled China to be more open to the populations and cultures of its far western regions. The Silk road allowed the spread of Buddhism from India into central Asia and China. Buddhism completely transformed the Chinese Empire and Buddhist cave monasteries formed along the route into China.

Silk Road is a big topic, that must be researched. Especially its effects on China is the biggest. Then In my research I decide to look about four main possibilities that Silk Road gives to the Ancient China. They are, Economic opportunities, Cultural opportunities, Spiritual Capabilities, Intellectual Possibilities. These four were important, because it helped not only to China, but also to other civilizations that were located near the Silk Road.

The Chinese invented many things in their time and paved the way for many new inventions throughout the world. The Chinese were more advanced than most countries. They invented the compass, which allowed for further travel aboard ships. They even knew that iron had magnetic properties. So this proves that the Chinese were advanced. These inventions are still used today and were adopted from the Chinese. The Europeans adopted inventions like the crossbow and the gun. The most important invention from the Chinese is paper. Paper still heavily influences mankind today.

It connected all of Eurasia to new ideas and goods that people coveted. It traded tea, silk, spices, and a lot of ideas that were useful. It was a very useful road to many people and to many countries. For example the Mongols got a lot off of the road, because they would tax the people on the road which was inside of their empire. There were some downsides of the Silk Road because when the black death started getting bigger, a big cause of it being all over Eurasia was the silk road. Since it connected everything and everyone it spread the Black Death like a

Throughout the history of China, many technological inventions have been made. We invented silk, paper and the compass. Paper was invented in AD 105 in China. It was made from old rags, mulberry tree bark, and fibers from the hemp plant. The impact of this was that books became more readily available for people to read and learn from. Paper was also useful for the bureaucratic government because the government kept many records and it was much more convenient to do so on paper, rather than on wood. This made paper an important invention.

The four great inventions by ancient Chinese people that have had a huge impact on the entire world are papermaking, gunpowder, printing, and the compass. Paper was a great contribution to the spread and development of civilization. The first nation to invent paper was china (www.fmprc.gov). Words were written on numerous natural materials by ancient people before it was invented (www.fmprc.gov). Mesopotamians used earthen plates, Egyptians used grass stalks, Europeans used sheepskin, Indians used sheep skin, and the early Chinese used bamboo, wooden strips, tortoise shells, or shoulder blades of an ox (www.fmprc.gov). These materials proved themselves unsuitable as Chinese civilization developed because of their bulk and weight (www.travelchinaguide.com). Ancient China succeeded in first making a

The Silk Road began during the Han Dynasty around 202 B.C.E.-221 C.E., and lasted until around 1453 C.E., when the Ottoman Empire cut trade ties with the west. The Silk Road was a system of trade routes that connected empires across the Asia to the Mediterranean world, parts of Africa, and Europe. This extensive trade network received its name from the lucrative silk that came from China. Horses, ivory, grapes, metals, slaves, spices, textiles, wine, and other various items were traded through this network all over the ancient world, but the Silk Road traded more than material goods. Many ideas and technologies were shared among the empires connected by the Silk Road. Buddhist monks traveled along the road to India, sharing their beliefs with the Indian people. China shared gunpowder, paper-making, and printing with other civilizations. Astronomy, linguistics, and mathematics were also shared concepts that spread due to the Silk Road. The Silk Road is so historically significant due to its influence on commerce within the ancient world and its advancements of innovative ideas and technologies that were spread throughout all ancient civilizations.