(pen)o Overview
(pen)-> (g)Demand and regional connections(pen)
(pen)-> (li)Mongol expansion and security(pen)
(pen)-> (p)Transport and commercial innovations(pen)
(pen)o (g)Demand and regional connections(pen)
(pen)-> c. 1200-1450: (lb)Silk Roads(pen) linked China to the Mediterranean.
(pen)-> Growing cities and elite (g)demand(pen) expanded luxury trade.
(pen)-> Chinese silk and porcelain supplied distant consumers.
(pen)-> Central Asian horses and Persian textiles moved by land.
(pen)-> High (p)transport(pen) costs favored luxuries over bulk goods.
(pen)-> Older routes persisted as trade volume and reach grew.
(pen)o (li)Mongol expansion and security(pen)
(pen)-> 1200s (li)Mongol(pen) conquests joined much of Eurasia under rule.
(pen)-> Conquest first devastated cities and disrupted commerce.
(pen)-> Later Pax Mongolica reduced risks across many routes.
(pen)-> Protection for merchants encouraged long-distance travel.
(pen)-> Passes and relay stations eased travel and communication.
(pen)-> Shared imperial links connected Yuan China and Persia.
(pen)o (p)Transport and commercial innovations(pen)
(pen)-> Camel caravans carried goods across arid Central Asia.
(pen)-> Oasis towns supplied water, food, and places to exchange.
(pen)-> Caravanserai offered lodging, making journeys safer.
(pen)-> Bills of exchange reduced the need to carry metal coins.
(pen)-> Credit financed costly journeys, enabling more commerce.
(pen)o Overview
(pen)-> (hp)Commercial growth and urban centers(pen)
(pen)-> (hp)Cultural and technological diffusion(pen)
(pen)-> (pu)Environmental effects and network limits(pen)
(pen)o (hp)Commercial growth and urban centers(pen)
(pen)-> c. 1200-1450: Eurasian overland trade expanded exchange.
(pen)-> Increased traffic enriched oasis cities such as Kashgar.
(pen)-> Samarkand grew as a market linking (g)regional(pen) merchants.
(pen)-> Merchants relayed goods; few traveled the entire (pu)network(pen).
(pen)-> (hp)Urban(pen) markets supported artisans producing luxury goods.
(pen)-> Yuan paper money aided trade within China, not everywhere.
(pen)o (hp)Cultural and technological diffusion(pen)
(pen)-> Merchants and travelers carried ideas along trade routes.
(pen)-> Muslim traders and scholars spread Islam in Central Asia.
(pen)-> Buddhism persisted on routes despite Islam's (li)expansion(pen).
(pen)-> Marco Polo's accounts widened European knowledge of Asia.
(pen)-> Paper-making knowledge spread west, aiding written culture.
(pen)-> Gunpowder knowledge spread west, changing military tools.
(pen)o (pu)Environmental effects and network limits(pen)
(pen)-> Deserts and mountains funneled caravans through passes.
(pen)-> Trade and (li)Mongol(pen) movements helped spread plague westward.
(pen)-> Black Death killed millions in Eurasia during the 1300s.
(pen)-> Deaths disrupted production and reduced labor supplies.
(pen)-> (li)Mongol(pen) fragmentation weakened safety; exchange persisted.