Transcript nexus of Mediterranean and Indian Ocean trade

Foundations 8,000 BCE – 600 CE
• Trade evident even at
the hunter-gatherer
level
• Evidence of boats used
for river/sea trade
• Catal Huyuk prospered
from obsidian trade
• Trade based on barter
Catal Huyuk
• Mesopotamia
Had to import timber, metals, and stone
from as far away as India
Downriver traffic only- boats dismantled
and wood sold
Boats used for heavy loads such as grain
Land routes used for lighter and more
precious loads
Invention of wheel allowed greater loads
 Trade initially under
control of royalty/priests
but devolved to merchant
class over time
 Cuneiform developed to
record business
transactions
 Barter or silver used as
means of exchange until
introduction of coins
after sixth century BCE
 Conquest used as a
means to secure
resources
Scribes record the amount of goods
• Hittites
semi-control of
metals including iron
due to ownership of
mineral deposits
Kingdom of the Hittites
• Phoenicians
 Major maritime trade state
 Established trade colonies throughout Mediterranean and
Black seas
 First to use polar star for navigation
 Acted as “trucking company” for major states
Phoenicians
trading with
Egyptians
• Egypt
 Extensive trade with
Mesopotamia, the
Minoans, and indirectly
with India
 Strong interest in Nubia
and trade with south and
central Africa
 Imported raw resources,
slaves, gold, and
aromatic resins for
mummification
Egyptian trade routes
• Nubia (Kush)
 Acted as intermediary between Egypt and Africa in trade
 Possessed natural resources (gold)
 Slave trade
Kushite pharaoh
Geographic shift
towards Meroe
Meroe culture moved
away from Egyptian
influences towards
sub-Saharan
Economy collapsed
after Rome shifted
trade to Red Sea and
Axum (Ethiopia)
Iron-making in Meroe
• The Indus (Harappa)
Harappan Seal
Widespread trade
contacts in east and
west – Mesopotamia
and possibly China
Access to rich metal
ores = more metal
tools than
Mesopotamia and
Egypt
Seals may be the
names of merchants
• Shang China
Despite isolation,
trade contacts with
India and Central
Asia
Some evidence of
contact with
Mesopotamia
Large use of bronze
= emphasis on trade
routes for copper
and tin
Shang bronze vessel
• Greece
 Natural harbors and
islands made sea travel
fastest and cheapest
mode of trade
 Lack of natural resources
such as metals and
timber and lack of arable
lands made trade vital
 Success or failure in
trade impacted the rise
and fall of civilizations
The coastline of Greece
• Minoans
 Major maritime trade
state
 Trade contacts with all of
Mediterranean and
Middle East
 Spread Egyptian and
Persian ideas to
Mycenaeans and later
Greek societies
 Linear A possibly used to
record lists of goods and
other business
transactions
The Minoans
• Mycenaeans
 Linear B used to record
lists of goods and
business transactions
 State control of key
industries including wool
production
 Supplanted Minoans as
regional transporters
 Metals in great demand:
gold for rulers and
copper/tin for bronze
Mycenaeans both
traders and pirates –
preyed on weak
states
Conflict with Troy
and Hittites over
control of trade in
the Aegean and Back
Seas
• Carthage
 Established as a
colony by Phoenicians
 Maritime trade power –
dominated the western
Mediterranean
 Economic policies
focused on protection
of sea lanes and
securing natural
resources
 Some evidence of
trade w/sub-Saharan
Africa and British Isles
City of Carthage
• Greek City-States
 Colonies established to
 Act as bases for trade
 Relieve population
pressures
 Provide food for mother
city-state
 Sparta
 To emphasize equality –
Spartans banned
precious metals and
coins
 Spartans forbidden to
engage in commerce
Spartan hoplites
• Athens
Size of Athenian
navy allowed Athens
to project power to
enhance commercial
interests
Transformation of
Delian League into
trade association
Commercial estates
= wine and oil
exports
An Athenian Trireme
• Hellenistic
Civilizations
 Greek culture
widespread – based
on empire of
Alexander the Great
 Alexandria – nexus
of Mediterranean
and Indian Ocean
trade (via Red Sea)
Hellenic Trade Routes
• Rome
 Central location –
positive impact on trade
 Territorial expansion
brought in revenue and
surplus goods from new
provinces
 Roman provincial towns
drew in artisans and
merchants from all over
Busy Roman port
The Roman military
spurred trade in the
provinces
Pax Romana – era of
peace and prosperity
Major import was gain
to feed poor
Poor Romans crowd the busy streets
Roman grain trade
Roman
Mediterranean
trade
Roman eastern trade
• China
Encouraged
technological
innovation
Construction of
roads and canals
stimulated trade
Development of
the Silk Road
Silk exports
Merchant class
held in low esteem
• India
 Due to absence of strong
rule (political
fragmentation), merchant
guilds became very
powerful
 Trade contacts with
China and Roman Empire
 Decline of Rome resulted
in increased trade with
SE Asia and China –
export of Indian culture
Hindu temples – Angkor Wat, Cambodia
• Changes
Move from barter to coins as system of
exchange
Greater interaction between civilizations –
direct links between Rome and China
Cultural diffusion through trade – spread
of religion, architecture, disease
Decline in trade in Europe after fall of
Rome
• Continuities
Dominance of India and China in trade
China’s demand for silver
The Silk Road and Indian Ocean trade
routes
Constantinople as western trade hub