Crescent Lake, on the Silk Road, Dunhuang
The merchants, explorers, pilgrims, and refugees who traveled the often-treacherous trade routes of Asia from the second century B.C.E. through the 15th century brought treasured commodities and new ideas with them. Crossing massive mountain ranges, unforgiving deserts, and dangerous open seas, these routes could be a source of untold riches or of disaster. Although many trade networks extended beyond Asia into Europe and Africa, Robert DeCaroli, professor of art history at George Mason University, focuses on the ways Asian societies participated in, benefited from, and were changed by trade and travel.
November 18 Silk Roads and Overland Trade
A network of trade routes carried luxury goods across central Asia, with branches that connected Asia to Europe and Africa. The merchants who traveled these paths took great risks for the promise of great rewards. The commodities they carried changed cultures, societies, and religions.
November 25 Sea Trade in Western Asia: Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal
The trade winds that carried the monsoons also carried sailors between the Arabian Peninsula and South Asia. Their boats carried a wealth of commodities and forged cultural connections in surprising places. On India’s east coast, an active sea trade linked the subcontinent to Southeast Asia.
December 2 Sea Trade in Eastern Asia: China Seas and Straits of Malacca
A fortune in commodities traveled from East Asia to points west, and almost all of it passed through the Straits of Malacca. Indonesian dynasties and European colonial powers vied for control of this lucrative chokepoint. Further east, Southeast Asian traders competed with East Asian merchants to capture foreign markets.
December 9 Pilgrims, Refugees, and Religious Exchange
Trade routes carried more than just objects: They also carried people and ideas. DeCaroli examines important individuals and ideas that traveled along these long-distance networks of exchange and explores historical reasons behind their journeys.
4 sessions
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