The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

Lecture Objectives and CA Content

The Commodities Standards
That Connect Us: Objective: Explain a brief overview of the formation of the Silk Road, the commodities traded along it,

The Silk Road

and the lasting effects of the Silk Road.

CA Content Standards:

7.2.5. Describe the growth of cities and the establishment of trade routes among Asia, Africa, and
Europe, the products and inventions that traveled along these routes (e.g., spices, textiles, paper, steel,
new crops), and the role of merchants in Arab society.

7.3.4. Understand the importance of both overland trade and maritime expeditions between China and
other civilizations in the Mongol Ascendancy and Ming Dynasty.

Social Studies, 7th Grade
Rene Delgado
7.3.5. Trace the historic influence of such discoveries as tea, the manufacture of paper, woodblock
printing, the compass, and gunpowder.
7.6.7. Map the spread of the bubonic plague from Central Asia to China, the Middle East, and Europe
and describe its impact on global population.

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Before We Begin... The Formation of the Silk Road

● Think of items you have and the food you love to eat around the
● The Silk Road was regularly used in 130 BCE
house.
○ How many of these items involve or are derived from paper, silk, ○ This was when the Han officially opened up trade with the west.

woodblock printing, tea, spices, porcelain, gunpowder? ● The creation of the Silk Road however was in the works a long time

● Now try to think of your daily life without access to any of these! before that.

○ The trade route and road that would eventually become what is known as

the Silk Road was actually made in 500 BCE

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The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

Expanding the Road

Persian Royal
Road ● Due to the conquest of Persia by Alexander the Great, the roads expanded
● The Persian Royal Road was the
predecessor to the Silk Road, even further towards the East
established all the way back in 500
BCE.
○ It ran from modern day Iran
○ The most important city was his established city of Alexandria Eschate.
all the way to the
Mediterranean Sea where ● In the late 200 BCE, the current Emperor of China sent for help from the
modern day Turkey would
be.
● With time, smaller side roads began
western people known as the Yuezhi to help in defeating a nomadic tribe.
to branch off of the Royal Road,
some paths going down into India. ○ The messenger’s expedition led to the contact and discovery of many different

cultures and civilizations, one of which originating from the armies of Alexander

the Great.

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The Silk Road

● Trade with the West along the Silk Road began as early as 130 BCE, and lasted

through the changes of the world.

○ Even while Western Empires changed and Chinese Dynasties rose and fell, the Silk Road remained a

constant trading route, although the amount of trade would ebb and flow.

○ During the Mongol Ascendency, where a lot of the trade route was under their rule and in their territory, the

Mongols also protected the route.

● Fully connected, the eastern side of the Silk Road originated at Xi’an and went all

the way west until it connected with the once called Royal Persian Road, where it

then was moved to a maritime route in the Mediterranean Sea.

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The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

Before We Continue... The Commodities of the Silk Road

● What are some dangers that you could think of that traders would run ● While Silk was one of the big reasons for the need for trade along

into during their trade expeditions? between the west and east countries, it was only one of many more
● Why do you think both the West and East were so eager to trade with
important commodities.
each other even though they are so different from one another? ○ People traded textiles, furs, grains, spices and even art with each other

● What do you think about the fact that even while Empires change and along the route.

break apart, traders and everyday life are seemingly able to still ● Some of the most important commodities traded were Teas, Paper,
continue on?
Woodblock Prints, Compasses, and Gunpowder.

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Tea Paper
● Tea was first harvested most likely
in China during the Tang or Han ● Paper was first made from the bark of mulberry trees in
Dynasty.
○ The methods of brewing tea China. With time the Chinese also discovered how to
however was different
among cultures make it higher quality as well.
● The tea trade slowly expanded from
China into India and Turkey, only to ● The process of making paper from the natural fibers of
further expand into the Western
world. trees was a technology that spread along the Silk Road.
● Tea also found itself as not only a
good tasting drink, but also as ○ It first spread to Korea, then to Japan, the Ottomans, Egypt,
medicine and even played a role in
Zen Buddhism ceremonies. and finally to Spain, where the first European paper industry

was established.

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The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

Woodblock
Compass
Printing
● While the first compass was
● While paper in itself was an amazing technology, it was even more important during the Tang Dynasty when
invented in China during 200 BCE, it
printing was invented. wasn’t documented as being used as
a navigation device until much later
○ It began its use as religious charms and Buddhist texts, but expanded to be used for scrolls and books. in the 12th century.
● Prior to the compass, navigators
● Printing itself would evolve when the Chinese later invent movable type, which would hasten the ability to make could only rely on the sky when the
Sun was out on a clear day or when
books more widely available in China.
the moon and stars were visible at
● While the Islamic states did not use the knowledge of printing, they did know of the technology. night.
● It was most likely brought over to
● It is uncertain when printing was invented in the West, but it is possible that travellers of the Silk Road may have the Arab empires and then brought
over to Europe due to the similar
brought the knowledge to Europe. design that all three compasses had.

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Silk, Porcelain, etc.

Tea

Gunpowder Items

China Commodities
● Gunpowder was invented in China during the beginning of the
Paper
11th century.

○ Was first extremely weak, but gradually improved.

Gunpowder
● European would be known to the power of gunpowder during

the 13th century where it would be used in warfare all over Technology

the continent. Compass

● Gunpowder would grow to change the battlefield forever,

making walls obsolete along with the then current army

Woodblock Printing
structure.

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The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

Let’s Take a Moment... The Lasting Effects of the Silk Road

● Let’s revisit the first questions I had asked you before we began the lesson. ● Even with the closing of the Silk Road due to the withdrawal of
● Now that you know more about the commodities that were brought to the
international trade by China in the Ming Dynasty and the rise of
Western civilizations, which do you think changed the world the most?
maritime routes, the Silk Road has left an impossibly important
● Make a list that ranks the importance of each item from left to right.
mark on history.
○ The left being the least impactful commodity to the right being the most

impactful.

○ Be ready to back your reasoning up to other students when you come to class.

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The Spread of Religion The Need for Trade

● Along with commodities like Silk and Spice, religions also flourished along the trade route that
● The trade with China and its luxuries was something that the west
connected the known world.

● Buddhism was the first religion to spread along, starting in India and spreading onwards into
did not want to be without for long.

China, Korea, and Japan by the 6th century.

● Their desire for East Asia’s exotic goods lead to the Age of
○ It became the dominant religion in China until the end of the Tang Dynasty, where it still stayed important but no longer official.

● Christianity also spread along the Silk Road, but the kind that made it to the East was known as Exploration, which would lead to not only a trade route with India
Nestorianism, one that would anger Rome and the Byzantines with its unorthodox methods.
into China, but also lead to the discovery and expansion into the
● The Middle East was affected by the Silk Road in the form of the spread of Islam, which came to

dominate the Middle East and North Africa. Americas.

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The Commodities that Connect Us: The Silk Road

The Black Death A Legacy Still Felt Today

● Another secret traveller of the Silk Road was the bubonic plague. ● Even today, where the silk road is not much more than a highway,

○ It is the famous and deadly disease that is known for wiping out almost a the ancient road still bears heavy signifigance.
third of Europe.
● The Silk Road’s historical existence has been the driving force
● It is theorized to have travelled along with Mongol armies and
behind a proposition by the United Nations to create a trans-Asian
traders or may have came over by ship with the rise of maritime
highway to connect from Asia to Europe to even the southern tip of
travel.
Africa.

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Culminating Activity/Question

● On Friday, make preparations to come to class with:

○ An item in your house that can be connected to any of the commodities

mentioned in this presentation.

● Be ready to answer the question:

○ How do you think everyday life as we know it would be affected if we did

not have access to this commodity.

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