For thousands of years, trade routes have played a vital role in the development of human societies. Trade over long distances contributed to cultural, religious, and artistic development among the great civilizations of Europe and Asia in ancient times. These trade routes mainly helped to transport raw materials, foodstuffs and luxury goods from one place to another. On the other hand, these trade routes also caused the spread of epidemic diseases, especially in Europe, to other continents.
Cities on the Silk Road, Amber Road, Spice Road and other trade routes prospered very quickly by serving merchants and trade caravans. At the same time, they have become centers where people from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds can meet. Without further ado, let’s move on to our list of trade routes that have managed to shape world history.
The most important trade routes in world history:
- The Silk Road
- The Spice Routes
- The Incense Route
- The Amber Road
- The Tea Horse Road
- The Salt Route
- The Trans-Saharan Trade Route
A long road connecting China to the West: The Silk Road
The Silk Road, which first emerged in Xi’an and connects China and the West, was originally used as a caravan route. This 6,400 kilometers (4,000 mi) long road played an important role in the trade between the two most important states of the time, China and Rome.
While using this road, the trade caravans were either following the road to the Caspian Sea by passing through the Afghan valleys, or they were reaching Anatolia via Iran by crossing the Karakoram Mountains. Marco Polo, the most important traveler of the period, used the Silk Road to go to China during the Mongolian period. Even today, the Silk Road attracts attention with its extraordinary diversity and cultural richness. This magnificent trade route, which still carries the traces of cultures and religions of nearly two thousand years, was spreading over two continents.
A very dangerous and expensive road: The Spice Routes
Spice routes connected East and West for two thousand years, allowing spices such as cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, saffron and turmeric to reach different civilizations. These traded spices were not only used as flavoring and coloring in foods, but were also used in the treatment of various diseases.
These Spice Routes stretched from the West Coast of Japan to Europe via the Mediterranean Sea. Just like the Silk Road, the Spice Routes were a long network of multiple routes. The Spice Trails were quite dangerous and costly to travel. It was mandatory to pay taxes and tolls at each stop on the route. Because of this, when spices reached Europe, their prices were astronomically high.
The road connecting Egypt and Rome: The Incense Route
Pleasant scents have always been widely used throughout human history. The Egyptians used incense in funeral rites, while the Romans used it in weddings and various celebrations. Thousands of years ago it was an extremely rare and expensive item, although it is very easily available today. Incense routes consisted of sea and land-based trade routes that continued from the Southern Arabian Peninsula to the Mediterranean.
This route, which was used between the 7th century BC and the 2nd century AD, was used after the end of the incense trade to visit the families of the people, to migrate the tribes and to move the armies more easily.
Most valuable trade route: The Amber Road
The Amber Route was a trade route connecting Mediterranean countries, including Ancient Rome, to the Baltic Sea. Baltic Amber, brought from the Baltic region, was used by the Etruscans living in Italy. In later times, it began to be used largely by the Celts. From the 1st century AD to the 3rd century AD, it was an important symbol of the Roman Empire.
The main amber route followed by the Roman traders to buy amber connected the Mediterranean basin to the Baltic Sea coast over time and played an important role in the trade connections made in this region. Although the path does not have a definitive route, it is thought to have started in Aquileia on the Adriatic coast, where Roman craftsmen mostly lived.
The difficult journey of horses: The Tea Horse Road
The Tea Horse Trail is a millennial network of trade routes connecting Tibet’s capital, Lhasa, with Southwest China’s Yunnan and Sichuan provinces. From the 6th century onwards, the road used to trade all kinds of goods was quite harsh and dangerous. The tea trade began during the Tang and Song Dynasties when the people became interested in tea, but the climate of these regions was not suitable for growing tea.
As can be expected, every traveler or trader who used this road could not complete their journey and lost their lives due to the natural difficulties that occurred in the region. Although some remains of the Tea Horse Trail remain today, many have been abandoned for decades.
A short but very important road: The Salt Route
The Salt Road, which was used to bring salt from the Adriatic coast to the Roman region, has maintained its importance for centuries. Therefore, salt-rich regions became important trading centers. Another important salt road was the established salt road in northern Germany. This Old Salt Road, which is 100 km long, was used to supply salt to the fishermen in order not to spoil the fish. This route, which is quite short compared to other trade routes, took about 20 days to complete.
The trade route where the slave trade was made: The Trans Saharan Trade Route
The Trans-Saharan Trade Route was one of the most important trade routes of the African region, as it connected the important points of the Sahara Desert. Since this trade route was located in the desert region, camels were very important for traders to travel this route. Along the way, besides the gold and slave trade, luxury items such as ostrich feathers were also bought and sold. Its importance was greatly diminished in the mid-16th century, with the Portuguese discovering the sea routes to West Africa.
24053
