A brief history of the Silk Road - Globalization in past times

Abstract

Many consider globalization a modern phenomenon brought by the internet and new technologies. However, few know that this phenomenon can be traced back to the first century before Christ and to the ancient Silk Road. This ancient network of roads allowed different cultures and people to exchange goods, ideas, and knowledge, also helping to spread religions as well as diseases. The purpose of this research is to summarize the history of the Silk Road and bring to light the advantages and disadvantages it brought to the people who lived around it. Finally, a short analogy of today's globalization will be presented.

Article

Long-distance trade is a practice that goes back to before the Silk Road which was therefore not the first international trading route. Indeed, the Persian Royal Road that connected modern-day Iran with modern-day Turkey established in a period between c. 550-330 BCE, can be considered the mother of the Silk Road. However, the Silk Road can probably be considered the most famous trading route that has ever existed, and understanding its history can help to understand how today´s globalization originated, but also the fragility of a system based on international trust and cooperation.

The terms Silk Road and Silk Roads were coined in 1877 by the German geographer and explorer Ferdinand von Richthofen describing two different things. “For him the Seidenstrasse was a single route to the “Land of Silk” […] whereas the Seidenstrassen were the multiple trade routes between imperial Rome and Han China“ (Andrea, 2014, p.107). In this paper the Silk Road will be intended as the “network of ancient trade routes, formally established during the Han Dynasty of China in 130 BCE, which linked the regions of the ancient world in commerce between 130 BCE-1453 CE” (Mark, 2018, w.p.).

When people think of globalization, they often think of a modern phenomenon brought by the internet and modern technology. But it can be said that globalization is an ancient phenomenon dating back to the first century before Christ. In this article, the term globalization means, as the American economist Anne Krueger defined it, “the increasing rapid exchange of ideas, people, and goods made possible by falling transport costs and technological advances, all leading to a closer integration of the world including – but not limited to – the economy.” (Jovanovic, 2008, p. 57).

Through the centuries not only silk was traded through the routes, but also many other goods, like horses, spices, fruits, tea, ivory, paper, silver, and gunpowder. However, “the most historically important “commodities” carried along these routes were ideas and culture and not goods” (Andrea, 2014, pp. 106-107). One of the most argued topics about globalization is whether the benefits outweigh its disadvantages. The same question can be asked about the old Silk Road. Did the silk road and international trade help to raise the quality of life of the people involved? The answer is probably yes because merchants could profit from the trade, as could the workers that produced the goods to be exported. However, in some cases this also created problems. The silk road had a huge economic impact on the Roman and Chinese empires, which could take advantage of receiving goods never seen before. However, this was not always advantageous for everyone.

That is the case of probably the first expression of trade imbalances between countries. Romans loved silk, they considered it a luxurious item, similar to precious stones and perfumes, and with it, they could show their power status. At the same time, “The Romans [..] did not make anything that the more sophisticated easterners could fancy and was light-weight and precious enough to be transported on long-distance trade.” (De Cecco, 2012, p. 32). Therefore, the only means of exchange left to the Romans was gold and silver, which were also not extracted from Roman mines, but imported. This situation resulted in a reduction in Roman´s money supply, which lead almost to the ban on silk.

As previously stated, many consider that the biggest impact of the Silk Roads was not made by the trade of goods, but mostly by the exchange of ideas and knowledge. Another huge impact that this immense network of roads had on the ancient populations, which is still visible today is that it provided a way to spread new religions like Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and Judaism. “Some of the oldest inhabited places in the world can be found along the Silk Road. Each faith has left its signature there, in ideas, art, music, and buildings, and in traditions of learning, remembering, celebrating, and sharing” (Nanji & Niyozov, 2002, p. 43).

With the rise of the Arabian power and the descending Roman power, the Silk Road became untraveled and unsafe for a period until the XIII and XIV centuries when thanks to the Mongols, the road was revived. This shows that only during periods of stability, globalization can bring about benefits because all the actors involved work together to achieve greater growth, however when there is a shift of territorial power, wars, and/or political instability, the network of relationships can become very easy to break and fall in disuse.

In the same period, the most famous person related to the Silk Road made his incredible journey: Marco Polo. This young Venetian (he was only 17 when he left) traveled from Europe to Asia from 1271 until 1295, living in China for 17 years. Shortly after his return, he was captured by the rival Genoese and incarcerated, where he meets the famous romances writer Rustichello. Together they will write “Il Milione” (in English known as “The travels of Marco Polo”), a story between reality and fiction created to entertain the people of the Middle Ages. The story of his travel (even if partly fictional) revealed to the people of the West for the first-time stories of distant and unknown places and peoples, creating interest and amazement in Chinese and Eastern culture. This is evidence of the fact that traveling helps to educate and connect different cultures and people.

However, the Silk Road did not bring only advantages to our ancestors, but sadly it allowed also the spread of one of the most (if not the most) terrible diseases in human history: the Black Death. “Most scholars claim that the Plague had to move with merchants, armies, and officials along the Silk Road from China to the West, with rats in grain sacks or fleas in cloth or on people.” (Byrne, 2004, p. 6). Some sources estimate that around 28.840.000 people died in Europe (about 31% of the entire population of around 75 million) in the period between 1347 and 1352, but an exact number is impossible to estimate.

After centuries of societies that benefited but also suffered from the proximity to the silk road, these trade routes finally came to an end after the Ottoman Empire decided to boycott the traffic of goods with the west and to close the route. Again, a shift of territorial power damaged international trade and the globalization process.

By comparing the history of the silk road with our modern-day, it is clear to see that yes, the Silk Road and globalization bring huge advantages to the actors involved in this interconnected world, but at the same time, this interconnection is very fragile and can be disrupted very easily by ongoing wars (see Russia vs Ukraine/Ottoman Empire), imbalance of trade with consequently trade wars (see US vs China/Roman Empire vs China), and the spread of diseases (see Coronavirus/Black plague). In every case, it can be said that for sure in some way the Silk Road shaped the world we know today, laying the foundation of the modern (fragile) globalized world.

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