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Article: Economy of the spice trade.
- Article from:
- Calliope
- Article date:
- February 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Carus Publishing Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Spices from Asia have been traded to other regions of the world for more than 3,000 years. Changes in politics, economy, and technology have affected both the patterns of trade and the patterns of wealth generated from the spice trade.
By the time of the Han dynasty in China (206 B.C.-A.D. 220), traders were traveling north, south, east, and west with supplies of spices, silks, and other goods. While the routes were many and varied, the trade has generally been called the "Silk Road." On the eastern side, the routes began in China, principally at the ancient Chinese capital city of Chang'an (now Xi'an), and extended westward to the empires of Persia and Rome. ...