1. Video Notes: The Silk Road
Directions: Take notes on 5 interesting or important facts and details while the video is on for later discussion.

2. Title: Silk Road Discussion Q’s (class notes)
1. Why did the Romans travel 5,000 miles to trade with China?
The Romans wanted SILK and only China had it!
Why was silk highly prized by Romans?
It is a luxury item - a luxury item is something you don’t need but you WANT because it makes your life better in some way – Silk is more comfortable – luxurious and a STATUS symbol.
Only China Knew the Secret of making silk.
No one in Rome knew how it was made or where it came from – thought maybe it grew on trees?

3. 2. Why did China keep the making of silk a secret?
It was good business – China had a MONOPOLY on silk.
A Monopoly is when a country or company as total control of the making and selling of a product.

4. 3. What is SILK? A Natural Fiber spun by silk worms.
The fibers had to be unwoven by hand one cocoon at a time, dyed a variety of colors, and then spun into cloth.
What are some fun facts your remember about silk?
It takes 2,000 silk worms to make 1 pound of silk.
The cocoon of the worm is made from 1 continuous thread that can be unwound and woven into cloth.
It took 2 years for a merchant to travel the 5,000 silk road from Rome to China!

5. 4. What impact did the Silk Road have on the world?
The Silk Road was a Channel that connected the EASTERN WORLD to the WESTERN WORLD. As a result it:
It facilitated [helped] Cultural Diffusion. People who trade interact and exchange IDEAS = advances in TECHNOLOGY.
EX: Ideas need to be recorded (or they are lost/forgotten) so the Chinese Invented PAPER! They wrote on silk before paper was invented.

6. 5. How did the silk secret make it to the west?
International espionage! Spying!
The Story:
Around AD 550, two Monks traveled to China and returned to the Eastern Roman Empire (the Byzantine Empire).
At Emperor Justinian's court they revealed smuggled silkworm eggs hid in their hollow bamboo staves. Had these “spies” been caught by the Chinese they would have been executed!
Under the monks supervision (and Byzantine officials) the eggs hatched into worms, and the worms spun cocoons.
After a few years Byzantium was in the silk business at last. The Byzantine Empire created imperial workshops, monopolizing production and keeping the secret to themselves.