2.  Made because of the Han Empire  Military of the Han didn’t allow people in Northwestern China  Allowed trade routes to the West to be opened

3.  Known as “Father of the Silk Road”  138 B.C.E. a Han emperor sent Zhang west with 100 men  Goal was to form an alliance with Western men  Alliance against Northern enemy, The Hun

4.  Zhang Qian traveled all the way to present day Iran  Taken as a prisoner 2 times  Able to escape both times!  Was not able to form an alliance  The trips were still successful though

5.  Helped Chinese learn about Western cultures  Discovered places like, Persia, Syria, India, & Rome  Went on a second journey to the West

6.  Discovered a horse, much more powerful for war  Also discovered grapes  Able to develop trade relationships with central Asian people  Overtime, many trade routes developed, traders mostly valued Chinese silk

9.  Silk is a fiber used to make cloth  Silk is strong, warm, light, & soft  Very valuable for trade, for a while Chinese were the only ones to know how to make it  Fibers come from cocoon of a silk worm!

10.  Chinese tried to keep the way to make silk a secret  Under Han Dynasty, the release of the secret was punishable by…DEATH!

11.  Many other cultures wanted silk  Romans were the most intrigued by silk  First time Romans saw silk was during a battle  Enemy waved a silk banner, Romans lost the war

12.  Chinese silk was a luxury item  Very expensive item, status symbol  Richest Romans could only afford one patch of silk on their togas

13.  Silk was so highly valued, traders went on the dangerous trip eastward to get silk  Romans would trade gold and glassware for silk  Romans could blow glass into all shapes  Glassware was new to the Chinese

14.  Silk road was NOT one continuous route  Network of shorter trade routes between stops  Goods would change hands many times before reaching their final destination

15.  Two major parts of the route: Eastern and Western Silk Road  Eastern Road: Luoyang- Kashgar in the Western part of the Taklimakan Desert  Western Road:Kashgar- Antioch and other Mediterranean ports

17.  Several dangers faced travelers  Bandits would attack  Encounter severe sand storms while crossing the desert  Travelers would even get buried in the sand on the Northern route

18.  Travelers were lured off the main path to their death by mirages  An image of something that is not really there such as water  Before entering the desert, travelers formed long camel caravans for protection

19.  Certain types of camels survive better in the desert  Bactrian camels have double eyelids, and nostrils they can close to keep sand out  Carry enough food & water for the traveler to make it until next stop

20.  Very expensive for travelers to carry goods over the silk road  Travelers to profit: goods had to be valuable & easy to carry  Silk was perfect: light, valuable  Silk eventually reached the Mediterranean Sea

21.  Chinese also traded fine dishware (China)  Ornaments, jewelry, cast- iron products, decorative boxes  Chinese would receive: (Central Asia) horses, jade, furs, & gold

22.  From India through Kashgar: cotton, spices, pearls, ivory

24.  Journey from Kashgar began with a difficult path across Pamir Mountains  Travelers suffered headaches, dizziness, & ringing ears  Mountain trails were narrow and dangerous (trail of bones)

25.  People and animals were known to slip off cliffs  After Pamir Mountains, trail took travelers through present day Afghanistan  Major stop: Modern day Iraq, eastern bank of Tigris river

26.  From Iraq, trail went North to Syrian Desert  Travelers threatened by tigers, lions, scorpions, and flies everywhere  Goods were finally shipped throughout the Mediterranean Ports

27.  Traders: Egypt, Arabia, and Persia  Perfumes, cosmetics, carpets, metal items, dyes, even slaves to China  Rome greatly valued silk so they traded glass products, vases, necklaces, small bottles

28.  Romans traded a lot of gold for silk  So much gold traded, Roman emperor Tiberius banned gold from leaving  Tiberius believed wearing too much silk would make people too soft or weak

29.  Trade between East & West changed cultures  Learned how to make products themselves, trade slowed down  By 500 C.E. Chinese learned to make glass & west learned to make silk

30.  Diets, gardening, & agriculture changed  China started to grow grapes, alalfa, cucumbers, figs, walnuts, chives, sesame  West imported roses, camellias, oranges, peaches, and pears

31.  Silk road also spread Buddhism  Religious travelers used the Silk Road to spread Buddhism  Buddhism is still dominant in Asia today