Trading along the Silk Road

As many of us know the Silk Road stretched from China to Persia and that many products were traded along this route. From China products such as silk and spices came into the rest of the world, Central Asia contributed horses, and the Romans offered wool, linens, oils, and wine to the rest of the world. However, what spread the most throughout this land was the religion of Buddhism. This religion originated in the northern parts of India, and was able to spread because of the travel of missionaries along the Silk Road. This religion became a comfort for the Chinese when their civilization was in chaos at the end of the 2nd century. The introduction of Buddhism changed much more of than the spiritual culture of the Chinese people. It changed their diets, knowledge of the outside world, and their economic practices. The Silk Road allowed the Chinese to be connected with the rest of the civilized world for the first time in history. This connection lasted through the Tang dynasty in China with a small time where the trade route went by the wayside. The Tang dynasty also expanded the amount of trade along the Silk Road. Also when a sea trade route was discovered in the 15th century the land route became less important due to the fact that ships could carry raw materials and more of them in a safer manner than caravans could across the desert. Overall the Silk Road was a very important tool in the history of the world in the fact that it connected a civilization to the rest of the world and spread many ideas and products across Europe and Asia.