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Silk was first cultivated in China

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Silk was first discovered by the wife of Yellow Emperor. While she was having tea with mulberry bushes as surroundings, a cocoon fell into her cup. Howevery, she examined it and came to know that pulling on a strand of the cocoon could fully unravel it

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The end of the 3rd century B.C: Chinese circumstances that led to expansion of silk trade outside the border

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The end of the 3rd century B.C: Chinese circumstances that led to expansion of silk trade outside the border

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- On a war with the nomadic Xiongnu tribes, Emperor Qin Shi Huang Di (r. 221-210 B.C.) started to consolidate forths in the North to halt the incursions of the tribe.
- Overtime, the walls is sufficient on its own to prevent the incursions
--> that's when Zhang Qian's story stepped in

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138 B.C.-Zhang Qian found out about "the West"

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138 B.C.-Zhang Qian found out about "the West"

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- Found India and the Parthian Empire
- In the Fergana Valley, he saw large horse breeds.
- In Parthia, he made contact with the remnants of the Hellenist culture marking the first major contact between China and Indo-European society.
- Most important of all, he identified a widespread desire for Chinese silk.

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5th century B.C: Improvements of travel through Asia --> lay foundations for trans-Asian trade routes

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5th century B.C: Improvements of travel through Asia --> lay foundations for trans-Asian trade routes

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- Persian Empire enhanced the travel routes through Western Asia
- Alexander the Great expanded eastward
--> these improvements are considered the foundation for the Silk Road's formation, along with Zhang Qian's reports

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53 B.C: Roman developed a "love-hate relationship" with the Silk Road

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53 B.C: Roman developed a "love-hate relationship" with the Silk Road

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53 B.C: Roman troops were defeated by Parthian archers during a conflict. The Romans hated Chinese silk because the Parthians was covered with bannerswoven made from Chinese silk.
--> After the conflict about a century, silk was widely known by citizens of Roman Empire

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102 B.C: China controlled Silk Road's traffic to Fergana Valley

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102 B.C: China controlled Silk Road's traffic to Fergana Valley

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220 A.D: Han Dynasty collapsed --> silk production outside China

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220 A.D: Han Dynasty collapsed --> silk production outside China

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- Han Dynasty collapse led to political upheaval
--> the carefully-nutured monopoly of silk trades and production in China led fell apart
--> other countries had the "recipe" to the production of silk
Ex: Roman emperor Justinian smuggled silkworms into his country

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According to the lore, this pivotal battle has contributed to another outcome:
- Several chinese prisoners from the battle of Talas has taught their captors a craft, that disseminated through the Muslim lands into southern Europe.
- the skill passed on to their captors was like how to make paper, which would transform history.

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The term "Silk Road" was brought about by German geographer German geographer Ferdinand von Richthofen. He came up with it to describe the trade routes of silk and other goods between the Far East & the Meditarranean. Therefore, he named the road the "Silk Road" to associate with the most opulence Eastern good - silk