Reading: The Silk Road
The Silk Road was 4,000 miles long and began in the 2nd Century BC. It was a network of trade routes that went from Eastern Europe to China. The Silk Road was important because it allowed people to trade items between the east and the west. The Silk Road got its name from the silk that was sold from China. People throughout Europe and Asia considered silk a luxury and valued it as a fabric for its softness.
Besides silk, the Chinese exported salt (important for curing meat since there was no refrigeration), sugar, tea, porcelain, and spices. European traders sold goods like ivory, wool, cotton, gold, and silver. Merchants from Europe often traveled on camels in large groups called a caravan.
Theft was common on this dangerous route, so merchants usually traveled with armed guards to protect themselves from bandits.
The Silk Road allowed the east and the west to trade other things besides tangible items. Ideas, inventions, culture, and unfortunately illness (like the bubonic plague) were sometimes shared. For example, Chinese traders introduced durable paper money to Europe. Traders were from many different countries, so they spoke a variety of languages. As they interacted, languages were shared. Religious ideas and customs were also spread naturally as people from different cultures met.
The Silk Road was active for hundreds of years but declined in 1453, when Constantinople, a major trade center in the Mediterranean, was taken over by the Turks. This disrupted trade throughout Europe. Once the city was blocked, European traders focused on sea travel to the East, rather than land travel.
Summarize the passage in 3-5 sentences.
