Trades of the Indian Ocean

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  • 1000 BCE

    Cane Sugar

    From its origins in Southeast Asia, by 1000 BCE, sugar cane had reached India. By the end of the Classical Era, sugar was known in Persia as a wonderful luxury for cooking and sweetening.
  • 1000 BCE

    Bananas

    Bananas reached Africa by around 1000 BCE. Bananas spread as a crop and a food into China, and may have been known in parts of the Middle East.
  • Period: 1000 BCE to 300 BCE

    Kaveripattinam

    Kaveripattinam was the capital and major port city of the early Chola kings of the Tamil state.
  • Period: 1000 BCE to 300

    Classical Era

    The Classical Era was from 1000 B.C.E-300 C.E.
    Historians think that long-distance trade from Egypt and Mesopotamia may have declined
    around 1000 BCE. During the second half of the millennium, trade expanded among new groups of people. Several strong states existed at this time, including the
    Mauryan Empire (323-185 BCE) of India, the Persian Empire, the Roman Empire in Europe,
    and the Han Dynasty in China.
  • Period: 1000 BCE to 1 BCE

    The Phoenicians

    The Phoenicians dominated trade and travel during the first millennium BCE. They also specialized in making glass products. The Phoenicians imported and exported items like wine, olives and olive oil, wheat, spices, metals, honey, and cedar wood.
  • 700 BCE

    Indigo Dye

    A dye used in fabrics and other artistic pursuits. Created by fermenting the Indigo flower, it was traded in China, Rome, Greece, Babylon, and India.
  • Period: 700 BCE to 100 BCE

    Aksum

    Aksum inked to the Red Sea and Indian Ocean trade networks by its port city of Adulis, It exported gold, gems, spices, incense and ivory to Greece, India, Sri Lanka, and Persia.
  • 600 BCE

    Iron and Silk Trade

    600 B.C- Iron metallurgy was introduced to China and silk was introduced to the trade system. China exported the silk and this silk was highly prized in India, the Middle East, and the Roman Empire.
  • 600 BCE

    Greek Coin Currency

    The Greek coin currency was introduced.
  • Period: 600 BCE to 300 BCE

    The Spread Of Religion

    Between 600 and 300 BCE, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism spread across the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia.
  • Period: 600 BCE to 600

    Trade Networking

    Three large trade networks developed between 600 BCE and 600 CE: the Silk Road, the Indian Ocean trade, and the Saharan trade.
  • 551 BCE

    Confucius

    Confucius developed concepts about society, education, and government that continued to be followed in China. Confucianism, became widely popular in Chinese culture and society after the 2nd century B.C. with the five classics becoming the core of education. The ideas and values would spread throughout the world.
  • 500 BCE

    Cinnamon

    Cinnamon and cassia arrived in the Gulf of Aden on the monsoon winds at least from around 500 BCE.
  • 500 BCE

    Saddles

    The camel saddle was developed in Northern Arabia between 500 and 100 BCE. The frame held the saddle over the hump with two pieces of wood or rope on each side of the hump parallel with the camel's backbone. It allowed for the camels to carry more of a load which made trading and traveling a lot easier for the people.
  • Period: 431 BCE to 404 BCE

    The Peloponnesian War

    The Peloponnesian War was an ancient Greek war fought by Athens and its empire against the Peloponnesian League. The destruction of Athens fleet ended the war, and Athens surrendered the following year. The war reshaped the Greek Civilization. Sparta was leading power and poverty was widespread effecting international relations.
  • 430 BCE

    The Athenian Plague

    The Athenian Plague was a massive plague that killed 1/3 of the population, including Pericles.
  • Period: 356 BCE to 323 BCE

    Alexander The Great

    Alexander the Great defeated the Persian Empire and extended Greek control over lands in western Asia, Egypt, Central Asia, and the Indus Valley. He also founded the city of Alexandria in Egypt, which would become a major center of art and trade.
  • Period: 321 BCE to 185 BCE

    Mauryan Rule

    During the period of Mauryan Rule, there was a great expansion in trade between main centers of civilization in Eurasia and Africa
  • 300 BCE

    Frankincense and myrrh

    Frankincense and myrrh trading served as a driving force to open Indian Ocean Trade. During the Classical Era, they were transported by Arab merchants.
  • 300 BCE

    Trans-Saharan Trade

    The establishment of a land-based trade route in Northern Africa that cut though the Sahara Desert. This allowed trading to be done more effectively. It used camels for transportation of goods which also made it more efficient.
  • Period: 271 BCE to 232 BCE

    Ashoka

    Ashoka was one of the most famous Indian emperors. He ruled from 271-232 B.C.E. He sent religious envoys abroad which encouraged contact and interactions that contributed to the establishment of trade relations.
  • Period: 200 BCE to 500

    Angkor Borei and Oc Eo

    Funan's ships controlled trade between China and India, and dominated territory across the Indochinese peninsula. The cities of Funan also transferred trade goods from the Indian Ocean and South China Sea ports into inland trade routes.
  • 100 BCE

    Diseases

    Commons diseases in Rome and China were smallpox, measles, and bubonic plague. The Roman Empire and China's population dropped because of those things. It also caused the Han and Roman Empires to weaken.
  • 100 BCE

    Pearls

    Pearls were a popular jewelry style in the Roman Empire around 100-200 BCE. They are n ideal trade good because they took up very little room on ships or caravans. Pearls were commonly used for jewelry and decoration, or to ground up into powder for medicine.
  • 100 BCE

    Pepper

    A spice derived from peppercorns. was largely traded during the spice trade.
  • 138

    Zhang Qian

    Zhang was sent by emperor Wudi to make contact with the Yuezhi to form an alliance. His second mission to Southeast Asia he introduced Chinese culture and technology to the lands he visited and brought back foreign music, dance forms, and foods.
  • 206

    Cloves

    Cloves were traded regularly along routes stretching from Europe to China. Early written records from the Han dynasty in China described how court officials kept cloves in their mouths to sweeten their breath while talking to the king. The spice was also imported by the Romans, eventually spreading to southern Europe. Cloves were a very important part of the spice trade, connecting the islands of Southeast Asia to the Asian mainland and other distant regions.
  • 1000

    Navigation By Polaris

    Phoenician Sailors used Polaris, also known at the North Star, to navigate the oceans. There is no exact date for the emergence of this technology.