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New Approaches to Asian History
Empires of Ancient Eurasia: The First Silk Roads Era, 100 BCE-250 CE
The Silk Roads are the symbol of the interconnectedness of ancient Eurasian civilizations. Using challenging land and maritime routes, merchants and adventurers, diplomats and missionaries, sailors and soldiers, and camels, horses and ships, carried their commodities, ideas, languages and pathogens enormous distances across Eurasia. The result was an underlying unity that traveled the length of the routes, and which is preserved to this day, expressed in common technologies, artistic styles, cultures and religions, and even disease and immunity patterns. In words and images, Craig Benjamin explores the processes that allowed for the comingling of so many goods, ideas, and diseases around a geographical hub deep in central Eurasia. He argues that the first Silk Roads era was the catalyst for an extraordinary increase in the complexity of human relationships and collective learning, a complexity that helped drive our species inexorably along a path towards modernity.
318 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2018
About the author
Craig G. Benjamin
13 books18 followersCraig G. Benjamin is Professor of History at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. He is the author of several books and numerous chapters and articles on ancient history.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 27, 2019
This is a relatively short book about a large span of space and time. In it, Craig Benjamin examines the emergence of trade routes between eastern Asia and the Mediterranean basin over a 350-year period. As Craig explains, the origins of this lay with the pastoral nomads of eastern and central Asia. The challenge they posed led Han China to mount a series of diplomatic missions and military expeditions westward, which established the first contacts with the communities of central Asia. As a commodity and a currency silk was a part of these efforts, contributing to the spread of this rare fabric until examples reached as far west as the Roman empire.
Once he has detailed the emergence of the trade routes, Craig shifts his focus and describes the four empires — those of the Romans, the Parthians, the Kushans, and the Han —whose presence made them possible. These chapters serve as excellent introductions to the empires for anyone unfamiliar with them, while their explanation of their roles as markets and guarantors of stability underscore well the conditions necessary for the trade to flourish. Craig then covers the development of the maritime routes, which gradually become the preferred method of shipping much of the trade, before concluding with the impact the disruption of these empire in the third century CE played in the decline of the trade routes. Taken together, it makes for an excellent summary of the first transcontinental trading routes in Eurasia, one that explains nicely the role of trade in the ancient world and provides some useful context for how global trade developed.
Once he has detailed the emergence of the trade routes, Craig shifts his focus and describes the four empires — those of the Romans, the Parthians, the Kushans, and the Han —whose presence made them possible. These chapters serve as excellent introductions to the empires for anyone unfamiliar with them, while their explanation of their roles as markets and guarantors of stability underscore well the conditions necessary for the trade to flourish. Craig then covers the development of the maritime routes, which gradually become the preferred method of shipping much of the trade, before concluding with the impact the disruption of these empire in the third century CE played in the decline of the trade routes. Taken together, it makes for an excellent summary of the first transcontinental trading routes in Eurasia, one that explains nicely the role of trade in the ancient world and provides some useful context for how global trade developed.
August 10, 2026
The scope is very ambitious, but it is covered with efficiency and an appropriate amount of detail. The author doesn't assume any prior knowledge, which was helpful for a poor neophyte in Central Asian history. The thematic organization of the text also makes for much better reading than any massive chronological telling could have offered.
March 11, 2024
This is an interesting, scholarly book about the impact of the Silk Roads trans-regional trade between East Asia and Europe (i.e. Rome, primarily) during the first Silk Roads era, 100 BC-250 AD. Although later in the book, the author states that long-distance intra-Eurasian trade must have been occurring all along, albeit to a much lesser extent, it was after the Han Empire "exploded" in an expansionary phase under Emperor Wudi that the mass export of luxury goods from China such as silk, into European markets (mostly to Roman Empire elites), began in earnest. The book explains how a remarkable envoy of Wudi after a 15 year journey West reported back to the Emperor on all he had seen and recommended expansion/conquest, rather than simply mollifying steppe tribal confederations. This led to the expansion of Han China West into Central Asia, the construction of forts, colonial settlements for soldiers and their families, so that trade into (East) Central Asia was made more secure. The initial contacts from China -- the embassies to Central Asian nations -- included tons of tribute goods, many of which ended up being sold along the way, or eventually sold. The goods included silk cloth, thread, floss, as well as other valuable items (such as ceramics). Silk captured the imagination of people who came in contact with it, because of its dazzling quality and fineness and so the embassy transfers were a sort of advertisement or encouragement to secure more silk, as demand developed. The silk was sold from merchant to merchant, taking a circuitous, arduous overland route across the mountains and deserts of Central Asia until it reached the area that is now Afghanistan, at which point the caravans usually turned south, or possibly the cargo was put aboard boats to travel down to the Arabian Sea via the Indus River. There was an active Indian Ocean maritime trade (from time immemorial) between India, Arabia, Mesopotamia and Egypt and so the Chinese trade goods were once again sold to merchant captains who shipped them to Egypt, Mesopotamia, or Arabia, where they were once again trans-shipped either via river (Nile, for example) or via caravan once again, to the Mediterranean, for final shipment to markets in Rome. The business enriched merchants all along the way and led to the extreme costliness of silk by the time it reached Rome, where the wearing of silk garments was limited to the elites. There was a counter-trade of Roman glassware, metal-ware, tools, and gold and silver coins, but the demand for precious luxury goods from the East (silk, spices, various precious stones, pearls, aromatic oils/incense) that could not be found in Europe, were the driving force for the trade - which was really global in its dimensions. Eventually, the wish to cut out the countless middle-men/tolls/taxes/fees led to Columbus trying to find a direct sea route to China by sailing West from Europe - a voyage that changed world history, but did not of course lead to China. The Spanish eventually did find a way to cut out the complicated Silk Roads trade journey by sailing to China from the West coast of Mexico, then on the return trip to Mexico, transporting cargoes from the West coast to the East coast of Mexico, and shipping them from there to Spain - but that was long after Columbus discovered America, and that journey too, although generally safer and with no middle-men/tolls/taxes, could take weeks at sea since it involved crossing the Pacific Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Atlantic Ocean.
This is a scholarly book that may be used as a textbook, since it is highly organized and continually summarizes what will be covered in each chapter, and what has been covered in the chapter. Still, it was certainly fascinating reading. Of timely interest is the section on the plague diseases that probably traveled back and forth along with the ships and caravans during the era of the First Silk Roads and may have led to its eventually collapse, as several empires underwent drastic depopulation and social chaos at around the same time as various plagues ripped through Eurasia from China to the Roman Empire. Once the global economy contracted, demand for luxury goods shrank and the trade ended. It did start up again a few centuries later, but for the time being, disorder and collapse in Rome, China, Central Asia, meant that security had evaporated, and trade was more hazardous. Chaos and the collapse of empires led to economic collapse.
I must say that the book was particularly illuminating with respect to cultural factors that influenced ancient art works in Central and East Asia - it definitely provides a "key" of sorts with which to experience in a more sophisticated manner or interpret these works of art, including pointing out classical Greek/Hellenistic influence on sculptural forms long after the collapse of Greek or hybrid Greek-Bactrian or Greek-Indian empires in Central Asia, how Hinduism and Buddhism interacted and hybridized in Cambodia, etc. Although I do not visit museums much these days because of the security situation on the streets and the subways, and also have become more risk-averse the older I get, I have spent many hours in the past at notable museums in NYC such as the Asia Society, the Met, the Rubin museum, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Jacques Marchais center on Staten Island, gazing at wonderful works of art from East Asia, Central Asia, SE and South Asia. This book is wonderful in explaining the intersection of religion, ideology, conquest, art styles in this gigantic area during this period of antiquity - so that these trends make more sense (at least to me). If I ever do return to museum-going, I know that I will have a greater appreciation and understanding of these sculptures, coins, and other works of art from Eurasia after having read this book.
Here are the quotes:
From the blurb: "[The author argues that] ...the first Silk Roads Era was the catalyst...that helped drive our species...along a path toward modernity."
From the Introduction: "...the trade in silk...[also enabled the diffusion of] different crop species and agricultural technologies, religions, philosophies and languages...with profound consequences for subsequent human and environmental history." "...both Chinese and Greek philosophical and political ideas spread into Central Asia..." "...the spread of...Buddhism into East and Southeast Asia..." "...the four large imperial states...of Eurasia during the Fist Silk Roads Era...the Han Dynasty in China, the Kushan and Parthian Empires of Inner Eurasia and the Roman Empire." "...human history...characterized by...key moments of remarkable cultural and technological change." "...the appearance of agriculture...began around 10,000 years ago, driven partly by the waning of the last ice age, and partly by demographic pressure..." "...a ... cultural revolution, the appearance ...of the first cities and states around 5,000 years ago." "...the ...beginning of human history some 200,000 years ago..." "...borders between...various communities were ...just vague regions..." "...capacity to exchange and store information...appears to be unique to human beings." "...exchange networks magnified the power of collective learning..." "...the vast Afro-Eurasian world zone...constituted a ...world system from the emergence of the first agrarian civilization in Mesopotamia in c. 3200 BCE..." "...the third century CE...near simultaneous collapse of the Han, Kushan and Parthian Empires, political and military crisis in the Roman Empire and outbreaks of disease epidemics led to the disintegration of the Silk Roads globalized network..." "A Second Silk Roads Era...roughly 600 and 1000 CE, connecting China, India, Southeast Asia, the Dar al-Islam [Islamic World] and the Byzantine Empire..." "...The passing of disease bacteria ...played a significant role in the depopulation and subsequent decline of both the Han and Roman Empires." "...the demise of three of the four major imperial states...responsible for ...[the First Silk Road's] success."
From Chapter I: Pastoral Nomads and the Empires of the Steppe
"Pastoralists..."those who are dependent chiefly on their herds of domestic stock for subsistence." "The ...Eurasian...steppe...cannot support sustained agriculture [but] it does sustain ...seasonal pastures of grasslands." "...an expansive zone of grassland that extends more than ...5,000 miles from...Hungary and Romania...through the Ukraine and Central Asia...to Manchuria..." "...small clusters of household groups, everyone...had specific ...roles in maintaining the lifeway...a relatively egalitarian social structure emerged." "...the first cities and states started...in Afro-Eurasia late in the fourth millennium BCE..." "...pastoral nomadic communities exploited ...the steppe grasslands and the arid lands that ran in horizontal belts from northwest Africa through Central Asia to Mongolia." "...I-E [Indo-European] languages ...[became] the largest and most widely diffused linguistic family in the world." "...I-E languages were spoken by pastoral nomads from [somewhere in the Caucasus region] who eventually spread out in a series of migrations across Eurasia..." "...the...horse-riding archer warriors, with their composite bows and arrows." "...all the great militarized nomadic confederations held their horses in the highest regard..." "...the composite bow... Wood ...core...with a thin layer of horn attached to the inner side and ...sinew to the outer." "...military contingents ...in wt or humid environments ...used all-wood bows, but in the ...dry...conditions of the Eurasian steppe, the composite bow was ideal." "...members...had been trained to live off the land through the hunts, each unit was able to function independently of supply lines." "...composite bows...could fire arrows with sufficient force to penetrate armor..."
From Chapter 2: Early China; Prelude to the Silk Roads
"Because of its enormous size, China has a tremendous variety of topography [and] climate..." "...China was never incorporated into any else's empire until the nineteenth century." "...by roughly 6500 BCE [Chinese] farmers had learned to domesticate a drought-resistant and ...nutrious wild grass called millet." "...by c.5000 BCE, hundreds of villages were flourishing in the middle Huang He [Yellow River] Valley, growing millet, soybeans, mung beans and hemp (to make clothing), and exploiting domesticated pigs, cattle, sheep and ducks." "...by at least 2700 BCE...the Longshan people had learned to unwind silk from the cocoon of a very special species of silk moth caterpillar and to spin this into fiber they could use for weaving cloth." "...the first East Asian writing system was not used for accounting, but rather as a means whereby the kings and their elites could communicate with their dead ancestor spirits by writing questions on animal bones and shells, the ...oracle bones." "Shang oracle bones...a religious official would heat it until it split into a network of cracks, which would then be interpreted as the response from the ancestor spirits." "...Mandate of Heaven political theory first articulated by the Zhou...a mechanism for validating the power of successful dynasties, even those formed by a violent overthrow of the state, would ...dominate Chinese imperial politics for the next 3,000 years, until the abdication of the last emperor in 1912." "..Han...men to staff...bureaucracy on the basis of an examination system that demanded a deep knowledge of Confucian philosophy." "...the most sophisticated and best-organized imperial administrative structure in world history to this point..." ...Confucianism remained at the core of Chinese government for much of the next 2,000 years..." "The important role played by Confucian scholars in government lasted, with some interruptions, until the establishment of the Republic of China in 1911..."
From Chapter 3: Zhang Qian and Han Expansion into Central Asia
"...by the time Wudi came to he throne in 141 BCE, some 450,000 horses were available for military use." "...the epic journey of Han envoy Zhang Qian from the Han capital of Chang'an deep into Central Asia and back."
From Chapter 4: The Early Han Dynasty and the Eastern Silk Roads
"...Chinese export goods such as iron, lacquer-ware and ceramics were also in demand in markets across Eurasia [in addition to silk] but ...the major Chinese export commodity was raw silk..." "...silkworms must have been domesticated early during the transition to agriculture in China." "The Bombyx mori is a domesticated moth, ...its wild ancestor the Bombyx mandrina Moore lived naturally on white mulberry trees that are unique to China." "...silk...used to pay employees...also used by farmers who paid their taxes in grain and silk."
From Chapter 5: The Roman Empire and the Western Silk Roads
"...[silk] ...quickly became a prized symbol of luxury for the Roman elites. But...some Romans came to regard silk as a symbol of decadence..." "...whether Republican Rome...intended to create a huge...empire, or [was] ...Roman expansion ... a result of sensible responses to security threats..." "As the gulf between rich and poor...widened, the sprawling city of Rome became increasingly chaotic. ...ultimately ...the collapse of the Roman Republic and its replacement by the Roman Empire...after a century of bloodshed and civil war." "...Caesar ...reduced the number of people on the dole in Rome from 320,000 to 150,000, out of a total population of about 500,000..." "...the bulk of Silk Roads trade was carried out by sea across the Indian Ocean between ports in South Asia and ports in Roman Egypt..." "...during the Julio-Claudian Age (27 BCE-68 CE), a ...mania for silk clothing developed." "...silk was ...associated with sensuality and female promiscuity among Roman elites." "...silk...also demonstrated the independence and economic power elite women possessed in Rome." "Silk was doubly dangerous because the fabric was expensive and could therefore display female economic power and status."
From Chapter 7: The Kushan Empire; At the Crossroads of Ancient Eurasia
"...the Kushans produced no significant body of literature; or , if they did, no examples of this have yet been discovered."
From Chapter 8: Maritime Routes of the First Silk Roads Era
"...the majority of "Eastern" exports that made their way to Rome did so on board ships rather than on the backs of camels or donkeys." "...the Romans were never able to gain ...political control of the ports in Arabia, nor..most of the other regions in Africa and Asia connected by Indian Ocean maritime routes." "...the bulk of Chinese exports during the First Silk Roads Era was still traveling overland from Chang'an to Bactria...before being transported by merchants down the Indus Valley to [the ancient port of] Barygaza [on the Arabian Sea]."
This is a scholarly book that may be used as a textbook, since it is highly organized and continually summarizes what will be covered in each chapter, and what has been covered in the chapter. Still, it was certainly fascinating reading. Of timely interest is the section on the plague diseases that probably traveled back and forth along with the ships and caravans during the era of the First Silk Roads and may have led to its eventually collapse, as several empires underwent drastic depopulation and social chaos at around the same time as various plagues ripped through Eurasia from China to the Roman Empire. Once the global economy contracted, demand for luxury goods shrank and the trade ended. It did start up again a few centuries later, but for the time being, disorder and collapse in Rome, China, Central Asia, meant that security had evaporated, and trade was more hazardous. Chaos and the collapse of empires led to economic collapse.
I must say that the book was particularly illuminating with respect to cultural factors that influenced ancient art works in Central and East Asia - it definitely provides a "key" of sorts with which to experience in a more sophisticated manner or interpret these works of art, including pointing out classical Greek/Hellenistic influence on sculptural forms long after the collapse of Greek or hybrid Greek-Bactrian or Greek-Indian empires in Central Asia, how Hinduism and Buddhism interacted and hybridized in Cambodia, etc. Although I do not visit museums much these days because of the security situation on the streets and the subways, and also have become more risk-averse the older I get, I have spent many hours in the past at notable museums in NYC such as the Asia Society, the Met, the Rubin museum, the Brooklyn Museum, and the Jacques Marchais center on Staten Island, gazing at wonderful works of art from East Asia, Central Asia, SE and South Asia. This book is wonderful in explaining the intersection of religion, ideology, conquest, art styles in this gigantic area during this period of antiquity - so that these trends make more sense (at least to me). If I ever do return to museum-going, I know that I will have a greater appreciation and understanding of these sculptures, coins, and other works of art from Eurasia after having read this book.
Here are the quotes:
From the blurb: "[The author argues that] ...the first Silk Roads Era was the catalyst...that helped drive our species...along a path toward modernity."
From the Introduction: "...the trade in silk...[also enabled the diffusion of] different crop species and agricultural technologies, religions, philosophies and languages...with profound consequences for subsequent human and environmental history." "...both Chinese and Greek philosophical and political ideas spread into Central Asia..." "...the spread of...Buddhism into East and Southeast Asia..." "...the four large imperial states...of Eurasia during the Fist Silk Roads Era...the Han Dynasty in China, the Kushan and Parthian Empires of Inner Eurasia and the Roman Empire." "...human history...characterized by...key moments of remarkable cultural and technological change." "...the appearance of agriculture...began around 10,000 years ago, driven partly by the waning of the last ice age, and partly by demographic pressure..." "...a ... cultural revolution, the appearance ...of the first cities and states around 5,000 years ago." "...the ...beginning of human history some 200,000 years ago..." "...borders between...various communities were ...just vague regions..." "...capacity to exchange and store information...appears to be unique to human beings." "...exchange networks magnified the power of collective learning..." "...the vast Afro-Eurasian world zone...constituted a ...world system from the emergence of the first agrarian civilization in Mesopotamia in c. 3200 BCE..." "...the third century CE...near simultaneous collapse of the Han, Kushan and Parthian Empires, political and military crisis in the Roman Empire and outbreaks of disease epidemics led to the disintegration of the Silk Roads globalized network..." "A Second Silk Roads Era...roughly 600 and 1000 CE, connecting China, India, Southeast Asia, the Dar al-Islam [Islamic World] and the Byzantine Empire..." "...The passing of disease bacteria ...played a significant role in the depopulation and subsequent decline of both the Han and Roman Empires." "...the demise of three of the four major imperial states...responsible for ...[the First Silk Road's] success."
From Chapter I: Pastoral Nomads and the Empires of the Steppe
"Pastoralists..."those who are dependent chiefly on their herds of domestic stock for subsistence." "The ...Eurasian...steppe...cannot support sustained agriculture [but] it does sustain ...seasonal pastures of grasslands." "...an expansive zone of grassland that extends more than ...5,000 miles from...Hungary and Romania...through the Ukraine and Central Asia...to Manchuria..." "...small clusters of household groups, everyone...had specific ...roles in maintaining the lifeway...a relatively egalitarian social structure emerged." "...the first cities and states started...in Afro-Eurasia late in the fourth millennium BCE..." "...pastoral nomadic communities exploited ...the steppe grasslands and the arid lands that ran in horizontal belts from northwest Africa through Central Asia to Mongolia." "...I-E [Indo-European] languages ...[became] the largest and most widely diffused linguistic family in the world." "...I-E languages were spoken by pastoral nomads from [somewhere in the Caucasus region] who eventually spread out in a series of migrations across Eurasia..." "...the...horse-riding archer warriors, with their composite bows and arrows." "...all the great militarized nomadic confederations held their horses in the highest regard..." "...the composite bow... Wood ...core...with a thin layer of horn attached to the inner side and ...sinew to the outer." "...military contingents ...in wt or humid environments ...used all-wood bows, but in the ...dry...conditions of the Eurasian steppe, the composite bow was ideal." "...members...had been trained to live off the land through the hunts, each unit was able to function independently of supply lines." "...composite bows...could fire arrows with sufficient force to penetrate armor..."
From Chapter 2: Early China; Prelude to the Silk Roads
"Because of its enormous size, China has a tremendous variety of topography [and] climate..." "...China was never incorporated into any else's empire until the nineteenth century." "...by roughly 6500 BCE [Chinese] farmers had learned to domesticate a drought-resistant and ...nutrious wild grass called millet." "...by c.5000 BCE, hundreds of villages were flourishing in the middle Huang He [Yellow River] Valley, growing millet, soybeans, mung beans and hemp (to make clothing), and exploiting domesticated pigs, cattle, sheep and ducks." "...by at least 2700 BCE...the Longshan people had learned to unwind silk from the cocoon of a very special species of silk moth caterpillar and to spin this into fiber they could use for weaving cloth." "...the first East Asian writing system was not used for accounting, but rather as a means whereby the kings and their elites could communicate with their dead ancestor spirits by writing questions on animal bones and shells, the ...oracle bones." "Shang oracle bones...a religious official would heat it until it split into a network of cracks, which would then be interpreted as the response from the ancestor spirits." "...Mandate of Heaven political theory first articulated by the Zhou...a mechanism for validating the power of successful dynasties, even those formed by a violent overthrow of the state, would ...dominate Chinese imperial politics for the next 3,000 years, until the abdication of the last emperor in 1912." "..Han...men to staff...bureaucracy on the basis of an examination system that demanded a deep knowledge of Confucian philosophy." "...the most sophisticated and best-organized imperial administrative structure in world history to this point..." ...Confucianism remained at the core of Chinese government for much of the next 2,000 years..." "The important role played by Confucian scholars in government lasted, with some interruptions, until the establishment of the Republic of China in 1911..."
From Chapter 3: Zhang Qian and Han Expansion into Central Asia
"...by the time Wudi came to he throne in 141 BCE, some 450,000 horses were available for military use." "...the epic journey of Han envoy Zhang Qian from the Han capital of Chang'an deep into Central Asia and back."
From Chapter 4: The Early Han Dynasty and the Eastern Silk Roads
"...Chinese export goods such as iron, lacquer-ware and ceramics were also in demand in markets across Eurasia [in addition to silk] but ...the major Chinese export commodity was raw silk..." "...silkworms must have been domesticated early during the transition to agriculture in China." "The Bombyx mori is a domesticated moth, ...its wild ancestor the Bombyx mandrina Moore lived naturally on white mulberry trees that are unique to China." "...silk...used to pay employees...also used by farmers who paid their taxes in grain and silk."
From Chapter 5: The Roman Empire and the Western Silk Roads
"...[silk] ...quickly became a prized symbol of luxury for the Roman elites. But...some Romans came to regard silk as a symbol of decadence..." "...whether Republican Rome...intended to create a huge...empire, or [was] ...Roman expansion ... a result of sensible responses to security threats..." "As the gulf between rich and poor...widened, the sprawling city of Rome became increasingly chaotic. ...ultimately ...the collapse of the Roman Republic and its replacement by the Roman Empire...after a century of bloodshed and civil war." "...Caesar ...reduced the number of people on the dole in Rome from 320,000 to 150,000, out of a total population of about 500,000..." "...the bulk of Silk Roads trade was carried out by sea across the Indian Ocean between ports in South Asia and ports in Roman Egypt..." "...during the Julio-Claudian Age (27 BCE-68 CE), a ...mania for silk clothing developed." "...silk was ...associated with sensuality and female promiscuity among Roman elites." "...silk...also demonstrated the independence and economic power elite women possessed in Rome." "Silk was doubly dangerous because the fabric was expensive and could therefore display female economic power and status."
From Chapter 7: The Kushan Empire; At the Crossroads of Ancient Eurasia
"...the Kushans produced no significant body of literature; or , if they did, no examples of this have yet been discovered."
From Chapter 8: Maritime Routes of the First Silk Roads Era
"...the majority of "Eastern" exports that made their way to Rome did so on board ships rather than on the backs of camels or donkeys." "...the Romans were never able to gain ...political control of the ports in Arabia, nor..most of the other regions in Africa and Asia connected by Indian Ocean maritime routes." "...the bulk of Chinese exports during the First Silk Roads Era was still traveling overland from Chang'an to Bactria...before being transported by merchants down the Indus Valley to [the ancient port of] Barygaza [on the Arabian Sea]."
May 11, 2024
This is a great overview of a fascinating era of interconnectedness in history: the First Silk Roads Era (roughly 50-250) and its prefatory period. The First Silk Roads Era was the time at which the great Chinese, Roman, Parthian, and Kushan empires, along with several middlemen, traded with each other across large distances of space. Craig Benjamin clearly shows how this era was made possible through the expansion not only of the Roman and Han Chinese empires, but particularly through the history of the establishment of the Kushan empire at the crossroads of Eurasia.
The Kushans were themselves descendants of the Yuezhi, a nomadic confederation that competed with the other great nomadic confederation of the time, the Xiongnu, to the north/northwest of Han China. The Xiongnu eventually pushed out the Yuezhi, who migrated thousands of miles southwards, until settling in Bactria, where the Kushan empire was eventually established by Kujula Kadphises. Situated at the crossroads of India, Central Asia, and East and Southeast Asia, the Kushans became important traders and trade intermediaries, and important in the spread of Buddhism across Central Asia and China.
The Silk Roads Era was also made possible by Han China's expansion in Central Asia, which was itself made possible by Zhang Qian's expeditions into Central Asia - the first time that the Chinese really started engaging with the wider world to the west of China. Emperor Wu/Wudi sent out diplomatic missions with trade goods to the great powers of his day: Parthia, India, and Mesopotamia - starting the significant external trade in silk. The defeat of the Xiongnu in the 50s BCE and the taking of a significant sliver of northwestern territory around the Taklimakan desert further opened up opportunities for trade with Central Asia. Alongside covering these events in Han China, Benjamin covers the histories of the Roman, Parthian, and Kushan empires, and how their respective histories and relationships enabled cross-continental and maritime trade, briefly covering some of the main land and maritime trade routes in the process.
The last chapter shows how three of the four empires (Han China, Kushans, and Parthians) collapsed at around the same time, with the Romans nearly collapsing then holding on in weakened conditions afterwards. This imperial disintegration caused the end of the First Silk Roads era, as safe and prosperous trading relations declined. Benjamin also assesses the importance of the Silk Roads to the spread of religion and disease epidemics (the latter of which contributed to imperial collapse). The spread of Buddhism into East Asia, the spread of Christianity into Central Asia, the spread of Zoroastrianism in Central Asia, of Manichaeism in Central and East Asia, and the spread of Hinduism into Southeast Asia were all made possible by the First Silk Roads Era.
A wonderful overview book that helps you to better appreciate the interconnectedness of history. Recommended for anyone with an interest in earlier iterations of "globalization" in history.
The Kushans were themselves descendants of the Yuezhi, a nomadic confederation that competed with the other great nomadic confederation of the time, the Xiongnu, to the north/northwest of Han China. The Xiongnu eventually pushed out the Yuezhi, who migrated thousands of miles southwards, until settling in Bactria, where the Kushan empire was eventually established by Kujula Kadphises. Situated at the crossroads of India, Central Asia, and East and Southeast Asia, the Kushans became important traders and trade intermediaries, and important in the spread of Buddhism across Central Asia and China.
The Silk Roads Era was also made possible by Han China's expansion in Central Asia, which was itself made possible by Zhang Qian's expeditions into Central Asia - the first time that the Chinese really started engaging with the wider world to the west of China. Emperor Wu/Wudi sent out diplomatic missions with trade goods to the great powers of his day: Parthia, India, and Mesopotamia - starting the significant external trade in silk. The defeat of the Xiongnu in the 50s BCE and the taking of a significant sliver of northwestern territory around the Taklimakan desert further opened up opportunities for trade with Central Asia. Alongside covering these events in Han China, Benjamin covers the histories of the Roman, Parthian, and Kushan empires, and how their respective histories and relationships enabled cross-continental and maritime trade, briefly covering some of the main land and maritime trade routes in the process.
The last chapter shows how three of the four empires (Han China, Kushans, and Parthians) collapsed at around the same time, with the Romans nearly collapsing then holding on in weakened conditions afterwards. This imperial disintegration caused the end of the First Silk Roads era, as safe and prosperous trading relations declined. Benjamin also assesses the importance of the Silk Roads to the spread of religion and disease epidemics (the latter of which contributed to imperial collapse). The spread of Buddhism into East Asia, the spread of Christianity into Central Asia, the spread of Zoroastrianism in Central Asia, of Manichaeism in Central and East Asia, and the spread of Hinduism into Southeast Asia were all made possible by the First Silk Roads Era.
A wonderful overview book that helps you to better appreciate the interconnectedness of history. Recommended for anyone with an interest in earlier iterations of "globalization" in history.
August 24, 2021
It's a very good look at Silk Road history of the era, but somewhat dry. Having read practically every book on the Silk Roads, I found what I expected to find, but no strong surprises or new ideas. There doesn't seem to be an overall thesis; it's more of a textbook survey. Each chapter even has an introduction that states the questions it will ask and at the end a summary of the answers it discussed.
On Valerie Hansen's burning question of whether there was trade or just government shipments it seems to want it both ways. At first talks about it being only from the government, but later on there is talk of merchants as well with little to no discussion of how they fit into the picture. By the way, it does not include Hansen's book in the bibliography.
The Parthian chapter is uncharacteristically problematic. I found several errors there. It also "cheats", using it mainly to discuss the Romans.The style is often terse and dry, even when a good story is available. The story of Ban Chao’s conflict with the Kushans, for example, has many more facets and is much more interesting than what is given.
Overall, I prefer the books by Raoul McLaughlin -- which it does quote at times -- to this more academic work. But if those books did not exist, this would be a very good effort. This would probably work well as the starting text for a Silk Roads course.
Some specific notes:
The Han
- Calls the Yumen Pass the Yunmen Pass.
- Spells the name of a desert sometimes Taklimakan, other times Taklamakan. Both are correct, but is a little consistency with this too much to ask, Editor?
The Parthians
- The chapter has almost nothing about the Parthians. Instead, chapter space is used to discuss Alexander the Great and also, the Romans. What kind of history is this? One can learn more about the Parthians on Wikipedia.
- Calls Sulla the “virtual dictator” of Rome. He wasn’t just the virtual dictator; he was the dictator. Rome is where we get the term from.
- The dates for Mithridates II are twice given as 121-91 CE, which obviously should be BCE.
- Strange gratuitous references to Jewish history. Mentions, for example, that Titus presided over the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem even though it has absolutely nothing to do with the history being explained.
- Two maps, one of which is impossible to read because of everything being too small, the other hard to read because the area of interest – Parthia – is given a very dark gray color while all the stuff of interest outside Parthia has an easy to read white background.
The Kushans
- The story of Ban Chao’s conflict with the Kushans has many more facets and is much more interesting that what is given here. Why retell an interesting story in such a cursory and dull way?
- Uses the term “Middle Iranian” and gives several examples, but doesn’t explain the term. Is it Middle because it’s neither Northern nor Southern Iranian or is it Middle because it’s neither Old nor Modern Iranian? Something an editor should have caught.
On Valerie Hansen's burning question of whether there was trade or just government shipments it seems to want it both ways. At first talks about it being only from the government, but later on there is talk of merchants as well with little to no discussion of how they fit into the picture. By the way, it does not include Hansen's book in the bibliography.
The Parthian chapter is uncharacteristically problematic. I found several errors there. It also "cheats", using it mainly to discuss the Romans.The style is often terse and dry, even when a good story is available. The story of Ban Chao’s conflict with the Kushans, for example, has many more facets and is much more interesting than what is given.
Overall, I prefer the books by Raoul McLaughlin -- which it does quote at times -- to this more academic work. But if those books did not exist, this would be a very good effort. This would probably work well as the starting text for a Silk Roads course.
Some specific notes:
The Han
- Calls the Yumen Pass the Yunmen Pass.
- Spells the name of a desert sometimes Taklimakan, other times Taklamakan. Both are correct, but is a little consistency with this too much to ask, Editor?
The Parthians
- The chapter has almost nothing about the Parthians. Instead, chapter space is used to discuss Alexander the Great and also, the Romans. What kind of history is this? One can learn more about the Parthians on Wikipedia.
- Calls Sulla the “virtual dictator” of Rome. He wasn’t just the virtual dictator; he was the dictator. Rome is where we get the term from.
- The dates for Mithridates II are twice given as 121-91 CE, which obviously should be BCE.
- Strange gratuitous references to Jewish history. Mentions, for example, that Titus presided over the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem even though it has absolutely nothing to do with the history being explained.
- Two maps, one of which is impossible to read because of everything being too small, the other hard to read because the area of interest – Parthia – is given a very dark gray color while all the stuff of interest outside Parthia has an easy to read white background.
The Kushans
- The story of Ban Chao’s conflict with the Kushans has many more facets and is much more interesting that what is given here. Why retell an interesting story in such a cursory and dull way?
- Uses the term “Middle Iranian” and gives several examples, but doesn’t explain the term. Is it Middle because it’s neither Northern nor Southern Iranian or is it Middle because it’s neither Old nor Modern Iranian? Something an editor should have caught.
April 9, 2025
I really liked this book. I think it does a great job at what it sets out to do, though the main argument is often lost in the details. Not much space is actually allotted to the promised discussion on the spread of disease along the silk roads - like 1 paragraph :( . The proliferation of religion throughout Eurasia could also have been treated in more detail imho. That said, all the economy stuff is tremendously compelling.
The book's strength doesn't lie in these specific arguments but as more general work of historiography. It provides excellent primers on the various empires that ruled the continent. The general info about Rome and Han China can be safely skipped. I greatly appreciate the detailed treatment of the Parthians as someone who was mostly ignorant before. What I loved most was the central role given to the Kushan empire. The author makes a good case for their central role in the cross-continental economy. His treatment also makes it so that I have a working knowledge of the Kushans without having to read books about coins. Thanks Craig!
The book's strength doesn't lie in these specific arguments but as more general work of historiography. It provides excellent primers on the various empires that ruled the continent. The general info about Rome and Han China can be safely skipped. I greatly appreciate the detailed treatment of the Parthians as someone who was mostly ignorant before. What I loved most was the central role given to the Kushan empire. The author makes a good case for their central role in the cross-continental economy. His treatment also makes it so that I have a working knowledge of the Kushans without having to read books about coins. Thanks Craig!
November 16, 2020
Very good
This is a very good, in fact fascinating overview of what the author rightly calls the First SilkRoads. It is particularly nice to see attention paid not just to the Roman Empire in the west and the harm dynasty Chinese Empire in the east as instrumental for the establishment of the silk roads, but also the Parthian and Kushan empires as well as the nomadic peoples that were perhaps equally important. There is also a fascinating chapter on the Maritime contacts which were more important than is generally accepted. The book could have benefited from better proofreading, there are some annoying misspellings and strange sentences.
This is a very good, in fact fascinating overview of what the author rightly calls the First SilkRoads. It is particularly nice to see attention paid not just to the Roman Empire in the west and the harm dynasty Chinese Empire in the east as instrumental for the establishment of the silk roads, but also the Parthian and Kushan empires as well as the nomadic peoples that were perhaps equally important. There is also a fascinating chapter on the Maritime contacts which were more important than is generally accepted. The book could have benefited from better proofreading, there are some annoying misspellings and strange sentences.
August 5, 2020
This book is great at condensing a large period of time and historical events in a relatively small amount of pages. I particularly appreciated the focus on cultural exchanges and the look on the way the general mindset of each society would evolve and change in time.
It is pretty accessible even for readers with no background in studying history at high level, even if some previous knowledge is surely helpful. In my case, where my knowledge was limited to the geography of central Asia and to some broad strokes of Ancient Roman history, I found the book just a little challenging, enough to make me even more curious
It is pretty accessible even for readers with no background in studying history at high level, even if some previous knowledge is surely helpful. In my case, where my knowledge was limited to the geography of central Asia and to some broad strokes of Ancient Roman history, I found the book just a little challenging, enough to make me even more curious
May 27, 2023
An absolutely brilliant book
Extremely well researched and eminently readable history of Eurasia from the perspective of the first silk roads. A must read for anyone seriously interested in reading the history of the world
Extremely well researched and eminently readable history of Eurasia from the perspective of the first silk roads. A must read for anyone seriously interested in reading the history of the world
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