Silk Road Trade During the Han Dynasty

Paper and gunpowder were two of the most important inventions during this period. They both changed the way we communicate and the world around us.

During the Han expansion into Central Asia, imperial envoy Zhang Qian made contact with other cultures. This paved the way for Chinese commerce with these lands and peoples.

Diplomatic Relations

Trade was not only a lucrative enterprise for the Han Dynasty, it also played a key role in spreading ideas. Along the great Eurasian trade networks that crossed and connected Asia, goods, technology, ideas, beliefs and languages spread, sometimes at breakneck speed. Cities that developed as hubs of culture and learning along the routes were places where knowledge, ideas and innovation were shared, and where cultural and religious traditions mixed.

The dynasty’s interactions with foreign rulers were often complex, shaped by Han China’s own experiences with war and annexation and the broader regional situation of an expanding empire. After defeating the Xiongnu nomad confederation in the War of the Heavenly Horses, Emperor Wu (r. 141-87 BCE) sought to expand Chinese territory further north and west, but also to strengthen ties with Central Asia and the Persian Gulf regions. To that end, he opened his father’s horse pastures to the public, reducing the breeding of military horses and making them available for trading.

Silk was one of the most important commodities to move along the trade routes, a luxury item used by royalty and wealthy patrons. Other favorites from China included jade and other precious stones, porcelain, tea and spices. In addition to silk, terra-cotta warrior statues of the Xiongnu nomads also traveled to Western Europe, and Buddhism moved east from Persia through Central Asia into Tibet, India, China and Japan.

But while silk and other products were important for Han trade, it was the interaction of people that made the Silk Road so special. As the dynasty sought to build trade with its neighbors, Han officials and soldiers found themselves in contact with peoples of many different cultures.

Because of this, Han China was able to maintain an open, flexible and sophisticated diplomatic policy with its foreign neighbors. John Fairbank points out that the range of options for Han rulers in designing their relations with non-Hans “included cessation of contact; indoctrinating the barbarian in the Chinese view by cultural-ideological means; buying him off by honors or material inducements or both; using one barbarian against another through diplomatic maneuvers; and in the final extremity, accepting them as the apex of the Chinese world.” Fortunately, this approach was generally successful.

Trade Routes

The Silk Road, also called the Great Trade Route, is a historic trade network that linked cultures across Eurasia through caravanserais, port cities and other sites of commercial exchange. Trade and travel along the routes were key to the growth of civilizations and helped spread religions, ideas, and technologies. Historians typically divide the Silk Road period into three periods: 1) 206 BCE to 220 C.E., when the Han dynasty formally opened trade with its western neighbors; 2) from 618 to 907 C.E., between Tang dynasty China and Central Asia, the Arab Umayyad and Abbasid empires, Sasanian Persia, India and Rome; and 3) the 13th and 14th centuries, when Mongol descendants of Genghis Khan controlled most of Asia and European travelers such as Marco Polo made their way to Cathay (China).

The trade routes were named for the precious silk cloth that traveled them. However, a wide variety of goods passed through these channels. In addition to silk, Chinese goods included porcelain and tea, while in the west, gold and silver metals and gems were common currency. Horses were another popular commodity, and “silk-for-horses” was a long-standing trade exchange. Horses were prized by both agrarian Chinese merchants and nomadic nomad elites, who needed them for transportation, cultivation and cavalry.

These trade routes spanned vast territories, encompassing mountain ranges, deserts and plains and running over seas, rivers and lakes. They were dotted with fortresses, monasteries, temples, ruins and other places of interest. These routes were vital to the growth of many dynasties, and it was on the Silk Road that many of the most important political alliances were made between different nations.

Several different routes connected China to its trading partners, including the northern "fur road" and the southern Maritime Silk Road. The northern "fur road" ran through the taiga of Siberia, where hardy bands of trappers harvested fox, sable, mink, and beaver pelts for sale to the wealthy elites of both China and Europe. This northern trade also enabled Genghis Khan to cement one of his early political alliances with a gift of sable fur. The Maritime Silk Road connected China to its western trading partners through the use of ocean-going ships and ports.

Interactions with Other Empires

The Silk Road got its name from one of the major products that was traded - silk cloth. People throughout Asia and Europe prized it for its softness and luxury, leading many to call China “the land of silk.”

However, Silk Road trade was much more than cloth. The goods that traveled the routes also brought ideas and cultural changes along with them. Chinese technology and scientific innovations, such as gunpowder and the magnetic compass, spread to the West along the route. Philosophies, religious teachings and martial arts also made their way from East to West.

China itself benefited greatly from the trade and cultural exchanges of the era. Through these channels, China became more cosmopolitan and diverse than ever before.

One of the most important interactions was with the Xiongnu, a confederation of nomadic tribes that straddled the northern borders of Han China. During the Han Dynasty, the emperors sought to subdue the Xiongnu with large armies. They even offered their imperial princesses in marriage to the Xiongnu chieftains. While these efforts were not always successful, they did help to bring the Xiongnu under control.

The Xiongnu had their own demands, too. They wanted Chinese goods like silks, tea and spices. In addition, they wanted livestock and horses. Often, they raided villages along the border. The Chinese responded with border markets, which were essentially trading posts.

The purpose of these was to lure the Xiongnu into trading with them. The Xiongnu would then have the option of taking goods from the traders or stealing from them. This reduced the raids and helped to bring the Xiongnu closer to Chinese culture.

Besides silk, other popular goods that were traded included porcelain, teas and spices, metallurgy tools and metals, horses, glassware, jade, and lapis lazuli. Silk, however, was the most valued item because it was considered to be a symbol of wealth. For this reason, it was typically worn by the elites. Other items that were traded included a variety of musical instruments from the East and the West. Instruments such as the four-stringed lute from India and the Persian mizmar, which is thought to be the ancestor of the European oboe and clarinet, were popular on the Silk Road.

Conclusions

In the midst of this economic and diplomatic expansion, China's rulers fought persistent wars with the pastoral nomads of the Central Asian steppe grasslands. Initially, Emperor Wu appeased them by giving away his daughters in marriage and offering tributes of silk. But the ensuing warfare brought the Xiongnu closer to the Chinese border, and in the 1st century BCE Emperor Wu launched a new campaign against them.

To bolster his military might, he sent imperial envoy Zhang Qian into the West in 138 BCE to make contact with the peoples and cultures of Central Asia. Zhang Qian's reports enabled Han traders to expand their markets and boosted the economy of China in general.

The Han emperors also encouraged commerce by lowering taxes on food grains and silk yarn and floss and by establishing state-run trade companies to promote the exchange of goods both within and beyond China. These commercial enterprises were primarily in cities, where traders sold cooked meats and pickled vegetables; brass, iron, and wood utensils; raw materials for lacquerware, ramie and hemp cloth, and dyes; jewelry; and furs and textiles made of silk or cotton. Government officials supervised city markets and regulated the transport of goods by means of highways and lesser byways, canals, and waterways.

In addition to commercial goods, silk and other precious commodities traveled along the routes. Curative herbs, ideas of astronomy, and religions also moved along these pathways.

Besides expanding the dynasty's market opportunities, these interactions with foreigners brought new information to Han culture. For example, the presence of foreign traders helped Han artisans to learn about outside craftworks such as western-style glassware, blankets, and jewelry.

In addition, the presence of a large number of Xiongnu merchants in Han towns helped to culturally assimilate those peoples. It was widely believed among the Chinese that the Xiongnu raided their homeland because they needed Chinese products. However, this theory has not been borne out by archaeological or textual evidence. Rather, it appears that the Xiongnu raided because they wanted to get their hands on precious silk and other Chinese products.