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Austronesian mariners sailed toward the West. They reached India, and mysteriously, they settled on the East African island of Madagascar. Evidence comes from the Malagasy language, crops like banana, coconut, and yam, and construction of houses in
Madagascar. There is little evidence of return voyages, however, or communication. -
Historians think that long-distance trade from Egypt and Mesopotamia may have declined
around 1000 BCE. -
The monsoon wind pattern became well established during the first millennium BCE though it may have been discovered as early as 3000 BCE. With the discovery of the seasonal monsoon winds, combined with the ability to navigate by reckoning with the stars, mariners now sailed across the Arabian Sea in open water.
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Austronesian mariners sailed toward the West. They reached India, and mysteriously, they settled on the East African island of Madagascar. Evidence comes from the Malagasy language, crops like banana, coconut, and yam, and construction of houses in
Madagascar. There is little evidence of return voyages, however, or communication. -
Historians think that long-distance trade from Egypt and Mesopotamia may have declined
around 1000 BCE. -
Greek and Roman sailors and traders entered the Indian Ocean after 500 BCE, sent there by the Persian ruler Darius I.
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Greek and Roman sailors and traders entered the Indian Ocean after 500 BCE, sent there by the Persian ruler Darius I.
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Alexander the Great sent Nearchus from the Indus to the Arabian Gulf in 326 BCE.
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Greeks sailed to India and around the Arabian Peninsula to Oman.
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Alexander the Great sent Nearchus from the
Indus to the Arabian Gulf in 326 BCE -
Greeks sailed to India and around the Arabian Peninsula to Oman.
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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. Roman coins have been found in Indian hoards with Indian coins. Cloth, ceramics, pottery, metal wares, glass, beads, incense, rare woods, and spices, pearls and coral were traded alongside common goods, and have been found at archaeological sites on the Indian coast -
The Phoenicians may have circumnavigated Africa, but they
probably did explore some of the West African coast. The Periplus of the Erythrean Sea from the first century CE names many ports, lands, and goods in the Indian Ocean, including information about the east coast of Africa and of India. -
Mediterranean traders and mariners entered a system in the Indian Ocean that was already developed. Goods from China and
Southeast Asia appear in records of trade with India. India exported many goods, and imported silver, copper, and gold. -
Silk traveled overland between Rome and China during the Han dynasty, but also appeared on the sea route.
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Goods were portaged across the Isthmus of Kra on the Malay Peninsula to reach the South China Sea. Crops such as sugar
cane, cotton, sesame, and rice were grown for export with irrigation, and became known elsewhere through the Indian Ocean trade. -
Classical Era, 1000 BCE to 300 CE:
Contacts and Trade Expand http://www.indianoceanhistory.org/assets/Site_18/files/Era%20Overviews/Classical%20Era.pdf
