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The Silk Road
Teacher Resources
Driving Question: How have the trade routes known as the Silk Roads expanded and contracted over time?
Despite the name, the Silk Roads carried much more than just silk, and it consisted of much more than roads. Intricate networks of trade and many different merchants traveling over land and sea moved goods across Afro Eurasia. But they carried more than just material goods. They also brought technologies, cultures, and religions to new places.
- Analyze how the collapse and recovery of empires affected the spread of belief systems and the expansion of trade networks like the Silk Road.
- Use the historical thinking practice of continuity and change over time to evaluate historical events and processes.
Rebuilding the Silk Road
The Silk Roads didn’t collapse after the fall of the Han Dynasty. They continued to tie together local networks and boost economic production across Asia.
Key Ideas
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Guiding Questions
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Before you watch
Before you watch the video, it’s a good idea to open and skim the video transcript. And always read the questions below so you know what to look and listen for as you watch!
While you watch
- The term Silk Road is commonly used. Why is that name somewhat misleading?
- What were some of the commonly traded items on the Silk Road?
- How did the Han Dynasty “manage” the Silk Road? What were the economic impacts of this management?
- What was the impact of the fall of the Han Dynasty on the Silk Road?
- What is the Chinese Belt and Road Initiative?
After you watch
- The Tang Dynasty created a golden age across the Silk Road, starting in 626 CE. But the Tang Dynasty gained power in 618 CE. What’s going on here? What does this suggest about the effects of collapse and recovery on large networks?
- This video focuses on how the collapse and rise of political communities can affect networks. What are some ways that the expansion or contraction of networks might affect production and distribution? Think about the ancient Silk Road as well as modern China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
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Guiding Questions
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Note: For more detailed directions on completing the three close reads below, refer to the Three Close Reads – Introduction activity.
Skim
Before you read, you should quickly skim the article, by looking at the headings of each section and the charts. Read the questions below as well, so you know what to look for when you read!
Key Ideas
- How did the growth of imperial power expand trade?
- What were the Pax Sinica and Pax Romana, and how did they impact trade?
- Why were camels the best way for traders to move their goods on land?
- What was the role of women in silk production, and why is that role significant?
- What were some things the Silk Road spread without even trying?
Evaluate
- What would you expect to happen along the Silk Roads during a period in which the Roman Empire, and then the Han Dynasty, collapsed? What evidence would show whether this was, in fact, happening?
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Guiding Questions
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Note: For more detailed directions on completing the three close reads below, refer to the Three Close Reads – Introduction activity.
Skim
Before you read, you should quickly skim the article, by looking at the headings of each section and the charts. Read the questions below as well, so you know what to look for when you read!
Key Ideas
- How does the author describe states and religion in the Islamic world?
- How were Buddhism and Hinduism different?
- Why did Buddhism and Daoism often prove troublesome for the Chinese state? What did the Song dynasty promote instead and why?
- What are some ways that rulers and religious leaders cooperated and clashed in Christian Europe?
- The Mongol Empire conquered people of many different religions across Eurasia? How did the Mongol state treat these conquered peoples?
Evaluate
- Religions still play a major role in our world today. Sometimes they’re involved in government, sometimes they are supposed to be separate. Can you think of any ways that the history in this article might have influenced the ways we think of religion in the twenty-first century?
As you read the primary source excerpts in this collection, use the accompanying Quick-Sourcing Tool to guide your analysis.
