The Silk Road And Beyond (400 - 700 AD)

The Silk Road and Beyond (AD 400 – 800)

46. Gold coin of Abd al-Malik
47. Sutton Hoo helmet
48. Moche warrior pot
49. Korean roof tile
50. Silk princess painting

The Silk Road from China to Europe was at its peak between AD 500 and 800, the time of the so-called ‘Dark Ages’ in Western Europe. This trade route connected a revived Tang China with the newly formed Islamic Caliphate, which conquered the Middle East and North Africa. It was not only people and goods that spread along the Silk Road but also ideas. Buddhism spread from India into China along the Silk Road and also into the newly formed kingdom of Korea. Silk Road products even made their way to remote Britain, as shown by the South Asian gems found in the Sutton Hoo burial. Meanwhile the first organised states in South America were beginning to flourish.