CMS221
Venice to Tokyo: Religion and Trade along the Spice and Silk Routes
Subject code
CMS
Course Number
221
Department(s)
Instructor(s)
A. Akhtar
Course Long Title
Venice to Tokyo: Religion and Trade along the Spice and Silk Routes
Cross Listed Courses
Description
This course examines the intersection of religion and trade along the silk and spice routes that linked Venice and Istanbul with Isfahan, Malacca, Nanjing, and Tokyo in the medieval and early modern periods (800-1800 C.E.). Adherents of Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Daoism, Confucianism, and other spiritual traditions traversed these trade routes as merchants, diplomats, and pilgrims. As cultural brokers connecting Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia, these merchants transmitted objects as diverse as silk textiles, relics, and texts on philosophy and ethics. This course follows the transfer of culture and commerce along these trade routes, focusing on a key thematic question: How are urban economies impacted by religion and culture?
Writing Credit
No writing credit
Departmental Course Attributes - Major/Minor Requirements
(History: East Asian), (History: European), (History: Early Modern), (History: Premodern)
GEC This Course Belongs To
-