Exploration by Sea

The history of humankind is built on a series of technological innovations and inventions-from the horsebit and the wheel to the microchip and the computer. Over the centuries, the exchange of these technologies has inspired new developments and improvements. It is through trade that much of this exchange has taken place. Across Asia, the paths of the Silk and Spice Routes brought together many different peoples to trade and so gather knowledge of each other's science and inventions. In this way, some of the most fundamental technologies, including writing, weaving and agriculture, have evolved and developed. Splendidly illustrated with dozens of historic visuals, Inventions and Trade explores the process of invention technological exchange, and the massive contribution made to it by the Silk and Spice Routes.