Cultural Selection: The Early Maritime Silk Roads and the Emergence of Stone Ornament Workshops in Southeast Asian Port Settlements

Cultural Selection: The Early Maritime Silk Roads and the Emergence of Stone Ornament Workshops in Southeast Asian Port Settlements
© cobalt123/flikr
Numerous regions of South and Southeast Asia were directly involved with, and connected by, the maritime Silk Roads at various points in history. In particular, around the beginning of the 1st century CE, a great expansion of international trade occurred, driven by the demand for luxury goods from both Ancient Rome and China. While caravans carried goods relatively slowly along the land routes of the Silk Roads between the Indian Subcontinent and China, ships travelled more rapidly from ports on the Indian sub-continent to Southeast Asia and further East, transporting a wide range of goods that included spices, aromatic woods, resins, and precious gems and stones. Alongside this trade, artists and artisans travelled widely, bringing with them precious works of art and religious objects, which helped to spread artistic traditions and create inter-cultural and religious links across regions. However, archaeological evidence indicates that prior to this 1st century CE expansion, many coastal communities throughout South East Asia engaged in similar, although smaller scale, commercial activities, from perhaps as early as the 4th century BCE.  

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