Historical Trade Routes
Historical Trade Routes is a structured history dataset with 12 entries. Its fields include Name, Period Active, Regions Connected. Community voting appears as a separate signal beside eligible rows and does not replace the source values.
Every row is shown below and is also available as CSV, JSON, or Excel.
Dataset details
- Table scope
- All 12 rows
- Fields
- 6 columns
- Data updated
- Feb 14, 2026
Included fields: Name, Period Active, Regions Connected, Primary Goods, Length (km, approx.), and 1 more.
The table contains every record in this dataset; the same records are available in each download format.
Preview observations
- Length (km, approx.) range
- 242 to 15,000
- Across 12 preview rows
Useful for
- Comparing Name, Period Active, and Regions Connected across history entries
- Building reference tables, charts, or analyses from 12 downloadable records
Name↕ | Period Active↕ | Regions Connected↕ | Primary Goods↕ | Length (km, approx.)↕ | Historical Significance↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Silk Road | c. 130 BCE – 1453 CE | China – Central Asia – Persia – Middle East – Mediterranean Europe | Silk, spices, porcelain, gold, gems, paper, gunpowder | 6,400 | The most famous overland trade network in history; facilitated the exchange of goods, religions (Buddhism, Islam, Christianity), technologies, and diseases between East and West |
Spice Route (Maritime) | c. 3000 BCE – 16th century CE | Southeast Asia – India – Arabia – East Africa – Mediterranean | Pepper, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, frankincense | 15,000 | Drove the Age of Exploration; Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands built colonial empires to control the spice trade |
Trans-Saharan Trade Routes | c. 300 CE – 16th century CE | West Africa – North Africa (across the Sahara Desert) | Gold, salt, slaves, ivory, textiles | 2,200 | Fueled the wealth of West African empires (Ghana, Mali, Songhai); spread Islam across the Sahel region |
Amber Road | c. 3000 BCE – 500 CE | Baltic Sea coast – Central Europe – Mediterranean (Rome, Greece) | Amber, furs, salt, bronze | 2,000 | One of the oldest European trade networks; connected prehistoric northern Europe to Mediterranean civilizations |
Incense Route | c. 7th century BCE – 2nd century CE | Southern Arabia (Yemen, Oman) – Egypt – Mesopotamia – Mediterranean | Frankincense, myrrh, spices | 2,400 | Made the kingdoms of southern Arabia (Saba, Nabataea) fabulously wealthy; Petra was a key hub on this route |
Grand Trunk Road | c. 3rd century BCE – present | Kabul – Peshawar – Lahore – Delhi – Kolkata (across South Asia) | Textiles, grain, gems, horses, military supply | 2,700 | One of the oldest and longest roads in Asia; rebuilt by Sher Shah Suri in the 16th century, it connected the breadth of South Asia and was critical to Mughal, Sikh, and British administration in Pakistan and India |
Tea Horse Road (Chamadao) | c. 6th century – 20th century CE | Yunnan/Sichuan (China) – Tibet – Southeast Asia | Tea, horses, salt, medicinal herbs | 4,000 | Ancient trade network through some of the world's most rugged terrain; crucial for supplying tea to Tibet and horses to China |
Salt Route (Via Salaria) | c. 7th century BCE – 5th century CE | Rome – Adriatic coast of Italy | Salt, fish, olive oil | 242 | Essential to the Roman economy; soldiers were sometimes paid in salt (origin of the word 'salary'); one of Rome's oldest roads |
Tin Route | c. 2500 – 500 BCE | Cornwall (Britain) / Iberia – Mediterranean (Phoenicia, Greece, Egypt) | Tin (essential for bronze), copper, lead | 3,000 | Enabled the Bronze Age by supplying tin for bronze alloy; connected prehistoric Britain to the ancient Mediterranean world |
Via Appia (Appian Way) | 312 BCE – 5th century CE (used for centuries after) | Rome – Brindisi (southeastern Italy) | Military supply, grain, trade goods, mail | 540 | Called 'Regina Viarum' (Queen of Roads); first and most strategically important Roman road, enabling rapid troop deployment and commerce across the republic |
Hanseatic Trade Routes | c. 12th – 17th century CE | Northern Europe: Baltic Sea – North Sea – Scandinavia – England – Flanders | Furs, timber, fish (herring, cod), grain, beer, cloth, amber | 3,500 | The Hanseatic League (centered on Lübeck) created one of the first international trade alliances; dominated Northern European commerce for 400 years |
Maritime Silk Road | c. 2nd century BCE – 15th century CE | China – Southeast Asia – India – Persian Gulf – East Africa – Red Sea | Silk, porcelain, tea, spices, ivory, precious metals | 15,000 | The oceanic counterpart to the overland Silk Road; spread Chinese, Indian, and Islamic maritime technology and culture across the Indian Ocean world |
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Frequently asked questions
How is Historical Trade Routes organized?
The table starts in the source data's order. Community voting is enabled as a separate approval signal beside eligible rows; votes do not replace the source values.
How much data is available on this page?
This dataset contains 12 entries, and every row is available in the table and in the downloadable files.
Can I download the complete dataset?
Yes. CSV, JSON, and Excel downloads contain all 12 rows. Before republishing the data, review the source and any usage terms listed on this page; dtbse does not replace the original source's licensing terms.
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