Three legendary routes have been particularly influential: the Silk Road, the Spice Route, and the Incense Trail. Established to transport exotic merchandise, they also carried new ideas, technologies, and religions vast distances. As pathways of conquering armies and armadas, they helped shape the history of the world. In Silk, Scents, and Spice, adventurer John Lawton retraces the world's greatest trade routes. Through journeys across the steppes, deserts, mountains, and oceans of Asia, Europe, and the Far East, his book recalls the glorious past of these storied passages, documenting the legacy of art, architecture, and religion they left behind. The Incense Trail linked the aromatic growing regions of Arabia with the incense-craving empires of antiquity, including Egypt, Babylon, and Rome. The Silk Road stretched some 7,500 miles across the mountains, deserts, and steppes of Central Asia, joining the markets of China with those of Europe and the Middle East. Along it two of the world's major religions —Buddhism and Islam —were spread, and basic technologies including printing and papermaking were transferred. The Spice Route, a network of sea lanes that joined Europe, India, and the Orient, created intense international rivalries over the lucrative trade of Southeast Asian spices. The search for their source sent Columbus across the Atlantic and Magellan around the globe. Lawton vividly recounts his adventures and discoveries during a series of land and sea expeditions across the globe. Filled with fascinating historical details, descriptions of exotic locales, and breathtaking photographs, Silk, Scents, and Spice reveals the importance of these ancient trade routes —not just in the past, but for societies and cultural identities throughout the world today.

Hide more