|
|
| |
|
| The rise and fall of the Roman Empire coincides fairly closely with The Silk Road's traffic, roughly 100 BC to 400 AD. The demands of an increasingly wealthy population in the empire increased demand for exotic goods from faraway places.
Italy was the last stop at the western end of The Silk Road where goods were taken by ship from the great ports of Asia Minor and Palestine.
Silk became the most coveted and pricey textile in Rome and some historians claim the Romans' profligate spending on the gossamer stuff helped bring about the fall of their empire, while their rivals to the east grew rich on the trade.
|
| |
Rome was the centre of the Roman world and the largest market for the silk, porcelain, spices and gems from the East. The place surrounds you with history; Roman, early Christian, Renaissance and baroque monuments are everywhere, with the Vatican City as the pinnacle of a visit. Venice was for hundreds of years the trading centre for the western end of The Silk Road and became rich on the lucrative trade. Today, the faded yet enduring grandeur of 1,500 years of architecture mixed with the famous traghetto gondola rides along the miles of canals create a magical destination. Genoa, the home town of Christopher Columbus, has a seafaring heritage going back to the heyday of The Silk Road. Its long and rich past has provided a city full of medieval cathedrals, glorious palaces and Renaissance fountains. Florence is known as 'the jewel in the crown of Renaissance Italy', having been the home of such distinguished artists as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael. For several hundred years it has served as a centre of artistic excellence. Founded by Julius Caesar, the town is laid out in the familiar Roman grid pattern, which makes navigation for the visitor very simple. Within the city's limits, sprawled on either side of the River Arno, the visitor can wander from the cathedral to the famous Uffizi gallery. Florence is small but remarkably beautiful, and owes its early success in part to the trade and exotic goods from The Silk Road. |
|
|
