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Empires of Ancient Eurasia: The First Silk Roads Era, 100 BCE – 250 CE

In the book’s Introduction, Craig Benjamin writes that, between the 2nd century BCE and the mid-3rd century CE, the Silk Roads linked together many cultures and communities throughout Afro-Eurasia. This is the “First Silk Roads Era,” which, according to Benjamin, “resulted in the most significant transregional commercial and cultural interactions experienced by humans to this point in history.” Benjamin, who is Professor of History at Grand Valley State University and President of the World History Association between 2014 and 2015, is well-qualified to make such an observation.

… Benjamin gives value and meaning to what would otherwise be merely a mass of details.

In addition to the Introduction and Conclusion, Empires of Ancient Eurasia: The First Silk Roads Era, 100 BCE - 250 CE contains nine chapters. In the Introduction, Benjamin outlines his argument and locates the Silk Roads within the broader context of contemporary debates around world history. He points out that, what is commonly referred to as the singular ”Silk Road“ was actually a network of roads. Thus, it is more suitable to call it the “Silk Roads.” In Chapter One, he describes the natural environment along the Silk Roads and explains how pastoralists gradually occupied huge areas of the Eurasian steppe. Chapter Two traces the history of early China from the emergence of the first agrarian community to the appearance of the early dynasties. In Chapter Three, Benjamin picks up the story of the Silk Roads’ origin by following Zhang Qian’s journey from Chang’an, the early Han dynasty’s capital, into Central Asia and back.

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