1. Literary Sources for Indo-Roman Trade
2. Numismatics and Indo-Roman Trade
3. What does Archaeology say about Indo-Roman Trade?
4. Articles Involved in Indo-Roman Trade
5. Nature of Indo-Roman Trade
6. Effect of Indo-Roman Trade on Society
7. Conclusion
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Topic – India’s Contact with Rome and its Impact (Notes)
Subject – History
(Ancient Indian History)
Table of Contents
The period around 300 BCE to 300 CE saw a tremendous increase in economic activity, both inside the subcontinent and with other regions. The Roman Empire was one of these key trading partners. Trade between the Indian subcontinent and the Roman Empire in Europe and the Mediterranean Sea is known as Indo-Roman trade. The growth of the money economy aided trade, and the Kushanas and Satavahanas’ issuing of small denomination coins opened the door for the use of currencies for localised small-scale transactions.
Apart from northern coinage, locally produced punch-marked coins, and Roman denarii, die-struck coins from the Chera, Chola, and Pandya kings can be seen in the far south. Although the state issued the majority of the currencies in ancient India, there are a few examples of city coins and guild coins as well.
Literary Sources for Indo-Roman Trade
Initially used to describe the Greeks in ancient Indian writings, the term “yavana” quickly came to be used to describe all foreigners who came from the areas to the west of the subcontinent. The yavanas are depicted in Ashoka’s inscriptions as a people who resided on the Mauryan empire’s northern frontiers. They appear as “westerners” engaged in trade between approximately 200 BCE and 300 CE.Â
- Indo-Roman Trade appears frequently in early Tamil literature. Large ships from the Sangam are described as travelling on the Periyar river, bringing in gold and wine and departing with loads of black pepper in Sangam poetry.
- In a poem from Pattuppattu, the noise generated by Madurai’s weavers is compared to the noise made by people loading and unloading cargo onto yavana ships at midnight.Â
- In a poem by Nakkirar, the Pandya king Nanmaran is described as sipping fragrant, chilly wine provided by the yavanas.
- The Periplus Maris Erythraei (The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea) lists the products that Indian ports on the Gujarat coast and the Indus delta exported to the Roman empire.Â
- The Roman gold flow into India is mentioned by Pliny and Dio Chrysostom.Â
- A loan for the purchase of items including nard (aromatic balsam), ivory, and textiles appears to be mentioned in the Vienna Papyrus, which documents the details of a business contract between two shippers of Alexandria and Muchiri.
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