What was Traded on Persian Gulf Routes?
Pearls, spices, dates, textiles, precious stones, aromatics, slaves, and a long tail of secondary goods — indigo, ivory, sugar, porcelain, horses — flowing in both directions between India, China, East Africa, Arabia, Mesopotamia, and the Iranian plateau. The maritime trade of the Persian Gulf was, for more than a thousand years, the principal seaborne route between East and West, and the goods carried on the gulf routes were among the most valuable in international commerce.
Pearls
The pearls of the Persian Gulf were, for more than two thousand years, the most valuable single commodity of the gulf trade. The pearl banks of Bahrain, Kuwait, and the Trucial Coast (modern United Arab Emirates) were the most productive in the pre-modern world, and the pearls from these banks were exported to India, China, and the Mediterranean in enormous quantities.
The pearl fishery of the gulf was, in technique, a diving fishery. The divers, typically working in teams of two or three, descended to depths of up to thirty metres on a single breath, with the assistance of a weighted stone and a nose-clip. The divers collected the oysters from the seabed, and the pearls were extracted on the spot or, more commonly, after the oysters had been brought to the surface. The most valuable pearls, the Basra pearls, were those from the banks off the coast of modern Kuwait and southern Iraq. The pearls of Bahrain were of a finer quality, with a particularly brilliant lustre, and they were the most prized in the Indian and Chinese markets.
The pearl fishery was a major source of wealth for the gulf ports. The Portuguese, when they captured Hormuz in 1507, found a flourishing pearl trade in the gulf, and the Dutch and English East India Companies both maintained a presence in the gulf partly to control the pearl trade. The pearl fishery declined in the twentieth century with the development of the cultured pearl industry in Japan, but it remains a traditional activity in the gulf and the pearls are still highly valued.
Spices
The spices of the Indian Ocean and Southeast Asia were another major commodity of the gulf trade. Pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, and mace were imported from India, Sri Lanka, the Malabar Coast, and the Indonesian archipelago, and they were re-exported from the gulf ports to the markets of the Middle East, the Mediterranean, and Europe.
Pepper, in particular, was a major commodity of the gulf trade. The pepper of the Malabar Coast, in modern Kerala, was the most highly prized, and it was exported in enormous quantities from the gulf ports to the Mediterranean. The Roman Empire, in particular, was a major consumer of Indian pepper, and the trade in pepper was a major element of the Roman-Indian maritime commerce. The famous statement of the Roman emperor Tiberius, complaining that the empire was losing too much gold to India in exchange for pepper and other luxuries, is a vivid illustration of the importance of the spice trade.
Cinnamon, cardamom, and other spices were also major commodities of the gulf trade. The cinnamon of Sri Lanka, the cardamom of the Western Ghats, and the cloves and nutmeg of the Moluccas were all imported into the gulf and re-exported to the Mediterranean and the Islamic world. The spice trade was a major source of wealth for the gulf ports, and it was a major element of the trade between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean.
Dates
The dates of the gulf were, and remain, a major commodity of the regional trade. The date palm grows throughout the gulf region, and the dates of Basra, in southern Iraq, were particularly famous. The dates of the gulf were exported in enormous quantities to India, where they were a staple food, and to the markets of the Mediterranean and the Islamic world. The date palm provided not only fruit but also timber, fibre, and a wide range of secondary products, and the date groves of the gulf were, in the pre-modern period, a major element of the regional economy.
The dates of Basra, in particular, were famous. The city of Basra, founded by the Arab caliph ʿUmar I in the seventh century CE, became a major centre of the date trade, and its dates were exported as far as China. The khustawi date, in particular, was a major export, and the date groves of the Shatt al-Arab waterway were the most productive in the region. The date trade of Basra remained important into the twentieth century, and the dates of southern Iraq are still highly valued.
Textiles
The textiles of the gulf were another major commodity of the regional and international trade. The textiles of the gulf region included the cotton fabrics of southern Iraq, the silk fabrics of Iran and Central Asia, and the woollen fabrics of the Iranian plateau. The cotton fabrics of Basra, in particular, were major exports, and the cotton trade of the gulf was a major source of wealth for the city.
The silk fabrics of Iran and Central Asia were also major exports. The Persian carpet and the silk textiles of the Sasanian period were exported across Eurasia, and the silk fabrics of the gulf ports were a major element of the trade with India and China. The Safavid carpets of Isfahan, Kashan, and Kerman were exported in great numbers to Europe, where they appear in the paintings of Holbein, Lotto, and Vermeer.
Precious stones and metals
The precious stones and metals of the Indian Ocean and the Iranian plateau were another major commodity of the gulf trade. The diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds of India, Sri Lanka, and the Badakhshan region of Central Asia were imported through the gulf ports and re-exported to the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and the Islamic world. The lapis lazuli of Badakhshan, in particular, was a major export, and the blue stone was used in the carved decoration of the Achaemenid, Sasanian, and Islamic worlds.
The metals of the gulf region and the Iranian plateau were also major exports. The gold and silver of the Iranian plateau, the copper of Oman, and the iron of the central Iranian plateau were all traded through the gulf ports. The Sasanian silver, in particular, was a major export, and the silver plate and coin of the Sasanian period have been found in tombs and hoards across Eurasia, from the Altai to the Hebrides.
Aromatics
The aromatics of the gulf region and southern Arabia were another major commodity of the regional and international trade. The frankincense of Oman and the Hadramaut, the myrrh of Yemen and Somalia, the aloes of Socotra, and the aromatic resins of the southern Arabian coast were all exported through the gulf ports. The aromatics of southern Arabia were, in the pre-Islamic period, the principal luxury goods of the Mediterranean and the Middle East, and they were used in the temple cult, the funerary ritual, and the court ceremonial of the ancient world.
The frankincense of Oman, in particular, was a major export. The frankincense tree grows in the mountains of southern Oman and the Hadramaut, and the gum resin, harvested by careful tapping of the bark, was exported in enormous quantities to the markets of the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and the Indian subcontinent. The frankincense trade of southern Arabia was a major source of wealth, and the incense road, the overland route from southern Arabia to the Mediterranean, was a major element of the ancient trade.
Slaves
The slave trade was a major element of the gulf trade. Slaves were brought from East Africa, from the southern Arabian coast, from the Caucasus, and from Central Asia, and they were sold in the markets of the gulf ports for use as domestic servants, soldiers, and agricultural workers. The Sasanian state, in particular, made use of African, Indian, and Turkish slaves, both in the royal household and in the army. The slave trade of the gulf was, in turn, an important element of the wider Indian Ocean slave trade, which linked the gulf to the East African coast, the Indian subcontinent, and the markets of South and Southeast Asia.
Other goods
In addition to the major commodities listed above, the gulf trade also carried a wide range of other goods. Ivory, tortoiseshell, and exotic animal products came from East Africa. Indigo, cotton fabrics, and sugar came from India. Tea, porcelain, and silk came from China. Pepper, cardamom, and other spices came from the Indian subcontinent. The horses of central Arabia, the dromedaries of the Arabian desert, and the donkeys of the Iranian plateau were also important commodities. The gulf ports functioned as the great emporia of the Indian Ocean trade, where the goods of half the world were exchanged and re-exported.