The Silk Road went from China to Eastern Europe．It went along the north of China，India，and Persia and ended up in Eastern Europe near today's Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea．

    It was called the Silk Road because one of the major products traded was silk cloth from China．Chinese silk was soft and of high quality．So people throughout Asia and Europe loved it very much． （1）　　．Even the Romans called China the"land of silk"．

    Besides silk，the Chinese also sold teas，salt，sugar，porcelain（陶瓷），and spices．Most of the goods was expensive．This was because it was a long trip and traders didn't have a lot of room for goods．They bought goods like cotton，ivory，wool，gold，and silver．

    Traders traveled in large caravans．They would have many guards with them． （2）　__　Most of the road was through dry land．So camels were popular animals for transport．

    Although there was some trade between China and the rest of the world for some time，the silk trade developed quickly during the Han Dynasty which ruled from 206 BC to 220 AD． （3）　　During this time the Mongols controlled most of the trade road，and Chinese traders travel safely．Also，traders had a higher social position during the Mongol rule． （4）　__　It not only helped to develop trade between different countries，but also helped for ideas，culture and inventions to spread across the world．

A．The Silk Road was important． B．The Chinese sold silk for thousands of years． C．The Silk Road was full of wealth as well as danger． D．Traveling in a big group like a caravan helped in protecting themselves． E．Later，under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty，trade China along the Silk Road was fully developed．

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