I need to now what trade was like back in the ancient times?
2006-11-29 05:23:30 · 4 answers · asked by george d 1 in Arts & Humanities ➔ History
The first forms of trade can be traced back to the Barter system where trading was done with goods and live stock, animals etc. There were generally accepted standards such as e.g. one cow is equal to 2 goats. Such barter system trade lost its importance as many problems arose from it such as the lack of fixed standards and inability to possess and keep stock of many goods. Therefore the concept of token money (cash which has no intrinsic value i.e. the cost of the paper or material to print and make cash money and coins basically cost nothing) evolved few hundred years ago.
2006-11-29 05:28:03 · answer #1 · answered by elspringster 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Trade was busy in ancient times. Just because they didn't have TV or the Internet or CDs or I Pods didn't mean they didn't like the good things of life. The Romans and Greeks were trading with the island of Britain long before the Claudian invasion - they wanted the tin from what is now Cornwall among other things. And there was trade all around the Mediterranean - the Phoenicians were the greatest sailors and traders, moving out from their original home in the Near East to found Carthage in North Africa and New Carthage on th Iberian peninsular. They grew to rival Rome which led to the Punic Wars - Hannibal and his elephants etc. There was a thriving trade in corn from Egypt to Rome. Spices came to the Empire from as far away as India and possibly China. And trade predated the Romans by hundreds of years - do not forget the psalmists words when speaking of Babylon 'the great city' whose 'merchandise was of gold and silver, of precious stones, .......and the souls of men' (meaning slaves, traded throughout the ancient world) The suggestion in some answers that all this was barter may be true to a certain extent but coins were being used well before the Romans in Celtic Europe
2006-11-29 13:45:07 · answer #2 · answered by rdenig_male 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They did not use, except for Roman Empire, currency to trade. They would trade products for 1 or more product like I would negotiate a trade let say 4 sheep for a sturdy wagon.
2006-11-29 13:30:38 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
well its kinda the same now, we exchange money for something we want, well they traded something of equal or greater value for something they wanted or needed
2006-11-29 13:32:38 · answer #4 · answered by sarah 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋