Silk Road Trade (1340s)

Timeline

1. 1341–1346Samarkand · Silk RoadIn the first half of the 1340s the Yuan Empire exported silk, porcelain, and tea via the Hexi Corridor and Central Asian routes controlled by the Chagatai Khanate, in exchange for horses, gems, and Western Regions goods; cities such as Samarkand and Bukhara remained caravan hubs of Eurasia.
2. 1342–1349Volga–Caspian trade route · Caspian SeaUnder Jani Beg the Golden Horde maintained control of the Volga–Caspian corridor, and its alliance with Mamluk Egypt secured trade in slaves, furs, and luxury goods, keeping the northern Silk Road route strategically and economically valuable in the 1340s.
3. 1347–1350Caffa, Crimea · CrimeaAround 1347 the Black Death spread along the Central Asia–steppe–Black Sea routes; caravans halted, relay stations lost population, and western overland Silk Road capacity shrank sharply, marking the turning point from prosperity to decline in 1340s Eurasian trade.