de-facto Contemporary of Jesus Christ provided text that survived as primary historical source today because it functions as an authentic, first-hand logistical guide for ancient merchant mariners across the Indian Ocean Region and how it interfaces with Egypt
<~40-90 AD, an anonymous Egyptian-Greek author, probably from Berenice on the Red Sea coast, wrote a navigational manual, Periplus Maris Erythreae (Navigation of the Indian Ocean). He described Indian market towns on the Maiabar Coast, mentioning Pondicherry and Madras, and Ceylon. The Ganges River was characterized as a trading center for spikenard, pearls, and muslins and was linked to Bactria by an overland trade route down which came raw silk, silk yarn, and silk cloth from China. The Malay Peninsula was reputed to have the best tortoiseshell in the Indian Ocean. The Hou Han Shou, the annals of the younger Han dynasty, recount how musicians and jesters from Rome arrived in about AD 120 and performed in front of the Han emperor. Such descriptions suggest that ties of trade had existed for many years within Asia and between Asia and the Mediterranean world.>
Note that even Foundational Achaemenid Persian Dynasty as first order of business focused on grand public works with direct-immediate impact on trade-welfare, such as resurrecting a canal-link between Red Sea and Nile River; and thereby standing-up an Ancient de-facto Suez Canal linking Indian Ocean to Mediterranean Sea
technically, Ultra-Long-Distance Trade Routes are ULTRA Ancient, going way further back than even our “Oldest” survived Source Attestations
<🇵🇹><Portugal><Indo-Pacific FILO>
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Portugal was “Trail Blazer” of Maritime Ultra-Long Haul, by rounding 'Cape of Good Hope' (South Africa)
Portugal immediately established a Chokepoint Strategy to control Indian Ocean Trade from Hormuz to Malacca, with base operations off the west coast of India
Portugal went on to establish a colony in South China at Macau
Remarkably, Britain exited India (Independence) and China (Hong Kong Handover); yet Portugal remained at Goa in India and Macau in China
Portugal was the 'First-In' via Vasco Da Gama to reach the “Indo” and then establish “Indo-Pacific”
and ‘Last-Out'
Portugal blazed the path for waves upon waves of rival Europeans who would come to establish a presence across the Indo-Pacific as such 👇🗺️ by 1815