Greek History

TRADE IN ANCIENT GREECE

During the archaic and classical periods (roughly 800 to 323 BC ancient Greece rose as a major trading power in the Mediterranean building vast commercial networks and a series of trade- and agriculture-oriented colonies throughout the region . Recovering from a long dark age ' when the archaic era began , the Greeks used trade to overcome their limited natural resources and overtook their rivals becoming for centuries a dominant economic power , with trade networks and colonies extending throughout the Mediterranean region onto three continents

When the archaic period

began , the Greeks initially traded mainly the few goods they could produce in abundance for those they could not According to historian Sarah Pomeroy

The leading exports were textiles and metalwork , to which we may add olive oil (both plain and perfumed , wine , hides , leather , and leather products . Fine pottery , jewelry , and other costly items also competed well in the international luxury trade . In return , [the Greeks] imported things lacking in Greece , such as copper , tin , gold , ivory amber , dyes , and spices , as well as foreign varieties of items that they did have Olives and olive oil dominated Greek exports well before the archaic period , particularly after Crete 's forests were clear-cut before 1000 BC and olive trees and grape vines were planted in their place . According to historian Richard Smith , In the Mediterranean world , the importance of the olive can scarcely be overstated . The olive proved to be a nourishing food , and its oil remained the principal edible fat...