Camel caravans have long populated the image that we have of Muslim world, but I've recently learned that, up until Roman times, they weren't as commonplace and/or as important as they became after the Arab conquest of most of the Middle East and North Africa in the 7th century.
One of the scholarly sources that have taught me this is the paper "From Baghdad to London: The dynamics of urban development in Europe and the Arab world, 800-1800", which states that the Arab world focused much more on overland trade than sea trade, with most major Muslim cities being located quite inland compared to the former Roman metropolises, like Cairo in Egypt (in place of Alexandria) and Damascus in Syria (instead of Antioch):
>For cities in the Muslim world we do not find this: the sea coefficient is negative, implying that location at sea does not give cities a clear advantage over their landlocked counterparts: indeed, the really big Muslim cities such as Baghdad, Damascus, Cairo and Cordoba are inland (Istanbul is a notable exception here, but it became a Muslim city only in 1453). Also Muslim cities with good access to roman roads are not larger than others. In contrast, being a hub of caravan roads has a strong positive effect pointing to the importance of transport on camel-back in the Arab World.
Instead of old Roman roads or ports, caravan hubs became an indicator of prosperity. Sea trade only mattered in the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean being a relative backwater for the Muslims:
>This appears to have been less the case in the Arab world. Indeed, the Arabs largely replaced the predating Roman system with one of their own, founding many new cities from scratch. As a result, the effect of Roman roads and of (arch)bishops is much smaller (and insignificant). Instead, we see a strong influence of caravan hubs indicatin
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Anyone know where I could buy a wagon (like a radio flyer/little red wagon style) in the Bushwick/East Williamsburg area? I know you can find granny carts at most discount stores but I'm hoping for something longer with lower sides.
Carcinoma and car cinema ink our cinnamon carts in Oman.
Hello there!
My name is Timothy Bowerbert. I'm a 26 year old young Jewish man living in Lower East Side neighborhood of the city of New York.
I am a coachman. I bought my horse & wagon four years ago, right after finishing my time in public school in 1899 ( I learnt how to speak English & present myself with elegance ). I have gradually, with hard work & good reputation, gathered enough generous private clients living in Midtown around Times Square.
Although I am quite flexible with the delivery jobs I would take, majority of it is delivering groceries & household necessities or taking the children of my clients on a evening ride around the block. I am paid a generous ride-fee & minimum monthly on-call retainer fee.
I now manage to make more than 80 bucks every month, almost half of which I have been saving. This is almost a third lesser than the 110 bucks that I was making last year, every month.
My plan has been to expand my business by buying two more horses & wagons & hire my two cousins (both of whom currently work in sweatshops for a measly monthly salary of 55 bucks).
Side Note: The sweatshop jobs are brutal. I could never take such a degrading job for myself, taxing to the mind & degrading to the human soul. That is, I believe what became the force of drive behind my entrepreneurial choice of work for earning a decent living with dignity.
Here's is the most-recent photograph of one of the streets where I work : https://imgur.com/oiVxXrb
Now that you have a good knowing of my situation, let me come to the burning matter for which I have borrowed your valuable attention.
As if the competition in horse-cart delivery business wasn't already cut-throat in our city, I don't fail to notice how these automatic future-wagons are becoming more & more common every month on our city streets. They are a nuisance to us coachmen. But my fear is not about the nuisance they cause to the pedestrians & coachmen alike. It's much more grave than that. I see they travel faster & the mechanical horse under their hood doesn't get tired, doesn't sleep, doesn't die. It only drinks fuel.
They seem to me as producing more work for less maintenance & overall much lesser expenses for transportation purposes.
For now they are mostly confined to wealthy neighborhoods with their owners partaking in leisurely strolls. But is it too much speculation to think that soon these
... keep reading on reddit ➡Edit: comment below made me realize I should specify: I meant something like the iconic 1800's-(ish?) wagon that you would see in the game Oregon Trail and several movies. Not 1960s wagons
I saw the truck that backed into your car. I didn't get license plate but I saw the company. PM me for details. Include colour, shape and placement of sticker on your rear window
EDIT I'm glad this post gives everyone the opportunity to think about exactly what they would do better in the exact same situation
X posting this from the Montgomery County sub.
Hi all! I'm taking a job in Silver Spring early next year. Moving from Los Angeles with my SO and our fur babies. Any advice on a good place to live? Would like to keep our rent below $2k for a 2 bed (SO works from home and needs an office). Never spent any time in the area so I'm a bit nervous about landing in a neighborhood where I have to worry about her walking the dog at night by herself. I'm a super social person so also hoping to connect with chill people to hang out with! Thanks in advance!
Camel caravans have long populated the image that we have of Muslim world, but I've recently learned that, up until Roman times, they weren't as commonplace and/or as important as they became after the Arab conquest of most of the Middle East and North Africa in the 7th century.
One of the scholarly sources that have taught me this is the paper "From Baghdad to London: The dynamics of urban development in Europe and the Arab world, 800-1800", which states that the Arab world focused much more on overland trade than sea trade, with most major Muslim cities being located quite inland compared to the former Roman metropolises, like Cairo in Egypt (in place of Alexandria) and Damascus in Syria (instead of Antioch):
>For cities in the Muslim world we do not find this: the sea coefficient is negative, implying that location at sea does not give cities a clear advantage over their landlocked counterparts: indeed, the really big Muslim cities such as Baghdad, Damascus, Cairo and Cordoba are inland (Istanbul is a notable exception here, but it became a Muslim city only in 1453). Also Muslim cities with good access to roman roads are not larger than others. In contrast, being a hub of caravan roads has a strong positive effect pointing to the importance of transport on camel-back in the Arab World.
Instead of old Roman roads or ports, caravan hubs became an indicator of prosperity. Sea trade only mattered in the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean being a relative backwater for the Muslims:
>This appears to have been less the case in the Arab world. Indeed, the Arabs largely replaced the predating Roman system with one of their own, founding many new cities from scratch. As a result, the effect of Roman roads and of (arch)bishops is much smaller (and insignificant). Instead, we see a strong influence of caravan hubs indicatin
... keep reading on reddit ➡