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/ How the World Works - Illustrated Facts / How The World Works Illustrated Xiphias.ISO / mac / Common / v5 / 50seq1.mov (.mp4) < prev    next >
Apple QuickTime movie  |  1993-09-10  |  4.1 MB  |  720x480  |  29.97fps  |  48 seconds  |  [MooV/TVOD]
Transcription: Vast cargos were unshipped and placed on the backs of mules to win their way to the place appointed for the fair. After the fall of the Roman Empire European commerce fell back into barter and the long trade routes went unused. In the 11th and 12th centuries huge fairs came into being, instant towns with as many as 50,000 merchants and moneylenders, fortune tellers and jugglers. Nijny Novgorod in central Russia was a marvel. Begun in the 14th century as a religious festival, it prospered at this intersection of rivers and caravan trails. It survived as a major marketplace until the 20th centur ...