All language subtitles for Ancient.Powers.S01E03.Making.Money.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-FLUX_track4_[eng]

**

Thousands of years ago,

ancient powers ruled our world.

**

Egypt, China, India,
Greece, and Rome,

players in a high stakes
game of strategy and luck.

Success will bring them wealth
and immortality, failure...

oblivion and death.

In their battle for survival,
each civilisation

will face
the same challenges.

How they respond
will shape their destiny.

**

In this episode, "Making Money,"

when wealth means strength,
our ancient powers

must get rich
by trading their treasures

and monetising their assets.

Who will succeed
in the world of commerce?

**

Our ancient powers have overcome
their latest challenge.

**

They have built their empires

and left permanent marks
on the landscape.

Now they face
their next great test,

and one civilisation
seems to have a head start.

**

**

After suffering a century
of rebellion and war,

Egypt has recaptured its lost
territories in the south.

It is the beginning
of the New Kingdom.

Now they have peace,

and they want their empire
to flourish.

But how can they achieve this?

**

Egypt is often thought of
as a gift of the Nile,

but in fact it's actually
a gift of the desert.

The New Kingdom kings knew that
they have a special resource.

The unique geology
of the eastern desert

and Nubia provided veins of gold
throughout the rocks.

This nation is lucky.

There are rich sources
of this rare metal

right across the country.

The ancient Egyptian pharaohs

would go to these mining sites,

they would break through
the rocks

and get these precious
bits of gold,

bring it back to the capital

to produce some of the world's
most beautiful artefacts.

These golden objects

lie at the very heart
of their beliefs.

Gold was a religious, important,
symbolic material.

The gods' skin
were covered in gold.

The gods were literally
made out of gold.

So for the king to cover
his own body in gold,

it was to become divine,
to become like the gods.

The ancient Egyptians
love this precious metal,

and they have more
than even a pharaoh could need,

so they plan to use it
to get even richer.

**

They knew
no one else around them

had the gold that they did,

so they used their gold
to set up political networks,

and this gold was used
as a trading pawn.

Everyone was desperate
for Egyptian gold.

The pharaohs knew it,

and they made it work
to their advantage.

This wealth gives them
the upper hand

when they start to barter
with their neighbours.

Gold became the currency

for the ancient Egyptians
abroad.

With gold, pharaohs could buy
whatever they wanted.

They swap their gold
for practical necessities

like wood, tin,

and luxuries like silver.

In this letter written on clay,

the king of Cyprus
strikes a deal

with Egypt's pharaoh,

asking for a list of goods
including jars of fine oil,

linen, horses, and, of course,
prized Egyptian gold,

in return, he's sending the
pharaoh 100 talents of copper.

**

The Egyptians have
become tycoons

in the world of ancient trade,
powerful players

who are happy to bend
the rules to stay ahead.

And there's one
particular instance

where a Near Eastern ruler
was very upset

because he was promised gold,

and in return he got wood
plated in gold.

**

These kind of slights
were upsetting,

and these rulers let the pharaoh
know exactly how they felt.

How dare the pharaoh cheat him?

Sharp practise
is all part of the game.

But with gold for sale,

the Egyptians are
never short of buyers.

Wealthy beyond
their wildest dreams,

all they want to do now
is flaunt it.

**

In 1323 BCE,

the 19-year-old King Tutankhamun

dies suddenly
and is laid to rest.

**

His tomb will lie undisturbed
for the next 3,000 years

until, in 1922, it's discovered

and its riches revealed.

I see gold everywhere.

This is a fantastic image.

It shows the sheer scale of
things that were in Tut's tomb.

There's chariots
pushed against the wall

and there's just furniture
and stuff everywhere,

and most of the goods
in Tut's tomb

were gilded in gold.

**

This royal tomb
contains over 5,000 items--

wine, clothing, beds,
chariots, and weapons,

and the most famous
Egyptian relic of them all.

Here it is, this is
the artefact of Tutankhamun,

the one that we all know.

This is gold. Gold, gold, gold.
It's gold and gems and glass.

It's opulence, wealth.
It's the power of the pharaoh.

It's his entire empire
manifested in one artefact.

Weighing in at over
10 kilograms, Tutankhamun's mask

is a truly international object.

The gold is mined in Egypt,
but the intricate decoration

comes from across
the ancient world.

Lapis lazuli from Afghanistan,

glass, revolutionary
new technology from Mesopotamia,

and black obsidian
from Ethiopia.

It's a powerful symbol
of the wealth of ancient Egypt

and the value of trade.

Gold made Egypt
a powerful trading nation,

but it also enabled them
to make some of

the most beautiful
things we've ever seen.

**

Gold allows Egypt
to enter a golden age.

**

Across the Mediterranean,
another ancient power

isn't quite so lucky

and must find
a different route to riches.

**

**

Greece is ruled by
the Mycenaeans.

**

Based on the mainland,
their territory

stretches out across the islands

into modern-day Turkey.

They have natural resources
of their own--

olives, wine, and wood,
but unlike the Egyptians,

they haven't yet discovered
a wealth of valuable metals

in their homelands.

With few precious goods
to trade,

how can they make money?

**

In their search for an answer,
they turn

to the place
they know best, the sea.

**

3,500 years ago,

a ship is sailing
across the Mediterranean.

It's a single-masted
cargo vessel,

15 metres long
and 5 metres wide.

**

It's very interesting.

We know everything about the
Mediterranean from that ship.

**

There are at least
two Mycenaeans on board.

We know this because we found
some personal artefacts

which are two Mycenaean swords

and some Mycenaean pottery.

And we all know that Mycenaeans,
they are big seafarers.

**

The ship is carrying
precious luxuries

including
exotic blue-coloured glass

alongside rare and valuable
hippopotamus and elephant tusks,

some fashioned
into precious objects.

There are some cosmetic boxes
made from ivory.

These duck shaped boxes.

It's a very interesting piece.

And it's very beautiful.

There are also
prized ostrich shells,

along with fine weaponry,

intricate pottery,
and gold jewellery.

**

The Mycenaeans on board
are escorting

these goods from port to port,
overseeing deals

and bringing wealth
back to their homeland.

But it's not just exotic items
this ship is carrying.

**

They were carrying copper
and tin ingots

to western parts of the world.

They are the ingredients
to making bronze

so it is very important,

if you don't have copper
or tin ingot,

you can't make bronze.

There were hundreds of amphoras
on this ship.

They were carrying mostly
olives and some wines.

So it's a very huge cargo.

**

Transporting 20 tonnes
of goods worth a small fortune,

this ship is crisscrossing
the whole Mediterranean.

**

They are trading
with each other.

They are taking copper
from Cyprus

amphoras from Syria

and tin from Iran
or Afghanistan.

And they were carrying to
western parts of the world

mostly Aegean.

It's an import-export business

that enriches everyone involved,

but it's also risky.

**

Sailing just off
the Turkish coast,

this treasure-filled ship sinks

and spills its cargo
across the sea floor.

**

The Greeks on board don't
survive to enjoy their profits,

but many others do,

bringing exotic luxuries
back to Mycenae,

making themselves a fortune

and creating the richest kingdom

in this corner
of the ancient world.

**

The Greeks use their mastery
of the seas to broker deals

and to build
their ancient power.

Nearby, Rome's enormous empire
gives it an advantage

in the world
of international trade.

**

**

Just over seven centuries
after the city was founded,

Rome's first emperor, Augustus,
takes control.

He rules a vast state that
stretches from Gaul's west coast

all the way to the Syrian border
in the east,

almost three million
square kilometres,

home to more than
50 million people.

This avaricious empire is
getting rich by taxing everyone

and everything it now controls,

and the citizens
of its capital city

are consuming all the bounty
of its territories.

**

So this is Monte Testaccio.

You could mistake it
for one of Rome's many hills

but there's one
major difference.

This hill is not natural.

**

When you visit a site like here,
you can't help but appreciate

the volume of goods
coming into Rome,

tonnes and tonnes
of goods every single day.

**

Towering 54 metres high

and covering over 20,000
square metres,

this mound is
a massive Roman rubbish dump.

It's entirely made up
of clay fragments,

pieces of amphorae,

the trading pots
of the ancient world,

all used for just one product--

olive oil.

Olive oil seeps into the clay,

and it becomes rancid.

You don't wanna reuse this.

What you do is you discard it.
You put it away somewhere.

And this is our hill
for the discarded amphorae.

The Romans
are getting through

7 million litres of oil
every year,

all imported
from far beyond their city.

We know these amphorae
came from southern Spain.

Southern Spain was crucial for
the olive oil supply in Rome.

**

Rome's million-plus
inhabitants are super consumers.

Alongside the Spanish olive oil,

they're eating grain from Egypt,

drinking wine from Gaul
and Greece,

they're using timber, marble,

tin, glass, leather,
and much more besides.

Rome is a monster devouring

everything it can get
its teeth into,

but this greed is a problem.

How can Romans transport
all these goods

into their growing city?

Without a solution,
they will go hungry.

**

In 42 CE,

this city puts its faith
in an ambitious plan,

a building project
like no other.

25 kilometres away on the coast,

they begin construction
on a gateway

to their vast empire that grows
and expands over 60 years.

**

This is Portus, a mega harbour

and at its heart,

a massive hexagonal dock.

**

Today it looks like
a nature preserve here.

2,000 years ago, it would've
been incredibly different.

The level of engineering here
can barely be appreciated.

Built of waterproof concrete,

a Roman innovation,

this vast port holds
350 ships all at once.

**

Enormous buildings,

the warehouses
that lined the six sides.

This was a massive,
massive endeavour.

**

Every day,
ships from all over the empire

offload goods onto its dockside.

But this harbour only solves
part of Rome's import problem,

because shifting this vast
quantity of goods demands

a distribution network
of the same enormous scale,

so the Romans keep on building.

At 150 hectares, Ostia is the
largest remaining Roman site

anywhere in the world.

**

This entire city was
built for one purpose,

and that was
to serve the port.

This is a monument
to the Roman economy.

Ship owners, traders,
tax inspectors,

warehouse and dock workers make
this bustling city their home,

30,000 people who all play
their part in making Rome rich.

**

We have a large plaza
around us.

On three sides,
61 rooms frame it.

And we would have no idea about
the function of these rooms

if not for these mosaics.

**

These mosaics
act as hoardings

for the huge variety
of goods traded here.

Ears of wheat indicate
imported grain,

an elephant, ivory
or exotic animals,

and ships and a lighthouse,
timber for boats.

At the height of Ostia,

this would've been similar
to a Wall Street.

All these deals being made,
yelling, money exchanging hands,

goods exchanging hands,

all sorts of things
to continue this

ongoing trade that was
so necessary to supply Rome,

to feed Rome, and this is really
the business end.

This is where it happens.

If we could have seen the city
in its heyday,

I think we would've been stunned
at the grandiosity of it.

**

The Roman empire
grows wealthy

off the back
of its vast territory.

But far to the east,
another ancient power

is producing something that will
change ancient trade forever.

**

**

The Han dynasty have ruled
for over a century.

Their vast territory
and abundant landscape provides

copper, gold,

and everything else
they require.

They have little need to trade
beyond their borders.

But these riches are a target
for nomadic horsemen

who constantly raid
their territory.

The Great Wall is being
constructed to defend their land

but the Hans' emperor,
Wu, wants to go on the attack.

The problem is he can't
do this alone.

**

The emperor needs allies

and sends his diplomats west
to find them.

But they face a gruelling
and dangerous journey

thousands of kilometres
across the vast Gobi Desert.

What they need is a safe route
and accommodation along the way.

So Wu orders the construction
of over 80 posthouses.

**

The Xuanquan Posthouse was
an important post house.

It is a 50 metre by 50 metre
complex.

In the north is the office area.

And in the west is chuen-she,

which is the accommodation area.

And on the corners are
the corner towers,

providing security,

there is also the jiu-qu

where horses are kept.

**

For the entire
Xuanquan Posthouse

The staff stationed here
were over 40.

These post houses
stretch along a route

from the Hans' capital

all the way
to their western border,

1,700 kilometres away.

**

Wu now has a diplomatic path
to the edge of his empire.

**

From the east,
the Xuanquan Posthouse

received Han diplomats,
officials,

princesses who are
to be married off

and their entourage.

From the west, it received
the kings of western kingdoms.

But these diplomatic routes

also bring other
unexpected visitors.

Traders carrying exotic goods
from the west.

The goods exchanged
on this route

were livestock,
in particular horses and camels.

Animals such as peacocks,
and lions,

and animal pelts

grain

grapes

walnuts and much more.

Emperor Wu
has unknowingly opened

the door to a vast new market,

and the Chinese have something
very special to trade.

To grow, these caterpillars
eat their way

through mulberry leaves.

But to transform into moths,

they spin cocoons
around themselves.

For millennia, the people here

have carefully unwound
these filaments

to weave them into the world's
strongest natural fabric--

silk.

Its production has always been
a cottage industry,

but now the Han
industrialise it,

making more and better silk
than ever before.

When it came to the Early Han,

the scale of silk production
was huge.

There were many people
weaving it.

Apart from the official
workshops,

there were private workshops,

and some professional workshops,

that made very high-end silk.

Organic and delicate,

very little ancient silk
survives.

**

But one remarkable
treasure trove

still exists thanks
to a unique burial.

In 168 BCE, Xin Zhui,
a Chinese noblewoman, dies.

She is buried within
four nested coffins.

These are covered
with five tonnes of charcoal

and sealed with clay.

This airtight tomb
miraculously preserves

a stunning collection,

some of the most
intricate silk ever created.

**

The Mawangdui tombs yielded
a lot of fabric,

including padded robes,

skirts, gauze gown, silk shoes,

pillows and pillow covers.

They not only include
a wide variety,

but also their weaving technique
is to a very high standard.

The Mawangdui embroideries
also have

a wide variety of different
colours and types.

We analysed them
and there are over 20 colours.

So the craftsmanship
is really fine.

In the ancient world,
Xin Zhui's silk dresses

are unparalleled
in workmanship

and even today are
almost impossible to re-create.

I've been working in the silk
industry for 41 years.

When I see the silk
of Mawangdui tomb,

as someone working in silk,

I do feel a bit ashamed.

When have better tools,

but we cannot achieve this.

How could the ancient people,

make something so delicate?

**

The masterful
Han silk makers weave

an amazing 120 threads
per centimetre

in a technique called zhijinxiu.

We couldn't make it perfectly
without flaws,

so we made just 10 metres.

And it took one worker a year
to complete it.

Seeing the silk of Mawangdui

I am really touched, because our
ancestors are truly remarkable.

Han silk is beautiful
and practical.

It's also wildly expensive.

Over 3,000 cocoons are needed
to produce one kilo of fibre

and hours
of painstaking labour

to transform
that fibre into fabric,

making it the ultimate luxury
item of the ancient world.

**

And because it weighs just
a few grams per square metre,

it's also perfectly suited
to long-distance trade.

**

The Han pack their silk
onto the backs of camels

and send it out
on their brand-new trade route.

**

The precious cargo heads west

for over 8,000 kilometres,

far beyond Han territory,
through central Asia,

the Middle East,
all the way to Europe.

**

China's prized fabric gives
its name to this vast network,

The Silk Roads.

And when this luxury fabric
reaches the eternal city...

the Romans go crazy for it,

at one point paying over
$100,000 worth of gold

for just one kilogram.

**

The Hans' monopoly over
silk production

catapults them to prime position
in the world of ancient trade.

**

A winning combination
of the perfect product

and a new trade network
brings the Chinese huge wealth.

To the south, India is also
looking to cash in

on lucrative
Mediterranean markets.

**

**

Several kingdoms rule
the Indian subcontinent.

There are sporadic skirmishes,

but life is relatively peaceful.

They have a wealth
of natural resources,

staples like fish,
rice, and timber,

and luxuries like ivory
and perfumes.

**

But one everyday product stands
proud and defines their culture.

**

It's early morning here
in Empress Market,

and the air is filled with
amazing aroma of spices,

the treasures of India.

**

It smells so good!

Could you please pack 125g

of this as well
without breaking it?

125g?
Dad, pack 125g of this please.

- Thanks.
- Thank you so much

In ancient times, India
used to grow a lot of spices,

like nutmeg, cloves,
cinnamon, ginger,

not just for their flavour

but also for the medicine
benefit and offerings to God

because they were so special.

They're so important
for Indian culture

that one cannot sum up
their benefits

in just one line
or one paragraph.

**

Readily available within India,

for the rest of the world,
spices are a rare luxury.

**

For thousands of years,
small quantities

have been trickling out of India
along the local coastline,

but now resourceful traders
have expanded their market

using the new Silk Roads

to carry spices to the east
and west.

The problem is that
these land routes are slow,

and spices have a shelf life.

The Indians need a faster way
to get them to market.

**

It took months
or maybe years to get there,

so they had to come up
with some alternate way,

and that's when they started

looking towards
the ocean or the sea.

But the sea routes
here are dangerous.

The waters around
Indian subcontinent,

they have quite a character
of their own.

They can be very tricky
because of the winds

and the harsh weather
and especially monsoon.

Monsoon is unforgiving,
it's treacherous,

it makes it almost impossible
to navigate.

**

Even today,
sailing these tricky waters

around modern day Pakistan
requires expert local knowledge

passed down from
ancient ancestors.

**

They used to keep track
of the seasons

and went fishing
in good weather.

And they knew the quickest
routes to the fishing spots.

Navigating at night
was also important.

They used to travel following
the pattern of the stars.

They know about them all.

How they rise there
and set there.

They used the constellations in
the night sky to find their way.

Sailors here
are masters

of navigating these wild seas,

tracking the monsoon winds
like clockwork,

using them to sail rapidly
across the Indian Ocean

to North Africa and Arabia.

But only a handful of boats

are successfully making
this journey,

so trade is desperately limited.

However, as legend has it,

one sailor's misfortune
changes everything.

**

There's a very famous
story of this Indian sailor,

there was a shipwreck near Egypt

and only one sailor survived.

He was rescued
by the Greek soldiers

living in Egypt at that time.

The stranded sailor
is desperate to get home.

In exchange for a lift,

he offers up
his navigational expertise.

They let him lead the way.
He takes them on a journey

that previously used
to take months or even years,

but the Indian sailor

was able to navigate them
within a few weeks.

He opened India to the rest
of the world

and he opened the world
to India.

Now the fast routes
into India are known,

western traders set a course for
the heart of the spice trade.

**

Traders from all over
the world started coming in

and the Indian subcontinent
became a bustling economic zone.

Something that was previously
important

only locally became important

and significant
for the entire world.

**

As rich Romans
and Greeks

rushed to get their hands
on spices,

they pay for them
with cold, hard cash.

A lot of
Roman gold coins

started coming in
Indian subcontinent,

and they were being traded
in exchange of these spices.

And black pepper became
so popular that it drained

Rome of its gold reserves

and they started
calling it black gold.

**

India has hit the jackpot.

Spices make it rich.

**

Each ancient power
finds their own way

to succeed in global trade
and make some money.

Egypt unearths its most
precious resource,

using it to secure a golden age.

The Greeks use their skills
as sailors

to profit from
international deals.

Rome taxes its
military conquests

and then builds
massive infrastructure

to bring this wealth home.

While India and China
hold monopolies

on uniquely precious products

and send them out
across the world.

The ancient world
is now interconnected

and getting richer.

**

Next...

our ancient powers face
their toughest challenge yet,

defending their wealth
from everyone else.

**