1. Where do you think Bishop found the information for this chapter, and what are the strengths and weakness of the sources he may have consulted? The information was most likely taken from records kept by travelers and from Portolanos, or an atlas for travelers that was kept during the Middle Ages. Many of the paragraphs were mainly lists of items that were traded. Only a merchant would have known such detail about the items that were traded. Also, some information could have came from church records. Since the common person was illiterate, the educated people were most likely monks. This would make sense because a lot is described about textiles and other trades; the ordinary person would not write about these things, if they could. The sources are strong because they can be trusted to be accurate and unbiased. 2. What do you predict our challenges will be as we delve into this time period? …show more content…
As most of the people were most likely illiterate, records were probably not necessary, so they were not kept. Also, the author also says, “News was spread by chance encounters and recorded also by chance.” If an important event happened far away, chances are you probably would not hear about it. 3. Describe the factors that led to the expansion of trade in the medieval period. Trade blossomed during the Middle Ages is because life became stable. During that time, they were no longer in danger of being attacked, so they did not spend as much time fighting or trying to make ends meet. The stability the people had enabled them to develop farming techniques and to improve the technology they had. As a result, most people had their basic needs meet, and instead had a surplus of goods. By trading, they were able to get what they wanted, while receiving what they did not have. 4. Describe the challenges that the merchants faced as they traveled within and around Europe and its neighboring