The trade business was beginning to get seriously hot. The items that were beginning to emerge were of spices, textiles, precious stones, and metals of gold and silver. It seemed as though the big countries wanted to get their hands on these items as soon as possible and as much of it as well.
There were voyages that would last some three years, as for Vasco de Gamma from Portugal sailed from 1497-1499. He would encounter the eastern waters and lands and embark onto African territories. Some of the commerce that he encountered were of desired spices. Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves to name a few. But the most prized spice was the black pepper. In the east, there were more goods to look for. Some were Chinese cotton, Indian cotton, special medicines, and of course elegant semi-precious stones were highly popular.
During this time, Europe had overcome the devastating Black Death of the 14th Century. At this time, the population of people in Europe was beginning to turn around and flourish along with its kings and queens. The European countries such as England, France, Portugal and Spain were all standing tall with their powerful military backed up with guns, and weapons.
It seemed as though that the rich markets were based more on the Eastern side than in Europe, however. This meant that the Europeans were encouraged to either pay in cash or in metal such as gold or silver for products being purchased.
Later in Manila, the capital of the Philipines, the Spanish would take shipments taking the silver to the mines of Bolivia, and Mexico. This would mark the first trade of the eastern/Asian and the Americas commerce. Having silver meant you could buy something of high value. One could purchase the desirable Chinese silks and porcelain. There was a huge demand for silver now. Many Chinese, Portugese and Dutch people alike were exchanging their valuable merchandise for silver. With silver, one could even purchase a slave.
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