![]() The most prominent cities of the Old World from the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. | |
Geographical range | Greater Somalia |
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Period | Classical Antiquity |
Dates | c. 300BC–300AD |
Preceded by | Macrobia |
Followed by | Barbaria |
In antiquity, ancestors of the Somali people were an important link in the Horn of Africa connecting the region's commerce with the rest of the old world. Proto-Somali sailors and merchants were the main suppliers of frankincense, myrrh and spices, items which were considered valuable luxuries by the Ancient Egyptians, Phoenicians, Mycenaeans and Babylonians.[1][2] During the classical era, several ancient Somali city-states competed with the Sabaeans, Parthians and Axumites for the wealthy Indo-Greco-Roman trade.[3][4]