EPISODE · May 28, 2026 · 7 MIN
The Chola Empire's Lost Fleet: The Vanished Trade with Egypt and Rome
from The Chola Empire: How South India Dominated the Indian Ocean — Fexingo History · host Fexingo
Long before the Cholas sent embassies to Song China, their predecessors on the Tamil coast were trading directly with the Roman Empire. This episode follows the archaeological trail of a lost world: Roman gold coins found in Tamil Nadu, Muziris the emporium on the Periyar River, and the Tamil Sangam poems that describe Roman ships docking at Indian wharves. We explore why this trade collapsed in the 3rd century CE, severing a link that had connected South India to the Mediterranean for four hundred years. Along the way we meet the Yavana merchants, the Chera kings who controlled the pepper route, and the Egyptian papyrus that mentions an Indian ambassador to Augustus. It's a forgotten chapter in globalisation — South Asia's first great overseas trade network, centuries before the Chola navy. #CholaEmpire #Muziris #RomanTrade #TamilSangam #Yavana #PeriyarRiver #CheraDynasty #Augustus #IndianOceanTrade #AncientGlobalisation #PepperTrade #SouthIndia #Pattinam #Kodungallur #RomanGold #HistoryOfTrade #FexingoHistory #AncientEconomy Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
What this episode covers
Long before the Cholas sent embassies to Song China, their predecessors on the Tamil coast were trading directly with the Roman Empire. This episode follows the archaeological trail of a lost world: Roman gold coins found in Tamil Nadu, Muziris the emporium on the Periyar River, and the Tamil Sangam poems that describe Roman ships docking at Indian wharves. We explore why this trade collapsed in the 3rd century CE, severing a link that had connected South India to the Mediterranean for four hundred years. Along the way we meet the Yavana merchants, the Chera kings who controlled the pepper route, and the Egyptian papyrus that mentions an Indian ambassador to Augustus. It's a forgotten chapter in globalisation — South Asia's first great overseas trade network, centuries before the Chola navy. #CholaEmpire #Muziris #RomanTrade #TamilSangam #Yavana #PeriyarRiver #CheraDynasty #Augustus #IndianOceanTrade #AncientGlobalisation #PepperTrade #SouthIndia #Pattinam #Kodungallur #RomanGold #HistoryOfTrade #FexingoHistory #AncientEconomy Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo
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The Chola Empire's Lost Fleet: The Vanished Trade with Egypt and Rome
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