Middle Eastern traders visited the West long before Europeans traveled East

Evidence

Another major motive for travel is trade. That is probably the oldest of all, going back to remote antiquity, and here by the way Middle Eastern travelers visited the West long before westerners ever visited the Middle East. We know for example that the Phoenicians went as far as Cornwall, where they were in­ terested in the tin mines, and of course to Spain, Marseilles and other places. Trade, unlike some other forms of economic activity, was strongly approved by the Islamic tradition. It is praised in the Qur’an, and the honorable merchant is an almost idealized figure in Muslim tradition, particularly in the Hadith, the sayings attributed to the Prophet. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 761

Categorization

Category: Factual Claims

• XREF: Connects to my ongoing interest in history of trade institutions (Milgrom’s law merchant, Champagne fairs) — trade as foundational to cultural contact, here from a Middle East-centric angle.
• SHARE: The Phoenician tin trade reaching Cornwall fits the reader’s known interest in ancient trade routes and institutions.

Related

• Western Europeans first encountered West Africans only through Muslim intermediaries. (similarity 0.82)