<P> There was an extensive maritime trade network operating between the Harappan and Mesopotamian civilizations as early as the middle Harappan Phase ( 2600 - 1900 BCE ) , with much commerce being handled by `` middlemen merchants from Dilmun '' ( modern Bahrain and Failaka located in the Persian Gulf ) . Such long - distance sea trade became feasible with the development of plank - built watercraft , equipped with a single central mast supporting a sail of woven rushes or cloth . </P>
<P> There was an extensive maritime trade network operating between the Harappan and Mesopotamian civilizations as early as the middle Harappan Phase ( 2600 - 1900 BCE ) , with much commerce being handled by `` middlemen merchants from Dilmun '' ( modern Bahrain and Failaka located in the Persian Gulf ) . Such long - distance sea trade became feasible with the development of plank - built watercraft , equipped with a single central mast supporting a sail of woven rushes or cloth . </P>
when did the indian ocean trade route began
when did the indian ocean trade route began
as early as the middle Harappan Phase ( 2600 - 1900 BCE )
as early as the middle Harappan Phase ( 2600 - 1900 BCE )