Publisher's Synopsis
Gujarat's port cities, 'gems in the necklace of the coast', were vital hubs which enabled connections with other cities and other cultures across the Indian Ocean and beyond, including the Mediterranean and the South China Sea. Through them Gujarat's exports like cotton cloth, handicrafts, indigo dye, saltpetre and a host of other products flowed out. Imports came in from around the world, and included ivory from Africa, spices from South-East Asia, and bullion--gold and silver. These cities, cosmopolitan in their outlook, also acted as cultural centres attracting traders and scholars from far away. Port Towns of Gujarat offers new insights on cost-hinterland connections, urban morphology, port cities and littoral societies, the role of Gujarat in the Indian Ocean and data on the history of Gujarat, the Indian Ocean, and the many great port cities on India's northwest coast. With contributions by subject specialists who have worked extensively on port cities, and who provide new and innovative perspectives, this book will appeal to historians, urban geographers, economists and other social scientists.
