"Day in the life of a bronze age trader "
Characters: Dalton and John
Date: 5500 B.C.
I swung the heavy leather bag over my back as I was exiting my sturdy, old wooden house. I walked over to the caravan and carefully placed it in the back. "It's about time we finished loading the caravan, let's get going Dalton" said my father, John, eagerly. We were going to a nearby market to trade some goods. "First we must stop by the blacksmith before we go, I heard bronze tools go for a high selling price at the market place." I reminded him." Okay, let's get going!" said my father. I hopped on to the small bench that was in the front of the caravan. My dad whipped the mules with a rope and they started going. While we were going I saw a few things. I saw a group of women and men gathering and planting wheat and other plants. It looked like a tough job, they were all sweating and looked exhausted. After about another five minutes of traveling I saw a group of men in ragged clothes digging. They were slaves that had been ordered to dig more canals. These canals are important because they bring water from rivers and lakes, into the inner parts of the city. Finally we arrived at a blacksmith that was near the market place. We hopped off and went in. I have always found the job of a blacksmith interesting. They buy or gather bronze items or ore that was unwanted. They then heat the bronze and wait until it is very flexible. They then bend the bronze until they make it into a certain shape that can do a certain job. We bought a few tools that could be used for farming and some for cutting through hard objects. We then headed off to the market.
When we arrived at the market, it was really crowded and there were people yelling. We waited and unloaded our things so we are ready for customers. A young-looking man came up and asked if we have any harvesting pots and tools. Immediately my dad and I unloaded a few clay and brick pots and some different tools. He said that he would trade some slabs of goat meat for 4 pots and 3 garden tools. My dad accepted and took the slabs of meat. We waited and more customers came. After a while a woman came asking if there was any jewelry for her younger daughter. "Certainly!" I responded. I got out some jewelry. She said she liked the bracelet with a piece of quartz at the end of it. About three hours later a man came and asked if we have any pots for carrying water from one place to another. My dad took out some clay pots and said that it was the most durable clay you could find. "I don't have anything I could trade though... I know! I could trade you my finest goat for two pots," he said. My dad agreed.
On the way back I was looking through all the things we had gotten and remembered what we had sold. We ended up selling all of the bronze tools. We sold around 12 pots and 7 different jewelry pieces. I looked up at the sun. It was about to set and you could see a hint of the moon. Our caravan later passed by a man with a crowd around him. He was giving a speech about new laws from the government. When we were about to arrive home a man yelled at us. He was on a caravan with other goods on it. He waved at us. He was another trader passing by. He said he loved a vase that we received from trading some bronze equipment. "I will trade you this unique tool I found in a nearby village for that vase," the man said. He handed us the tool. I examined it's weird shape. It cuts meat faster and easier. We ended up trading it. At the end of day we returned home with many new things to keep and others to trade tomorrow.
When we arrived at the market, it was really crowded and there were people yelling. We waited and unloaded our things so we are ready for customers. A young-looking man came up and asked if we have any harvesting pots and tools. Immediately my dad and I unloaded a few clay and brick pots and some different tools. He said that he would trade some slabs of goat meat for 4 pots and 3 garden tools. My dad accepted and took the slabs of meat. We waited and more customers came. After a while a woman came asking if there was any jewelry for her younger daughter. "Certainly!" I responded. I got out some jewelry. She said she liked the bracelet with a piece of quartz at the end of it. About three hours later a man came and asked if we have any pots for carrying water from one place to another. My dad took out some clay pots and said that it was the most durable clay you could find. "I don't have anything I could trade though... I know! I could trade you my finest goat for two pots," he said. My dad agreed.
On the way back I was looking through all the things we had gotten and remembered what we had sold. We ended up selling all of the bronze tools. We sold around 12 pots and 7 different jewelry pieces. I looked up at the sun. It was about to set and you could see a hint of the moon. Our caravan later passed by a man with a crowd around him. He was giving a speech about new laws from the government. When we were about to arrive home a man yelled at us. He was on a caravan with other goods on it. He waved at us. He was another trader passing by. He said he loved a vase that we received from trading some bronze equipment. "I will trade you this unique tool I found in a nearby village for that vase," the man said. He handed us the tool. I examined it's weird shape. It cuts meat faster and easier. We ended up trading it. At the end of day we returned home with many new things to keep and others to trade tomorrow.
Really nice and interesting story. The fact that you gave so many details was really good because I understood better the story and how they leaved. Good job!
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