The expansion and integration of the Mongol empire under Genghis Khan (1162–1227, on the left in the picture), which for a time touched the eastern edge of Europe, promoted the caravan trade within Asia in the 13th and 14th centuries.
Sayf al-Vâhidî, Genghis Khan (1162–1227) and Toghril Ong Khan, 1430, in: Rashîd al-Dîn Fazl-Ullâh / Djâmi' al-Tavârîh: Supplément persan 1113, fol. 105; image source: Bibliothèque nationale de France, http://mandragore.bnf.fr/jsp/switchExpert.jsp?division=Mix&desc=toghril.ong.khan&idDesc=11918.