The Silver Way: China, Spanish America, and the Birth of Globalisation by Peter Gordon

The Americas Society hosts this book’s launch in a conversation between the author, Spain’s Consul General in New York Rafael Conde de Saro, Mexico’s Consul General in New York Diego Gómez Pickering and AS/COA Vice President Eric Farnsworth.

Long before London and New York rose to international prominence, a trading route was discovered between Spanish America and China that ushered in a new era of globalization. The Ruta de la Plata, or Silver Way, catalyzed economic and cultural exchange, built the foundations for the first global currency, and led to the rise of the first “world city.” And yet, for all its importance, the Silver Way is too often neglected in conventional narratives covering the birth of globalization. Gordon and Morales reestablish its fascinating role in economic and cultural history, with direct consequences for how we understand China today.

Peter Gordon, editor of the Asian Review of Books, has lived in Hong Kong since 1985. A tech entrepreneur, he has been active in international trade and investment consulting, as well in literature and culture. He writes regularly for the Hong Kong and Asian regional press on politics, culture, tech, and other subjects.

Speakers

• Rafael Conde de Saro, Consul General of Spain in New York.
• Diego Gómez Pickering, Consul General of Mexico in New York.
• Peter Gordon, author of The Silver Way.
• Eric Farnsworth, Vice President, Americas Society/Council of the Americas.