The Silver Way: China, Spanish America and the Birth of Globalization, 1565-1815

A discussion with Peter Gordon, co-author of the book “The Silver Way,” Margaret Myers, Director of the China and Latin America Program at the Inter-American Dialogue, and Tatiana Seijas, Associate Professor at the Pennsylvania State University.

Centuries before London and New York rose to international prominence, a trading route was established between Spanish America and China that ushered in a new era of globalization. The Ruta de la Plata or Silver Way began with Andrés de Urdaneta’s discovery in 1565 of the tornaviaje (“return route”), between the Philippines and Acapulco. It soon catalyzed economic and cultural exchange, integrated world financial markets, engendered the first global currency in the Spanish milled dollar, led to the rise of the first “world city” in Mexico, and established Manila as the primary Asian entrepot.

In collaboration with the Mexican Cultural Institute and the Embassy of Philippines, SPAIN arts & culture will host a presentation by Peter Gordon, co-author of the book The Silver Way, Margaret Myers, Director of the China and Latin America Program at the Inter-American Dialogue and Tatiana Seijas, Associate Professor at the Pennsylvania State University.

This is a pre-opening program of the exhibit Shipwrecked! Preserving Our Underwater Cultural Heritage. The exhibit, which will be on show from September 28 through October 29 at the Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain, will present some of the many Spanish shipwrecks that lie just off the North American Coast, illustrating the richness and diversity of our cultural heritage and the need to preserve and transmit it for future generations.