What do you notice about the Mediterranean? Can you see anything that might make the Mediterranean important for trade?

Here are a few things you might notice if you look carefully at a map:

• The Mediterranean Sea connects three continents: Europe, Africa and Asia
• The Mediterranean Sea links many important ports on those continents
• The Mediterranean Sea provides access to the Atlantic Ocean through the Strait of Gibraltar
• The Mediterranean Sea provides access to the Adriatic Sea and the Balkan Peninsula
• The Mediterranean Sea provides access to the Black Sea through the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmara, and the Strait of Bosporus
• An easy way to transport them.

But look again at your map. We've seen how the Mediterranean allowed traders to travel to the west (the Atlantic), the east (the Black Sea), and the north (the Adriatic Sea). But what about the south? How could travelers on the Mediterranean get to the body of water along Africa and Saudi Arabia, the Red Sea?

There isn't a natural strait or river or other waterway between the Mediterranean and Red Seas. But you can certainly imagine why travelers would like to be able to take this route. So, people created a new water route themselves: the Suez Canal.

The Suez Canal stretches for 101 miles through Egypt to connect the two seas. It was completed in 1869. Unlike the Panama Canal, which we studied last year, the Suez Canal does not contain any 'locks' or water elevators. It is completely flat and level.

The Suez Canal as we know it has only been open for about 150 years. But people have dreamed about a Suez connection for many thousands of years. In fact, scientists believe that the first canal in the area was dug nearly 4,000 years ago. That small, ancient canal was expanded during the Roman Empire, but later filled in to prevent soldiers from traveling easily through the area.

Hundreds and hundreds of years later, French explorers came to Egypt, took over, and decided the time had come for a canal. The canal took ten years to build. When it opened, ships started using it immediately, but only about two ships a day passed through it. People in the 1870s may have wondered if the long dream of a Suez Canal was worth it for such a small number of ships!

The Suez Canal became more and more popular, however. Today, it moves many ships carrying oil from the Persian Gulf, as well as other types of cargo.

The Boomerang Box passed through the Suez Canal on its journey from Italy to Shanghai. Can you trace its route?

Check out past Trade Topics entries!