Glass trade in Southeast Asia

Glass was brought to China from West Asia around the 5^th century BC, probably via the maritime Silk Road. Shortly after, the Chinese started making their own glass and exported it to Korea and Japan. At the same time, Roman glass arrived in China over the inland and maritime roads. The import of pre-Islamic Sasanian glassware via the desert route was followed by Islamic glass, which reached China both by land and by sea. From the 11^th century, most glass was imported and exported over the maritime road. It remains an open question why, in spite of many references to glass trade in Chinese literature, few Islamic vessels from after the 11^th century have been found in China so far.