impact of roman/american trade in a " rome discoveries america " scenario

As the title says, in a scenario in which the Roman Empire (let’s say around the early 2nd century) accidentally discovers the American continent (I don’t need the discussion to be about how impossible this is for Roman ships or how Romans lack any motivation to go west please), what would be the impact on history of prolonged trade between the Romans and the native populations of southern and central America? What could be the impact of an earlier introduction in Europe of sweet potatoes, maize, tomatoes and vice-versa? How would the introduction of Roman technology in the New World change its history?
 
Anything you want, really; no discovery affects each time period in the same exact way.
And considering how comparatively little we know of Pre-Columbian America, judging the impact there is extra hard.
 
Assuming you clear away all the significant hurtles of getting Rome to the Americas in sufficient numbers to be meaningful, you can still expect the disease impact on the Americas as in OTL but the romans will not be as capable of capitalizing on that to claim the continent for themselves as the Spanish did. I think the Americas have more to gain in the form of horses, pigs, cows, and possibly even elephants if you build your trade routes via West Africa. Also, you will need to decide which 'Roman' ideals (any idea from the Old World you intend to introduce to the Americas) you want to catch on. Really the hardest part is just establishing the plausibility of enough Romans coming to the Americas to make the trip worth it. After all merchants don't sail for months across the Atlantic lightly when Rome's power bloc is centered in the Med and the land of spice, jewels and gold is still India/China.
 
Would there actually be much trade? If it's gold they want, then sailing to West Africa is certainly easier. Coastal Africans were generally not wealthy or particularly advanced in this era either (at least to my knowledge), so the Romans could still get great deals on gold (although this would mean a bit of a triangle trade where coastal Africans sell slaves to inland states for gold which they sell to Romans for goods). This was already a known trade since Carthage had been involved for centuries.

A huge problem is that to my knowledge, a lot of trading networks in the New World were fairly new in the days the Roman Empire was at its height, which means gold, silver, etc. will be in fairly short supply, if present at all, at the fringes compared to 1492. Maize was still rare north of Mexico, and unheard of beyond the Gulf Coast.

Based on Caesar's reaction to the druids and a general Roman distaste toward human sacrifice, that element found across indigenous American cultures will not be viewed positively, even if to my knowledge it wasn't quite at the scale it was in the later part of the Classic or Postclassic.

IMO the more interesting Roman scenario would be a 4th century one given the Americas are slightly more developed at that point and Rome now has a lot more internal tension and issues like Christianity vs paganism vs Christian heretics to contend with.
And considering how comparatively little we know of Pre-Columbian America, judging the impact there is extra hard.
Archaeology and early writings give us a good clue of the general trends of how regional economies functioned and how they reacted OTL to new items introduced through trade.
 

Concerned Brazilian

Gone Fishin'
Rome wouldn't discover America. Triremes are not suited for ocean navigation, and they would gain little from the relatively simple societies that existed in North America in the first millenium AD.
 
I agree that Triremes are ill-suited for Atlantic voyages, and Rome discovering the Americas is highly improbable. I am taking it as a given, we are exploring how to make it possible, and I won't say it isn't anything but a long shot. Not because of the Atlantic or Triremes, but because Rome is Rome. It is the beating heart of the Republic/Empire and the Med. is it's ring of power. Accident or miracle, you need a very compelling reason to change this. Colonization/new frontier is a non-starter. Rome is surrounded by Terra Incognita in its eyes. Trade- major stretch since Roman money men generally look east to Persia, India, and the ever-elusive China for goods as keys to wealth. Most of America simply can't compete with that thinking. Conquest- also a non-starter. Rome's fighting on every frontier from its birth and its general push will almost always be to the East. I mean how many Roman Generals dreamed of being the 'Next Alexander the Great' and surpassing his accomplishments? Conquering peoples no one has ever heard of just isn't a viable path to power in Rome.
There is one possibility that could possibly change this. What innovations/ change in thinking need to take place in the Americas to create states comparable to Rome and have them cross the Atlantic by accident? the 'unknown enemy' card for Rome would be a very powerful, if short term, draw. There is after all the whole Atlantic problem to overcome. thankfully the Trireme is not the only ship design in the Roman maritime arsenal. Also a highly improbable road, but that's why we're here to explore the 'what-if' regardless of how much not-quite-divine intervention might be involved.
 
The Romans already had the Lateen sails but during the centuries of Roman rule in Iberia nothing resembling a caravel was developed.
 
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