Thematic Bible: Extensive commerce of, in solomon's reign

King Solomon also built a fleet of ships at Eziongeber. This is near Elath on the shore of the Gulf of Aqaba, in the land of Edom. King Hiram sent experienced sailors from his fleet to serve with Solomon's men. They sailed to the land of Ophir and brought back to Solomon about sixteen tons of gold.

For the king had Tarshish-ships at sea with the ships of Hiram. Once every three years the Tarshish-ships came with gold and silver and ivory and apes (monkeys) and peacocks. King Solomon was greater than all the kings of the earth in wealth and in wisdom. They came from all over the earth to see Solomon and to listen to his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. read more.
Everyone took presents such as vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and robes, and coats of metal, and spices, and horses, and beasts of transport, regularly year by year. Solomon gathered war-carriages and horsemen. He had one thousand, four hundred carriages and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he kept, some in the carriage-towns and some with the king at Jerusalem. The king made silver as common as stones in Jerusalem and cedars like the sycamore-trees of the lowlands in number. Solomon's string of horses came from Egypt and from Kue. The king's traders got them at a price from Kue. A war-carriage might be obtained from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. They got them at the same rate for all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Aram.