The Chinese,with their large and versatile jinks,were the traders who had the most regular and sustained contact with Ayutthaya.The Ayutthaya kings,in order to conduct a steady and profitable trade with Ming and Manchu China,from the 14th to the 18th centuries,entered willingly into a tributary relationship with the Chinese emperors.The Thais recognized Chinese suzerainty and China's preeminent position in Asia in return for Chinese political sanction and,even more desirable,Chinese luxury goods.Muslim merchants came from India and further west to sell their highly-prized clothes both to Thais and to other foreign traders.So dominant were Chinese and Muslim merchants in Ayutthaya that an old Thai law dating back to the 15th century divides the Thai king's foreign trade department into two:a Chinese section and a Muslim section.Chinese,Indians,and later on Japanese and Persians all settled in Ayutthaya,the Thai kings welcoming their presence and granting them complete freedom of worship.Several of these foreigners became important court officials.