In historical literature, Novgorod has sometimes been perceived to act as a middleman in the trade between the Hanseatic League and the Golden Horde. Unfortunately, neither archaeological evidence nor written sources bear out this perception to any extent. Instead, trade between Novgorod and the Horde was apparently much more limited. The paper examines various political, economic, and geographic causes for the relative paucity of the city's trade with the East. It also notes the positive legal precedent set by Mongol iarlyks on Novgorod's trade relations with the Russian Grand Princes, as reflected in the city's charters.