The correct answer is option d: merchants
In grammar rules, an antecedent can be identified in a sentence because it is later replaced by a pronoun. An antecedent also refers in a sentence to something that happened in the past.
In the sentence provided as an example, the Venetian 'merchants' is the noun that is later replaced by its respective pronoun (theirs). The verb brought also tells us it was something that happened in the past.
The core of the sun is so hot and there is so much pressure because something called nuclear fusion takes place. hydrogen is changed to helium. Nuclear fusion creates heat and light