Spice trade

The spice trade has been of major economic importance throughout human history and it particularly helped spur the Age of Exploration. The word spice derives from the Latin 'species', which in its later history came to mean goods or products, often of small volume and high value http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1291548,00.html. Spices brought to Europe from distant lands were some of the most valuable commodities for their weight, sometimes rivaling gold.

History of the spice trade

Spices have been prominent in human history virtually since its inception. In ancient times spices were used for magical rites and spells, purification ceremonies, embalming, cosmetics and perfumes, medicinal benefits and even poison as well as cooking, preserving and flavouring food.

Related Topics:
History - Ancient times - Magical - Spells - Purification - Embalming - Cosmetics - Perfumes - Medicinal - Poison - Cooking - Preserving - Flavouring

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Spices were some of the most valuable items of trade in the ancient and medieval world. This was primarily as a result of the lack of refrigeration and poor standard of hygiene that meant that food often spoiled quickly. As a result of human evolution, our sense of taste tends to dislike food that is "off", as these foods tend to have a higher chance of being poisonous. In order to mask these flavours, spices were in huge demand in the Europe in the High Middle Ages.

Related Topics:
Evolution - High Middle Ages

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In the Bible, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers to spice merchants. In the biblical poem Song of Solomon, the male speaker compares his beloved to many forms of spices.

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Bible - Joseph - Song of Solomon

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The pepper trade reached its first peak under the Roman Empire. In the last remaining cookbook from Latin antiquity, the De re coquinaria of Apicius, pepper appears in 349 of the 468 recipes, including dormice stuffed with pepper and nuts http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1291548,00.html. The trade survived the collapse of the western Roman empire and, when it was revived, carried associations of ancient luxury and civility.

Related Topics:
Pepper - Roman Empire - Cookbook - De re coquinaria - Apicius - Dormice - Nuts

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As with all trade in ancient and medieval times, the spice trade strongly influenced patterns of settlement along its routes. Whether by land routes or coastal sea routes, travel occurred one day at a time, with a stop for the night, resulting in a chain of settled way stations, many of which became towns or cities. (Braudel, 107)

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In the Middle Ages (roughly 700-1000 AD), the spice trade was largely controlled by Muslim or Gujarati merchants, according to Abu'l Qasim Ubaid'Allah ibn Khordadbeh, with European merchants confined to trading mostly within Europe. The spices that were most popular with Europeans at this time included: cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and pepper. Cinnamon came from China and Burma (it was used not only for flavour but also for cosmetics, drugs, balms, oils, and perfume). Nutmeg came from the Banda Islands. Cloves came from only two islands: Ternate and Tidore in the Moluccas (south of Indonesia) - sometimes known as the Spice Islands. Pepper was grown exclusively in India, although there were inferior substitutes to be found in other places. Pepper was used extensively in cooking but was also used as a tonic, a stimulant, even as insect repellent and an aphrodisiac.

Related Topics:
Middle Ages - Muslim - Gujarati - Abu'l Qasim Ubaid'Allah ibn Khordadbeh - Europeans - Cinnamon - Nutmeg - Cloves - Pepper - China - Burma - Cosmetics - Drugs - Oils - Perfume - Banda Islands - Ternate - Tidore - Moluccas - Indonesia - Spice Islands - India - Tonic - Stimulant - Insect repellent - Aphrodisiac

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Marco Polo's expedition to China was also an attempt to open up a "spice route" with the East. Spices were the primary reason that Portuguese navigator Vasco Da Gama sailed to India. Around that same time, when Christopher Columbus happened upon the New World, he was quick to describe to investors the many new spices available there.

Related Topics:
Marco Polo's - Portuguese - Vasco Da Gama - Christopher Columbus - New World

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