The Spice Trade

So the Europeans have to trade with Asian countries to get spices. The 2 continents are connected by the Ottoman Empire (in the Middle East) lied between them. Of course this empire would tax whatever trade is going through their land. After a while, the Europeans can’t afford to keep the Ottoman Empire happy with the tax, so they decided to explore a sea-route to get to these Asian countries.

With the ever emerging civilizations in numerous parts of the world, food aided in linking them together. Food-trade routes acted as inter-boundary communication networks that improved not just commercial exchange but religious and cultural exchange as well. Spice routes that spanned the ancient world resulted in cross cultural fertilization in fields which were very diverse, similar then to the fields of architecture, religion and science. The first geographers began to take interest in people and customs from far away places and put together the first efforts at world maps. But by far the biggest change caused by food trade was as a result of the European need to avoid the Arab spice domination. The result of this was the revelation of a new world, the establishment of first colonial outposts by the European nations and the opening of maritime trade routes

European crave for spices was immense. It would drive merchants to seek out trade routes. The Colombian Exchange which commenced after Colombus landing in America, was the exchange of goods, resources, and ideas between the New World and the Old World. From Europe, Asia, and Africa many different species of animals were brought into the lives of Native Americans in the New World. Cattle, pigs, and horses being some of the most influential. Sugar and Coffee would also tremendously impact the lives of Native Americans as the remaining amount that survived small pox disease would be to work in the fields cultivating these popular crops. A few crucial plants that came from the New World were the cacao bean, as Europeans would begin to develop a liking for chocolate and other consumer goods later on, the highly addictive Tobacco would be dispersed though out the nation as well. This exchange system would prove to be a huge turning point as Spain, Portugal and later England, France, and the Dutch would come out to take their piece of this new land. Compared to 1517 these discoveries would change the lives of just about every European for the better, as it was the nobles who funded the expeditions for the search of new goods by intellectual men, rather than the blind following that happened with the Protestant leaders that would

The first Colonial currency was issued in 1690 by the Massachusetts Bay Colony, while America was under British rule. Other colonies began to issue their own paper currency, and use of the denominated in Spanish Milled Dollars, Colonial notes were also denominated in British shillings, pounds, and pence. In 1764, the British declared Colonial currency illegal. The Continental Congress in 1775 issued currency to help finance the Revolutionary War. These notes were called “Continentals,” had no value in gold or silver. The Continentals were backed by the “anticipation” of tax revenues, though easily counterfeited and without solid backing, the notes quickly became devalued. This period marked the first time that United States currency’s value was derived solely from its purchasing power, as it is today.

“Another important trade route known as Incense Route, was controlled by the Arabs, who brought frankincense and myrrh by camel caravan by South Arabia.”(Document D)

Columbus lied about his discoveries. Thereupon, Columbus arrival to the Bahamas and found some islands. Columbus went back to Spain to share the good news of what he had found. “Columbus’s report to the Court of Madrid was extravagant. He insisted he had reached Asia (it was Cuba) and an island off the coast of China (Hispaniola). His descriptions were part fact, part fiction.”4 Columbus knew that he had not discovered the Indies, but these islands had been never discovered before for other sailors, when he went to Spain and said that he discovered the Indies, there was no doubt that Columbus was a liar that committed a lot damages just for fame and wealth.

Pepper, saffron and sugar were popular commodities in sub continental trade, and even rice traveled as a trade item

Prior to the excavation of Berenike the peppercorn trade with India had only been observed in literary sources (Sidebotham 2011:224). Over one thousand peppercorns were found during digs which attests that huge quantities of peppercorns must have been being shipped through Berenike from India. While throughout most of the Roman Empire spices like peppercorns were considered luxury goods that only the elite could afford, the quantity and dispersal of peppercorns in Berenike indicates that this was most likely a commodity in the city (Cappers 1999:196). This is a good example of how the value of items increase as they are traded down the line, decreasing in quantity and increasing in price as they travel further away from their

Returning crusader knights brought not jewels, but cinnamon, ginger, and peppercorns after exploration. The story of spices about 5000 years old, is also the history of trade and commerce. The American continent want to break the Arab traders' spice monopoly in European, then the spice route has been discovered. “Along the Spice Route” exhibit is based on the background and show art products about it from 41 artists. "Along the Spice Route" features 41 wall quilts depicting artistic interpretations of spices that refine

Vasco da Gama's revolutionary sea expedition to India is one of the most crucial moments in the entire history of exploration. Till the middle of 15th century, Portugal was the foremost seafaring country in Europe. King Manuel I: the ruler of Portugal hired about four ships for the voyage around Africa to the legendary land of India. King Manuel I knew that India was a huge cradle of variety of spices, which were extremely rare to see in other places and moreover they were pretty expensive in Europe. The king had also noticed that the Muslim merchants transported the spices by caravans through Arabian deserts and sold them in the markets of the Mediterranean ports. King Manuel I expected a new sea route to India, as that would enable him to import spices directly. This achievement was very important for Portugal as they could trade and earn money a lot of money from it. India was filled with spices: Pepper was a very common and the most used spice, it was used to preserve food and to flavor spoiled meat. Pepper was originated from Cochin and Malabar Coast in India. Cloves and cinnamon were equally used. They were used for keeping the food hygienic and ventilated. They were also sprinkled across the floor to avoid foot odor from entering the room. Many spices were also used for the cure of various illnesses and deadly diseases. India was the foremost spice trader for most of the countries including Europe.

The ancient trade routes along the Rhone and Saone river valleys have been travelled upon throughout the centuries, bringing spices and ingredients which are used in the local cuisine.

(pepper tea 74). Places like Molucca, or better known in those days as the “Spice Islands”, were also apprehended by Dutch conquest. Mollucca was known for its spices like cloves, nutmeg and mace that grew specifically in those areas. The way that the Dutch had secured their spice monopoly in these small islands was to set up fortresses and make sure that they were not attacked. Another practice they used was to send locals and other officials out around the archipelago to burn all other trees that carried these spices in order to maintain their status as the only producers of these products.

​From multiple points of view, the history of spices industry is in the history of humans and global commerce. The use of spices in food, cosmetics, and embalming can be traced back to ancient Egyptians around 3000 B.C. In the course of time, Spices’ demand increased and trade were spread out from Africa and Asia to the Middle East, Mediterranean and Europe. The influence of spice trade was able to determine the rise and fall of nations based on each country’s trading position. In March 1602, the World’s first publicly traded company best known as United East India Company was created as a result of essence and expansion of the spice trade. After that, the spice business continued to grow in the 20th century and by 2001 there were over 150 spice manufactures in the United States.

This commodity chain analysis focuses on the red gold spice: saffron. The spice is known to be more expensive than gold, with high values at $2,000 per kilogram (Iran Daily). It high price has landed saffron in the category of a ‘luxury good’. Although saffron is grown in many countries, the most interesting saffron geographically is Iran. It’s widely known that the value and cost of this particular spice is connected to the strenuous labor of cultivation, but there are more explanatory variables that contribute to the market price. Popular angles determining cost and value on commodities, such as a labor and supply-demand, are often discussed. This paper, however, will explore the political angle of price determination. Due to a political agreement between major countries to place Iran on an economic hold, Iran is forced to pursue alternative means of trade for many goods; trades of which other saffron producing countries are not subjected to. The large distinction on how Iran exports its red gold to a foreign consumer base affects the country’s economy and the market price of saffron. Where the cost and value grows during the commodity chains lifespan will be unraveled through the production, marketing, and consumption.

price mechanisms that we have today, like the spice and silk trade routes, but they were peripheral. These markets were usually only used for luxury goods or things that could not be gotten from within the community and society could operate without them (Flomenhof 99). So without principals of supply and demand to dictate price points of goods, economic stability and unity was sustained through the three principals: reciprocity, redistribution, and householding. In his book he explains these principles based off the exchange systems in the Trobriand Islands of Western Melanesia (Polanyi 47). Reciprocity, Polanyi explains, was a system in which the exchange of goods is based on the social conventional that if you give to someone else they will eventually give back, thus the exchange is reciprocal (45). This required a certain degree of economic symmetry which Polanyi explains in terms of husband wife relations. There was a division of labour between the husband and wife in Trobriand Islands, “the male provides for his sister and family by delivering the finest specimen of his crop” (Polanyi, 48) thus in exchange he is rewarded by his wife in her support of the home and child rearing. In this exchange there is equal value placed on both relationships and they work in symmetry. On a macro level reciprocity works in that a community would work to produce something to then be gifted to other groups (Polanyi 55). In order for this to properly function however the principle of