Spice Trade History

a. stories of
spice & glory

Based on archeological findings dating to the Neolithic era, or the Late Stone Age, humans first used spices as articles of trade as early as the 10th millennium BC. The earliest written record is credited to the ancient Egyptians, who imported ivory, gold and aromatic resins in exchange for spices with a neighboring region that now encompasses northern Somalia, Ethiopia and Sudan.

The Roman Empire would expand existing trade routes in the Arabian Peninsula, eventually making the sea port of Alexandria the spice trade capital of the Greco-Roman world. While the Romans further developed trade with Arabia and India via the Incense Road of Antiquity in the Mediterranean, China controlled the Silk Road, an overland route from India. 

By the 7th century, Arabian merchants would dominate trade routes in the Indian Ocean and eastern Mediterranean. They also opened trade with Southeast Asia, creating a bridge to the remote islands of Molucca and Banda, which became known as the Spice Islands. To safeguard their territories, the Arabs spread rumors that spice-bearing plants and trees were guarded by winged creatures and venomous snakes. Although many lives were indeed lost to thieves and misfortune, these colorful stories only made the acquisition of nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and other spices all the more sweeter—and introduced the world to the adventures of Sinbad the Sailor. 

< Vasco da Gama (c.1469-1524)
by artist Antonio Manuel da Fonseca

By the mid-15th century, Venice became the major player in the spice trade, largely owing to twenty-five years of global travel by Marco Polo. However, the discovery of an alternate route to India by Vasco da Gama in 1498 would shift industry dominance to Portugal that would last through the 1500s.