The Spice Routes
Bark, bud and seed worth more than their weight in silver.
Nutmeg and cloves grew on a few islands in the Moluccas, and for centuries nowhere else. Pepper came from the Malabar coast, cinnamon from Sri Lanka. Arab, Gujarati, Chinese, Venetian, Portuguese and Dutch merchants all built fortunes, and sometimes empires, on carrying them.
NL·0123 · Piperaceae
Black pepper
Piper nigrum
NL·0086 · Lauraceae
Ceylon cinnamon
Cinnamomum verum
NL·0108 · Myristicaceae
Nutmeg
Myristica fragrans
NL·0110 · Myrtaceae
Clove
Syzygium aromaticum
NL·0175 · Zingiberaceae
Green cardamom
Elettaria cardamomum
NL·0077 · Iridaceae
Saffron crocus
Crocus sativus
NL·0176 · Zingiberaceae
Ginger
Zingiber officinale
NL·0174 · Zingiberaceae
Turmeric
Curcuma longa
NL·0115 · Orchidaceae
Vanilla orchid
Vanilla planifolia
NL·0137 · Ranunculaceae
Black seed (Black cumin)
Nigella sativa