Spice: The History Of A Temptation (2005) - Plot & Excerpts
Spice is an extremely well-researched book covering the origins and uses of spices in European civilization, from classical times through the modern day.To a large extent, the book is focused on those periods for which source material is the greatest. This means that most of the content is focused on the various ancient and medieval applications of spices to culinary, medical and aphrodisiac purposes. This includes a large selection of Latin-language primary sources explaining the use of the Hippocratic system of the four humours to describe the function of various substances. As an example, the Greeks and Romans, and by extension the Arabs and medieval Europeans, believed that the human body contained four humours and that an imbalance of these humours could explain various medical phenomena. Furthermore, all foods and spices, and for that matter, physical environments, favored or promoted different combinations of humours. Thus, similar to Chinese medicine, most treatment for illness consisted of choosing a food which paired with an opposite humour, e.g. hot and dry wine or black pepper sauces to balance wet and cool humours, like those of the lamprey which allegedly brought King Henry of England to his death in 1135:"When he came to Saint-Denis in the forest of Lyons, he ate the flesh of lampreys, which always made him ill, though he always loved them. When a doctor forbade him to eat the dish, the king did not take this salutary advice. ... So this meal brought on a most destructive humour and violently stimulated similar symptoms, producing a deadly chill in his aged body, and a sudden and extreme convulsion." (From Henry of Huntingdon's Historia Anglorum) The logical conclusion then being that stated most simply by Avicenna (ibn Sina):"If the dish is hot, mix it with another cold one; if it is wet, join it with its opposite."Aside from this lengthy exposition on pre-modern dietetics, the book contains a good overview of the history of the trade in spices and European efforts to gain control over them, as well as an extensive discussion of the symbolic and religious context surrounding spices. These sections are probably the most immediately interesting parts of the book, unless you have a pre-existing interest in the medieval food and medical history.One of the most interesting aspects of the final section of the book was how it tied spices to religious practices dating back to the earliest known records of the Sumerians, through the ancient Egyptians, Greek and Roman paganism, and finally early and late Christianity. Although its uses and meanings varied to some extent across this enormous span of time, there is no religion in which the practice of adherents has not been tied to spices in either metaphorical or practical means. All of these add up to a surprisingly intense relationship between the ancient and medieval person and spices, largely baffling to the modern reader. The author attempts to explain how this relationship developed, and does a fairly good job. However, at some point this question is essentially unanswerable, and akin to asking why humans like sweet things or music or a certain palette of colors. Putting aside such concerns, what remains are economic and social factors, such as the relative rarity and expense of spices in the pre-modern era, which meant that aside from aesthetic concerns spices were attractive and valued simply because others before had valued them.If you are interested in classical history or medieval studies, this should be a highly enjoyable work. I would not read this, however, if you are mostly interested in biological or culinary aspects of spices, or looking for a non-European perspective. Caveats aside, this book is a pleasure to read, very well-sourced and valuable for its unique perspective on something most people take for granted. If nothing else, you'll certainly have a lot more strange facts to supply at cocktail parties.
This isn't really a history of spices, or the spice trade- rather it is about the taste for spices. It is also almost exclusively about Europe. That was a little different from what I had expected, but I did really enjoy the book. Turner doesn't really care about where the spices come from or how they got to Europe, what he wants to delve into is how Europeans felt about spices, what kinds of associations and properties were attributed to spices, and how those changed over time. How did a spice like cinnamon go from being a luxury good that had powerful powers attributed to it to this cheap thing we sprinkle on toast? Turner writes about how spices really entered into European consciousness during the Roman era, when the Romans were powerful enough to get a major trading relationship going with India (and places further east). Spices were a luxury, but gradually they seeped down into the middling classes, especially when it came to really special events, like funereal rites and religious rituals. The wealthy ate cinnamon, the middling classes might have been able to afford oils or perfumes with cinnamon for special occasions. Then later, after Rome fell, the European kingdoms still had all these associations with spices but the spices were much harder to get. So at that point ONLY kings and popes and other super wealthy people could have them. Spices developed mystical, magical connotations. So Europeans tried desperately to get the East so they could trade directly and make money from spices, and when they finally achieved this, prices dropped and spices became common and nobody cared anymore. This is also one of those books with all kinds of crazy anecdotes from history, for example, there is a long discussion of preserving bodies and the use of spice in preserving bodies for burial or transport for burial. Then Turner digresses into entertaining but disgusting stories of medieval people trying to preserve important bodies long enough to get come from the Crusades or pilgrimages. Turner writes that one time, this bishop died far from home and his men tried to boil him to preserve the body, but all they ended up with was "bishop stock". Ha ha.
What do You think about Spice: The History Of A Temptation (2005)?
As traders of the old world charted new territory in their quest for spices, Turner explores the reasons why spice ruled both the imagination and the economy for centuries in a heretofore unheard of depth. From pragmatic to mystic, each narrative gives an engrossing tale of how each spice held its power, and its price, as well as how spice’s reign came to an end. The multitude of facts and anecdotes is one of the best facets of Turner’s book; however, the best thing about this book is also the worst. While every section is entertaining, the book lacks a cohesive argument interwoven throughout the whole, which leaves the reader with an appetite for more. Definitely a recommendation, but with a directed focus, would have been 5 stars.
—Amanda
While this micro history is structured in a slightly confusing way, I enjoyed learning about how spice was a part of everyday life for much of history in the Western World. One of the only history of spices books that discussed spices in the ancient world, I learned a lot I didn't know. I also enjoyed looking at spice from not just a cooking and wealth status, but also religious and health. A good read, if a bit of a slog towards the end. I enjoyed reading this micro history and would recommend it over the other spice books I've read for a more comprehensive understanding of spice in the western world.
—Rk Stark
This has been a slow, quiet day and I did not feel like doing anything more than read. After lunch (sushi) and being a sunny day I ventured outside to finish off Spices, with a cup of coffee and a wafer. Turned out to be rather windy though, so had to go inside after finishing the coffee. Well, the sofa in the living room, on which the sun was shining seemed like a good alternative.I have read this book for quite some time. All in all it is an interesting book. The beginning was really exciting when Turner tells us about the quest for spices and the search for India where the spices were supposed to grow. We follow Columbus' several trips to America. He could not be convinced that he had not found India, in spite of the fact that they did not find any spices. They did find chillies which later on became a very popular spice. Vasco da Gamas' route in 1497-99 where they came to Calicut in India and what seems to have been the most dangerous and terrible trip of them all; Magellan's search via the route south of the Americas in 1519-1522. They were all after pepper, nutmeg, ginger, mace, cloves, mace and cinnamon which became, once they found them, an exclusive, priceless commodity.The book is divided in four parts; The Spice Race, Palate, Body and Spirit. We hear the story of how we used spices in the old days. For remedies of the body, for spicing meat and fish which took away the bad smell since meat and fish were not always fresh, as an aphrodisiac, in religion and so on. Even before the great circumnavigations spices were known and used as far back as the old Egyptians, the Greeks and Romans. It is all very scientific, interesting but a lot of references and quotes that sometimes are quite alike. I think he must have included everything there has been written about spices through the ages in this book. Here I could say "less is more" and the book would have been more easy to get through if there had been less quotes and references. However, it is a well written history of spices until the Middle Ages. After that spices became more available and less a rare commodity, prices also went down which made it accessible for more people.Today spices is once again something important, mostly for cooking. We are travelling around the world, we taste other cuisine, we have a variety of restaurants from all over the world around us every day. You realise, when reading this book, which luxury it is to just go down to your super market to buy you spices. As a sample how spices trickles into our life without us thinking more of it Turner mentions the perfume industry; Calvin Klein's Obsession contains nutmeg and clove; Opium by Yves Saint-Laurent has pepper, and there are many other such examples. Ginger, mace and cardamom are all common additives. If we are to take the advertising at face value, then spices remain as seductive as they ever were, even if we are less conscious of the fact.In New York City there is a spice store called Aphrodisia and we all remember Spice Girls. It all goes back to the old notions that spices were good for seduction. Turner finishes with the following story of one of our biggest commodities today; Coca-Cola!Spices may even lie at the heart of modern capitalism's most closely guarded secret. Mark Pendergrast concludes his history of Coca-Cola with a leaked copy of the formula of the world's most popular and symbolic soft drink, which is, it would seem, spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg. Earlier leaks of the formula, while differing among themselves, suggest the same. If Pendergrast's source can be trusted, then it would seem that spices remain as much the favour of the age as they have ever been, albeit in disguise, hidden away in the basement of Coca-Cola headquarters in Atlanta. Is Pendergrast right? It would, one feels, be wholly appropriate.I cannot but agree. What would we do without spices today?Review from my book blog thecontentreader.blogspot.com
—Lisbeth
