Table of Contents

Preface THE PHOENIX'S NEST Silphium EXPORTS FROM PARADISE Ginger Sugar Sandalwood Balsam of Mecca Cinnamon Tejpat Musk THE SPICE ISLANDS Cloves Nutmeg and mace Cubebs Camphor Gum benzoin THE AROMATIC SHORE Ambergris Aloeswood THE CINNAMON MOUNTAINS Chinese pepper Galanga Rhubarb and licorice Ginseng and star anise THE LAND OF PEPPER Putchuk or costus Spikenard Long pepper Black pepper Turmeric Red sanders Zedoary and zerumbet Amomum and cardamom THE RAREST OF SPICES Gum guggul Asafoetida or hing Frankincense Myrrh CARGOES OF COMPLACENCE Coriander Cumin, caraway, anise, ajowan and nigella Mustard Poppy Mastic Storax Saffron 'I HAVE FOUND CINNAMON!' Uchu, rocoto, and ulupica Pink peppercorns Coca Chocolate Vanilla Chilli Tabasco pepper and Scotch bonnet Canella Balsam of Peru IN QUEST OF SPICERY Notes Source Texts Further Reading Glossary Of Spice Names Index

About the Author

Andrew Dalby is a historian and linguist and has written for numerous food history and classics journals. Among his books are Empire of Pleasures: Luxury and Indulgence in the Roman World (2000), The Classical Cookbook (with Sally Grainger, 1996), and Siren Feasts: A History of Food and Gastronomy in Greece (1996).

Reviews

"Will set you straight on myrrh, frankincense, zedoary--what they are, where they came from, and what the first people who tasted them thought about them."--"Wall Street Journal