Out of the East: Spices and the Medieval Imagination

Author: Paul Freedman. The demand for spices in medieval Europe was extravagent and was reflected in the pursuit of fashion, the formation of taste, and the growth of the luxury trade. It inspired geographical and commercial exploration, as traders pursued such common spices as pepper and cinnamon and rarer aromatic products, including ambergris and musk. Ultimately, the spice quest led to imperial missions that were to change world history. Freedman explores in this book the demand for spices; how they were used in cooking, medicine, and perfumes; and how their expense and fragrance drove the engines of commerce and conquest at the dawn of the modern era. Hardcover.