Episode Details

The spices in your kitchen were once among the most fiercely contested resources on Earth. This deep dive follows the spice trade from early Indian Ocean exchange and Egyptian voyages to the Land of Punt, through the Austronesian sailors who crossed open ocean in sewn-plank boats.

We look at how monsoon winds opened direct routes to India, how Arab and Radhanite merchants and later Venice controlled the flow of spices, and why spices were more a status symbol than a meat preservative. Then we cover the Portuguese cartaz system, Magellan's voyage, the Manila galleon trade, and the ideas, religions, languages and foods that traveled alongside the cargo.

• How Austronesian navigators spread coconuts, bananas, yams and sugarcane across the Indian Ocean
• Why reversing monsoon winds created a two-way highway between Africa, Arabia and India
• How Venice's monopoly and layers of middlemen made spices worth their weight in gold
• Vasco da Gama, Albuquerque's conquest of Malacca and the Portuguese protection racket at sea
• The spread of lateen sails, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity and fusion cuisines along the spice routes