Lecture 6: The Alexandrian Exchange and the Four Humors
also interact and infl uence each other. If the trend toward
globalism—connecting far-fl ung regions together by means of
trade—is one of the most important events in human history, then
food is once again the catalyst. In classical times, the Greek diet was simple, including bread, wine,
cheese, olives, vegetables, and some meat. The Greeks traded these
items across the Mediterranean, but the foods are pretty much the
same from one end to another. When Alexander’s empire expands,
there were suddenly standard units of money across a much greater
space, a lingua franca (Greek) so that everyone can communicate,
and another vast trade network that included India and even China. Gradually, people in the West start getting things from India like
pepper and ginger. In addition, other Indian spices like nigella,
spikenard, and asafetida were imported in Hellenistic times. There
are also accounts that suggest that sugar fi rst entered into the
West in this manner as a medicinal curiosity, but honey is still far
more important. Probably the most fascinating spice, certainly with the longest
journey, was cinnamon (also cassia), which the Hellenistic Greeks
used as a fl avoring. As articles of conspicuous consumption, spices
confer distinction on the wealthy because only the wealthiest can
afford them. Beyond spices, there is also rice, which was new in the West. Rice
was not eaten in great quantities because it was so expensive. It was
never grown in classical times; it was always imported. Rice was
used more as a medicine than a food. Apart from exotic imported items, there were also a number
of plants introduced that could be grown in Europe. In fact,
Alexander’s expeditions brought botanists along to identify viable
species. Also, the Greek administrations in the East wanted familiar
Greek foods, so the exchange went both ways. Possibly the most
important thing to travel from East to West was citrus fruit.