Black Pepper is a vine indigenous to Kerala. Towards the end of the B.C era, Kerala was doing excellent business in ginger, turmeric and black pepper. It is estimated that the Roman Empire spent 10 crore Sestertii every year for purchasing spices from India, China and Arabia and of all the spices, Black Pepper was a favourite in Rome.
Romans considered Black Pepper as valuable as Gold and Silver. In Roman ports, the cargo was examined for pepper and appropriate tax was levied. When Alaric the Goth attacked Rome in AD 408, he asked for 3000 lbs for pepper in return for not attacking the capital.
This picture of a vine of black pepper was taken in my backyard during the recent India trip.
While Black Pepper was the gold equivalent during ancient times, the gold equivalent now in Kerala is Vanilla.
Known as the prince of spices, vanilla is fetching better prices in the market than even gold. Today almost everyone in Kerala, from farmers and engineers to lawyers and housewives, is cultivating vanilla. Many have already become rupee millionaires.
Comments (6)
good to c u back. But i'm wondering how can you remain so far removed from politics and other issues the country is brimming with these days..? too obssessed with kerala..? i was in kerala too the past week for a quick visit. Back in delhi now
Posted by sruthijith | February 25, 2004 8:36 AM
Posted on February 25, 2004 08:36
JK:
Excellent post! My friend, you are wasting your talent being a software engineer. You should marshall your talents to do what the world needs most-- become a historian. And not some fickle, talentless academic-- there are plenty of those-- but a historian for the masses.
Posted by Niraj | February 25, 2004 1:15 PM
Posted on February 25, 2004 13:15
adeke (arecanut) was the preferred crop a few years back, until the market crash, boom, banged. :-(
Posted by Ashwin | February 25, 2004 5:03 PM
Posted on February 25, 2004 17:03
sruthijith, the interests are all cyclical. it is a matter of time before politics comes up above history.
Posted by JK | February 25, 2004 7:14 PM
Posted on February 25, 2004 19:14
Niraj, I would like to be a full time popular historian plus humor columnist plus blogger plus novelist plus many other things. Everything except a software engineer. But currently that's what pays my bills.
Posted by JK | February 25, 2004 8:42 PM
Posted on February 25, 2004 20:42
Good blogs....would like to know who this Mr. JK is...
Posted by SV | March 4, 2004 1:36 AM
Posted on March 4, 2004 01:36