Cloves
Thematic Timeline
A. History of trade and economic
impact
 The origin of the
clove spice is
Indonesia,
specifically the
islands of
Ternate,Tidore, Moti,
Makian, Batjan and
Ambon where it
grows in close
proximity to a
volcano
From there the valuable spice was eventually
shipped north and west through the Indian Ocean
trade and the Atlantic trade
Earliest users of cloves
 2600 B.C.E.-Egyptians used
spices such as cloves to
strengthen pyramid workers
 Recent archaeology has
found evidence of cloves in
trade ships dated to 1721
B.C.E.
 6th century B.C.E.- China
sought spices from the
tropical areas
 1st Century B.C.E.-Roman
Empire valued aromatics such
as cloves for foods and
medicines
 7th century C.E.
Expansion of Islam,
gave Arabs control of the
spice market and their
aggressive restrictions
on pricing succeeded in
virtually destroying the
trade between Rome
and S.E. Asia.
 Spices were so
expensive during the
Middle Ages that only
the wealthiest could
afford them….
 …that is until the Italian trade cities of Venice,
Florence and Milan were able to strike a deal
with Arab traders that gave them a monopoly
on the trade of spices between east and west
during the 14th century C.E. and it continued to
rise after that.
 Trade of cloves and other spices also rose in
the far east with the prosperity of the Ming
dynasty under Emperor Yung-lo
 The great 14th century traveler, Ibn Battuta
describes meals including cloves and other
spices during his travels.
16th and 17th century
Cloves are worth their weight in gold
 The famous explorer,
Magellan, on his
circumnavigation of the
world in 1520 started
with 5 ships and 250
sailors. He died at the
hands of natives on the
trip and only one ship
and 18 men returned to
Spain…however they
brought back 50 tons of
cloves and nutmeg so
the trip was a success!
Cloves and other spices
reach the peak of popularity
 By 1514 the Portuguese
were exploring
opportunities to enter the
lucrative spice trade.
 However the Dutch
aggressively took control
of the clove trade in
1605 going to extremes
to prevent any of the
trees from being grown
elsewhere.
 America’s enterprising traders entered
the spice trade in 1672. The fast sailing
ships of the Americans pushed Salem,
Massachusetts to the premier spice trade
city.
 By the late 18th century the clove trees
were being grown in many places in the
world and the easy availability caused
the market value to drop.
Clove Trade today..
 Today’s communication
speed has allowed
traders to deal directly
with the source of clove
production.
 Over 100,000 kilos of
cloves are used per day
in Indonesia to produce
clove cigarettes. The
value of this trade is
approximately $120
million and represents
about 20-25% of
Indonesia’s income that
is from the tobacco taxes
of clove cigarettes.
Clove trade today-continued
 The overall market for cloves
in 2010 has been dramatically
affected by the fact that
Indonesian cigarette
manufacturers have bought
the entire Indonesian crop ( a
bumper harvest this year).
Once the fall harvest in
Madagascar is complete this
may alleviate the world wide
demand.
 Clove Leaf Oil is selling at an
all time high price.
B. Cultural Influence
 The French word clou for nail
gives the spice it’s name
based on it’s appearance.
 China-2nd century B.C.E.Officials are required to chew
cloves while talking to the
king to sweeten their breath
 Early Arabic traders told
fanciful stories about the
origins of the spice in order to
maintain tight control of the
valuable trade good.
 Magellan’s aide, Sebastian
del Cano was the only officer
to return to Spain in 1522
with a ship full of spices
including cloves. His reward
was a heraldric symbol for his
family coat-of-arms that
included 2 cinnamon sticks ,
three nutmegs and twelve
cloves
Cultural Influence continued…
 Elihu Yale, made his
wealth as a spice
merchant in the latter
17th century and was
the financial base for
Yale University in
Connecticut.
 In an effort to maintain tight control of the
clove trees, the Dutch destroyed any that
sprouted naturally outside of their areas
of control. This infuriated natives who had
the tradition of planting a clove tree at the
birth of a child. The tree’s well-being was
directly related to the child’s well-being
so a deep hatred of the Dutch grew in
native communities.
C. ClovesFrom harvest to end use
 The largest producers of
cloves are Zanzibar,
Tanzania, Madagascar
and Indonesia, as well
as southern India.
 Trees are planted in
shade and take five
years to produce
flowers.
 Buds are picked by hand
and sun-dried
To market…
 Cloves are the
small reddish
brown flower bud
 Today’s clove
farmers are using
advanced
technology to
produce better
quality and a more
consistent crop.
Uses for cloves
 Flavoring for foodscloves are a favorite
seasoning for Indian
curries, for pickling, to
accent hams or fruits as
well as hot drinks.
 Used as an ingredient in
Worchestershire sauce
 Used in spice cakes
1880
Robert Bently & Henry Trimen
 “Both cloves and the oil are stimulant,
aromatic, and carminative. Cloves in substance
or infusion are sometimes given to relieve
nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, to relieve
flatulence, and to except weak digestion. The
oil of cloves sometimes affords relief when
introduced into the cavity of a carious tooth.”
Medicinal plants: being descriptions with original figures of the principal plants
employed in medicine and an account of the characters, properties, and uses of
their parts and products of medicinal value.
Other uses for cloves
Traditional medicine
 Indigestion
 Diarrhea
 Hernia
 Ringworm
 Athlete’s foot
 Respiratory
 Anti-gout medicine
 Relieves toothache
 Cures insomnia
 Local anesthetic
Miscellaneous uses
 Personal hygiene such
as toothpaste
 Flavoring
 Perfumery
 Cosmetics
 Toiletries
 Clove cigarettes
D. Governmental actions
 The value of cloves led European traders to take
extreme actions to control the supply and therefore the
price of the spice.
 The sultans who ruled over the two main clove
producing islands, Ternate and Tidore played the
European countries against each other.
 When conflict over trade rights occurred between
Catholic countries, the Pope negotiated the Line of
Demarcation and later the Treaty of Tordesillas to fairly
divide the control of newly discovered spice producing
islands
The Dutch enter the scene
 Dutch traders manage to get
a foot in to the clove trade
through an agreement with
Portugal
 Spain takes over Portugal and
cuts the Dutch out of the trade
which results in their total
control and an increase in the
value of the spice
 Eventually the Dutch East
India company (1602) used
strong arm measures to take
a vise-like grip of the clove
industry.
Finally, the Dutch monopoly is
broken
 Despite Dutch attempts to
thwart others from growing
clove trees by burning,
uprooting trees and soaking
seeds in lime as well as
threats of the death penalty,
high on the side of the
volcano grows the world’s
oldest clove tree, Afo. It’s
seedlings were secretly
transported to Zanzibar in
1770 and formed the base of
a new clove supply for the
world.
Recent events in the cloves market
 Multi-national spice
companies control the
business from harvest to retail
sales crowding out spice
traders.
 One reason for the harvest to
table control is new laws
regarding purity of the product
to avoid any contaminants
 The Indian Spices Board is
involved in helping members
obtain ISO certification.
 Global trade has evolved to
the degree that no one market
can effectively corner the
market and boost prices.
Bibliography
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