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The dried berry was worth more than silver by weight in medieval Europe. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

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Yes. It sits on the Food shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.

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The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.

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Black pepper once paid taxes and ransoms

The dried berry was worth more than silver by weight in medieval Europe Pepper grew in southern India and reached Europe through Arab and Venetian middlemen, who kept its source vague. In medieval Europe it was counted by the grain and used to settle rents, dowries and ransoms, and a city could buy off an army with a payment in pepper. The search for a sea route to its source drove Portuguese voyages around Africa. It sits in Mondo's food collection, one of 200 facts that each trace back to the reference below.

Where this comes from

Encyclopaedia Britannica

Facts that can change over time are reviewed and updated. If something here looks wrong, Mondo would rather know than be confidently incorrect.

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History trivia

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Long pepper was prized before black pepperRoman cooks preferred the catkin shaped spice, which packs more heat Black, green and white peppercorns are the same fruitOnly the harvest time and processing differ between them Cinnamon reached Rome through middlemenRoman cooks burned it in perfume and medicine without knowing the tree Tea grades describe leaf size not qualityTerms like orange pekoe and fannings refer to how the leaf was sorted The Han Dynasty established the Silk Road trade routeDiplomat Zhang Qian explored Central Asia to connect Chinese merchants with western markets The Republic of Venice became a Mediterranean maritime powerhouseMerchant doges governed an independent republic for over eleven centuries

Tags: pepper, trade, middle-ages

Black pepper once paid taxes and ransoms: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: The dried berry was worth more than silver by weight in medieval Europe. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a food fact?: Yes. It sits on the Food shelf, one of 2,600 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.