There was already a spice trade in the Early Middle Ages, but this really intensified after the Crusades and demand was as much for cooking as for medicine. Alongside the fascination of rarity and high price, spices had other more practical and important qualities: the preserving of meat and fish for longer periods and the flavoring of otherwise bland foods. There was also an obligatory route for spices fixed, as with other prized merchandise, by customs and taxes. For many years the last lap of the journey was the monopoly of the great Venetian merchants and bankers.

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