Since antiquity, pepper has always been the most important spice in the world. It played a central role in the medicines of ancient India and China, became a critical component of Roman food, and remained central in the cuisine of medieval Europe. Dreams of its acquisition drove Vasco da Gama (c. 1469-1524) around the Cape of Africa to the Indian Ocean and Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) across the Atlantic Ocean to the New World.

? ? ? ? ? 從古至今，胡椒一直是世界上最重要的調(diào)味品。它在古印度和中國(guó)的藥物中發(fā)揮了核心作用，也是羅馬食物中的重要組成部分，并在中世紀(jì)歐洲的美食中保持核心地位。獲取胡椒的夢(mèng)想驅(qū)使瓦斯科·達(dá)伽馬（約1469-1524年）繞過非洲好望角到達(dá)印度洋，驅(qū)使克里斯多?！じ鐐惒迹?451-1506年）橫穿大西洋到達(dá)新大陸。

古 代 印 度 和 中 國(guó) 的 胡 椒

Pepper cultivation began thousands of years ago in India, where it was native, and it was soon introduced to the major islands of Indonesia by traders. Two species of pepper were domesticated: long pepper (Piper longum) in the northeast of India and black pepper (Piper nigrum) in the southwest. Long pepper was the most popular pepper in Rome because of its greater pungency, while black pepper dominated in medieval Europe because it was more readily available to traders. Long pepper is now mostly forgotten.

? ? ? ? ? ?胡椒的種植始于數(shù)千年前的印度，那里是胡椒的原產(chǎn)地，一些商人將其引入到印度尼西亞的主要島嶼。有兩個(gè)品種的野胡椒被人們馴化：印度東北部的長(zhǎng)胡椒（Piper longum）和西南部的黑胡椒（Piper nigrum）。長(zhǎng)胡椒在羅馬是最受歡迎的胡椒，因?yàn)樗拇碳ば愿螅诤吩谥惺兰o(jì)的歐洲占主導(dǎo)地位，因?yàn)樯倘藗兏菀椎玫剿ｉL(zhǎng)胡椒現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)不流行了。

There are numerous records of pepper's medical use in India that date back at least 3000 years. Pepper was a key component in the ancient Ayurvedic system of medicine. It also found its way to China in antiquity. There is written evidence that it was being traded overland from India to Sichuan Province by the 2nd century BCE. Pepper is also mentioned in histories of the Han Dynasty (202 BCE - 220 CE) published in the 5th century CE and in a Tang Dynasty account four centuries later. Pepper was probably brought to China from India initially for medicinal purposes, but it did not take long for it to become an important spice in food.

? ? ? ? ? 在印度，關(guān)于胡椒的醫(yī)療用途有許多記錄，至少可以追溯到3000年前。胡椒是古代阿育吠陀醫(yī)學(xué)體系中的一個(gè)關(guān)鍵組成部分。在古代，它也被帶到了中國(guó)。有書面證據(jù)表明，在公元前2世紀(jì)，它就已經(jīng)從印度陸路貿(mào)易到巴蜀地區(qū)（今四川省）了。在公元5世紀(jì)的漢朝（公元前202年至公元220年）文獻(xiàn)中，以及4個(gè)世紀(jì)后的唐朝文獻(xiàn)記載中，也提到了胡椒。胡椒最初從印度帶到中國(guó)可能是為了藥用，但沒過多久，它就成為食品中的一種重要的香料。

Pepper was also important in Egypt by the time of the New Kingdom (c. 1570 - c. 1069 BCE), as it was found stuffed in the nostrils of the mummy of Ramesses II who died in 1213 BCE. Little else is known about how the Egyptians used pepper or the full details of how it got there, but it is known that there was active trade between India and Arabia by that time, and the Egyptians were sending ships down the Nile to what they called the Land of Punt to obtain exotic goods like frankincense, myrrh, and cinnamon.

? ? ? ? ? 胡椒在埃及新王國(guó)時(shí)期（約公元前1570-約公元前1069年）也很重要，考古學(xué)家在公元前1213年去世的拉美西斯二世的木乃伊的鼻孔中發(fā)現(xiàn)了胡椒。關(guān)于埃及人如何使用胡椒或它如何到達(dá)那里的全部細(xì)節(jié)，人們知之甚少；但我們可以知道，當(dāng)時(shí)印度和阿拉伯之間的貿(mào)易很活躍，埃及人派船沿尼羅河而下，到他們稱之為蓬特的地方去獲得乳香、沒藥和肉桂等異國(guó)貨物。

羅 馬 帝 國(guó) 的 胡 椒

Pepper - both long and black - was known in Greece by the 4th century BCE, probably as a luxury item that only the very rich could afford. They were likely used in medicines and to flavor wine. Pepper's popularity in Europe rose dramatically in 30 BCE after Rome’s conquest of Egypt, and its use spread rapidly to Roman Gaul (mostly modern-day France and Germany) and Roman Britain. Pepper became an essential ingredient in food in the Roman world. The wealthy used it liberally in almost everything eaten. In the cookbook attributed to the famous Roman gourmet Apicius, pepper is included in over 70% of the recipes (349 out of 469).

Roman cuisine was infused with exotic flavors, including ginger from China and pepper from India … Indian pepper was particularly popular, and extremely expensive. It was used in fish and meat sauces, in medicines and in stimulating tonics which were believed to cure impotence. Romans also mixed pepper and other aromatics into their wine: ingredients such as frankincense, myrrh, cinnamon, ginger and cardamom were added, and the wine was heated over a slow fire. (Singer, 16)

? ? ? ? ? 胡椒（包括長(zhǎng)胡椒和黑胡椒）在公元前4世紀(jì)的希臘就已經(jīng)為人所知，在當(dāng)時(shí)可能是一種奢侈品，只有非常富有的人才能買得起。它們可能被用于藥物和葡萄酒的調(diào)味。公元前30年，羅馬征服埃及后，胡椒在歐洲的受歡迎程度急劇上升，其使用迅速蔓延到羅馬高盧（主要是現(xiàn)代法國(guó)和德國(guó)）和羅馬不列顛。胡椒在羅馬世界成為食品中的一種基本成分。富人幾乎在所有食物中都大量使用它。在歸屬于著名的羅馬美食家阿庇西烏斯的食譜中，70%以上的食譜（469份中的349份）都包含了胡椒：

? ? ? ? ? 羅馬的菜肴充滿了異國(guó)情調(diào)，包括來自中國(guó)的姜和來自印度的胡椒......印度的胡椒特別受歡迎，而且價(jià)格極其昂貴。它被用在魚和肉的醬汁中，也被用在藥品和被認(rèn)為能治療陽痿的刺激性補(bǔ)藥中。羅馬人還將胡椒和其他芳香劑混入酒中：加入乳香、沒藥、肉桂、生姜和豆蔻等成分，并將酒在慢火上加熱。(Singer, 16)

The Romans began making regular trips across the Arabian Sea to southern India’s Malabar Coast by the 1st millennium CE. Quite specific details of these trips were passed down in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea written between 45 and 55 CE by an unknown Greek-speaking sailor. The bulk of the pepper was picked up at the city of Muziris along the western coast of India, in huge ships with capacities of over 400 tons.

? ? ? ? ? 到了公元一千年，羅馬人開始定期穿越阿拉伯海前往印度南部的馬拉巴爾海岸。關(guān)于這些旅行的相當(dāng)具體的細(xì)節(jié)，由一位不知名的講希臘語的水手在公元45至55年之間寫成的《厄里特里亞海佩里普斯》中傳了下來。大部分胡椒是在印度西海岸的Muziris城（今印度喀拉拉邦帕塔南）獲取的，用容量超過400噸的巨大船只運(yùn)輸。

The Greek geographer Strabo (16.4) reported that the Roman Empire sent 120 ships on an annual one-year trip to India and back, riding the monsoon winds. On their return, the ships traveled up the Red Sea to Berenice, where the cargo was unloaded and carried across the desert to the Nile, then floated by barge to Alexandria in Roman Egypt and shipped to Europe where it was unloaded and stored in great horrea piperateria (pepper warehouses) in a dedicated spice quarter of Rome. This massive movement of pepper to Rome continued until the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century CE. The story goes that Alaric the Visigoth asked Rome for a ransom of more than a ton of pepper when he besieged the city in 410 CE.

? ? ? ? ? 希臘地理學(xué)家斯特拉波（16.4）在一份報(bào)告中闡述，羅馬帝國(guó)每年派120艘船乘季風(fēng)前往印度并返回，為期一年。返回時(shí)，船只沿紅海航行到貝勒尼斯，在那里卸下貨物，運(yùn)輸隊(duì)穿過沙漠將貨物運(yùn)到尼羅河，然后用駁船運(yùn)到羅馬埃及的亞歷山大港，再運(yùn)到歐洲，在那里卸下貨物并儲(chǔ)存在羅馬專門的香料區(qū)的大horrea piperateria（胡椒倉庫）。這種大規(guī)模的胡椒運(yùn)往羅馬的情況一直持續(xù)到西羅馬帝國(guó)在公元5世紀(jì)滅亡。傳說西哥特人阿拉里克在公元410年圍攻羅馬時(shí)，向羅馬索要了一噸多的胡椒粉作為贖金。

The cost of the Roman pepper trade must have been staggering. The Roman encyclopedist Pliny complained in the 1st century CE that "there is no year in which India does not drain the Roman Empire of fifty million sesterces [over 100 million in today’s US dollars]". He described the allure and value of pepper as: "Why do we like it so much? Some foods attract by sweetness, some by their appearance, but neither the pod nor the berry of pepper has anything to be said for it. We only want it for its bite – and we will go to India to get it. Who was the first to try it with food? Who was so anxious to develop an appetite that hunger would not do the trick? Pepper and ginger both grow wild in their native countries, and yet we value them in terms of gold and silver" (Pliny the Elder, Natural History, 12.14).

? ? ? ? ? 羅馬胡椒貿(mào)易的利潤(rùn)肯定是驚人的。羅馬百科全書式的學(xué)者普林尼在公元1世紀(jì)抱怨說，"印度用一年不到的時(shí)間讓羅馬帝國(guó)耗費(fèi)5000萬塞斯特爾[按今天的美元計(jì)算超過1億美元]"。他將胡椒的誘惑力和價(jià)值描述為 "為什么我們?nèi)绱讼矚g它？有些食物靠甜味吸引人，有些靠外觀吸引人，但胡椒的豆莢和漿果都沒有什么可說的。我們只想吃它的咬勁（刺激性）——我們會(huì)去印度買它。誰是第一個(gè)將胡椒加入食物的人？是誰如此急切地想提升食欲，以至于饑餓都不能起到作用？胡椒和生姜在它們的故鄉(xiāng)都是野生的，而我們卻用金銀來衡量它們"（老普林尼，《自然史》，12.14）。

中 世 紀(jì) 的 胡 椒

Pepper's popularity in both cuisine and medicine reached its historical peak during the Middle Ages in Europe. Pepper and other spices were not only thought to be healthy but were also widely used to enrich the natural qualities of food. Food in medieval households was highly processed and richly spiced. Uncooked food was rarely eaten, even vegetables and fruit. The spices were used to season all types of food including meat, fish, soups, sweet dishes, and wine. It was also common in medieval banquets to pass around a ‘spice platter’ from which guests could choose extra seasonings like pepper for their already richly accented meals.

? ? ? ? ? 胡椒在烹飪和醫(yī)藥方面的普及，在歐洲中世紀(jì)達(dá)到了歷史的頂峰。胡椒和其他香料不僅被認(rèn)為是健康的，而且還被廣泛用于豐富食物的自然味道。中世紀(jì)家庭的食物被高度加工，并有豐富的香料。人們很少吃未煮熟的食物，甚至蔬菜和水果也是如此。香料被用來調(diào)所有類型食物的味，包括肉、魚、湯、甜菜和酒。在中世紀(jì)的宴會(huì)上，傳閱 "香料拼盤"也很常見，客人可以從中選擇額外的調(diào)味品，如胡椒，用于他們已經(jīng)很豐富的膳食。

The noted expert on medieval gastronomy Paul Freedman tells us that "spices were omnipresent in medieval gastronomy" and "something on the order of 75% of medieval recipes involve spices" (50). In the updated edition of Pleyn Delit: Medieval Cookery for Modern Cooks, the authors provide 131 medieval recipes of which 92 include pepper and other spices.

? ? ? ? ? 著名的中世紀(jì)美食專家保羅·弗里德曼告訴我們，"香料在中世紀(jì)美食中無處不在"，"大約75%的中世紀(jì)食譜涉及香料"（50）。在《Pleyn Delit：現(xiàn)代廚師的中世紀(jì)烹飪》的更新版中，作者提供了131份中世紀(jì)食譜，其中有92份含有胡椒和其他香料。

Historical records are filled with references to the copious use of spices among the wealthy in medieval Europe. When William I of Scotland (r. 1165-1214) visited Richard I of England (r. 1189-1199) in 1194, he received among other gifts a daily allotment of 4 pounds (1800 g) of cinnamon and 2 pounds (900 g) of pepper (surely more than he could consume in a day). Lamprey, a popular food in an English medieval castle, was slathered in a peppery sauce. It has been told that King Henry I of England (r. 1100-1135) died after consuming a huge meal of pepper-smothered lamprey (although food poisoning was probably the culprit). A sauce served at the Feast of St Edward in 1264 was prepared using 15 pounds (c. 7 kg) of cinnamon, 12? pounds of cumin (5.5 kg), and 20 pounds (9 kg) of pepper. There is a record from a single banquet for 40 in medieval England where the food was spiced with 1 pound (450 g) of columbine, ? pound (225 g) of sugar, 1 ounce (7 g) of saffron, ? pound (110 g) of cloves, ? pound (55 g) of nutmeg, and ? pound (55 g) of pepper.

? ? ? ? ? 歷史記錄中充滿了關(guān)于中世紀(jì)歐洲富人中大量使用香料的記載。1194年，蘇格蘭的威廉一世（1165-1214年）訪問英格蘭的理查德一世（1189-1199年）時(shí)，除其他禮物外，他還收到了每天4磅（1800克）肉桂和2磅（900克）胡椒的分配量（肯定超過了他一天的消費(fèi)量）。燈籠魚是英國(guó)中世紀(jì)城堡中的一種流行食品，被涂上了一種胡椒醬。據(jù)說英國(guó)國(guó)王亨利一世（1100-1135年）在吃了一大頓沾滿胡椒粉的燈魚后死亡（盡管食物中毒可能是罪魁禍?zhǔn)祝?264年圣愛德華節(jié)上的一種醬汁是用15磅（約7公斤）肉桂、12?磅小茴香（5.5公斤）和20磅（9公斤）胡椒準(zhǔn)備的。在中世紀(jì)英格蘭的一次40人的宴會(huì)上有一個(gè)記載，食物含有的香料：1磅（450克）秋葵、?磅（225克）糖、1盎司（7克）藏紅花、?磅（110克）丁香、?磅（55克）肉豆蔻和?磅（55克）花椒。

Scholars have long debated why spices became so popular in medieval cuisine. It is commonly asserted that they were used to preserve meat or mask the flavor of decomposing produce, but their effects would be far less than the common practices of salting, smoking, or pickling. Some have asserted that the copious use of spice in food preparation was fueled by Galen’s (129-216 CE) medical theories promoting their effects on health. However, there is no reason to believe that medieval diners stuck to healthy diets any more than people today. Most likely, the exotic origins of spices and their costliness made them a status symbol which fueled their widespread use.

? ? ? ? ? 長(zhǎng)期以來，學(xué)者們一直在爭(zhēng)論，為什么香料在中世紀(jì)的菜肴中變得如此受歡迎。通常的說法是，它們被用來保存肉類或掩蓋腐爛產(chǎn)品的味道，但其效果遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)低于鹽漬、熏制或腌制等常見做法。有些人斷言，在食物制作中大量使用香料是由于蓋倫（公元129-216年）的醫(yī)學(xué)理論讓人們認(rèn)識(shí)到香料對(duì)健康的影響。然而，中世紀(jì)的食客比今天的人更堅(jiān)持健康飲食這種說法是不可靠的。最有可能的是，香料的異國(guó)情調(diào)與其昂貴的價(jià)格使它們成為一種地位的象征，從而讓它們很受歡迎。

Pepper also was a vital part of the Chinese diet in the Middle Ages. When Marco Polo (1254-1324) travelled there in 1271, he found pepper to be a major component of Chinese cooking, and trade in pepper had become a major economic force. He was told by a customs official that just the city of Hangzhou consumed 43 cartloads a day, each weighing 223 pounds (101 kilograms). Staggering quantities of pepper were being transported by Chinese junks from Java and Sumatra, as many as 5000 to 6000 baskets in each. By the Sung Dynasty (1271-1367), it was standard for South Asian diplomats to bring tributes of pepper to the Chinese rulers.

? ? ? ? ? ?在中世紀(jì)，胡椒也是中國(guó)人飲食的重要組成部分。當(dāng)馬可波羅（1254-1324）與1271年在中國(guó)旅行時(shí)，他發(fā)現(xiàn)胡椒是中國(guó)烹飪的主要成分，而且胡椒貿(mào)易已成為主要的經(jīng)濟(jì)力量之一。一位海關(guān)官員告訴他，僅杭州城一天就消耗了43車胡椒，每車重達(dá)223磅（101公斤）。中國(guó)船隊(duì)從爪哇和蘇門答臘運(yùn)來的胡椒數(shù)量驚人，每艘船多達(dá)5000至6000筐。到了宋朝（1271-1367年），南亞各國(guó)特使給中國(guó)統(tǒng)治者帶來胡椒的貢品已成為標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。

失 去 青 睞 的 胡 椒

The pepper and spice market remained strong in Europe until the mid-17th century when it fell precipitously due to many causes. As Freedman describes:

A whole new group of beverages, stimulants and flavors had arrived including tea, coffee, chocolate and tobacco that offered new taste sensations but also produced psychological effects that proved to be mildly, or in the case of tobacco, quite seriously addictive … Spices had become cheaper with colonialism and the opening of new trade routes, so their consumption no longer conveyed an adequate sense of privilege and exclusivity. (221)

? ? ? ? ? ?胡椒和香料市場(chǎng)在歐洲一直保持強(qiáng)勁，直到17世紀(jì)中葉，由于許多原因，胡椒的市場(chǎng)急劇下降。正如弗里德曼所描述的那樣：

? ? ? ? ? 包括茶、咖啡、巧克力和煙草在內(nèi)的一大批新的飲料、興奮劑和新口味的到來，它們提供了新的味覺感受，同時(shí)伴隨著心理效應(yīng)，或者就煙草而言，是相當(dāng)嚴(yán)重的上癮性......隨著殖民主義和新貿(mào)易路線的開辟，香料變得更便宜了，所以關(guān)于它們的消費(fèi)所代表特權(quán)及獨(dú)特性已經(jīng)逐漸消失了。(221)

The origins of the spices were also now well known, and they did not seem so mysterious and exotic anymore. Perhaps most importantly, there "was a seismic shift in tastes. The wealthy people of Europe no longer liked fiery and perfumed food" (Freedman, 224).

? ? ? ? ? 香料的來源如今也是眾所周知，它們看起來不再那么神秘和奇特。也許最重要的是，"人們的口味發(fā)生了地震般的變化，歐洲的富人不再喜歡火熱和芳香的食物"（弗里德曼，224）。

The reduction in spice use in Europe led to a dramatic change in what was exported from India and Southeast Asia to Europe. The spices were replaced first by cotton in the late 1600s, and then by tea and coffee in the 1700s. A large portion of Dutch and English trade also shifted to the Atlantic Ocean and its sugar, tobacco, and slaves.

? ? ? ? ? 歐洲香料使用的減少，導(dǎo)致了從印度和東南亞進(jìn)口到歐洲的貨品種類發(fā)生了巨大的變化。香料在16世紀(jì)末首先被棉花取代，然后在17世紀(jì)被茶葉和咖啡取代。荷蘭和英國(guó)貿(mào)易的很大一部分也轉(zhuǎn)向了大西洋及其糖、煙草與奴隸。

參考書目：

Butler, Sharon & Hieatt, Constance B. & Hosington, Brenda. Pleyn Delit. University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division, 1996.

Dalby, Andrew. Dangerous Tastes. University of California Press, 2002.

Elder, Pliny the. The Natural History of Pliny, Vol. 3. Forgotten Books, 2018.

Jenkins, M. . "Medicine and spices, with special reference to medieval monastic accounts." Journal of Garden History , 4, pp. 47-49.

Miller, James Innes. The Spice Trade of the Roman Empire, 29 B.C. to A.D. 641,. Clarendon Press, 1969.

Paul Freedman. Out of the East. Yale University Press, 2009.

Shaffer, Marjorie. Pepper. St. Martin's Griffin, 2014.

Singer, C. "The incense kingdoms of Yemen: an outline history of the South Arabian incense trade." Food for the Gods, edited by Peacock, D. P. S. & Peacock, A. C. S. & Williams, David. Oxbow Books, 2006, 4 - 27.

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Turner, Jack. Spice. Vintage, 2005.

原文作者：James Hancock

? ? ? ? ? James F. Hancock是一名自由撰稿人和密歇根州立大學(xué)的名譽(yù)教授。他的特別興趣是作物進(jìn)化和貿(mào)易史。他的書包括——《香料、香味與絲綢》（CABI），以及《種植園作物》（Routledge）。

原文網(wǎng)址：

https://www.worldhistory.org/Pepper/