Stolen Plants and Colonial Inheritance: Nutmeg and Cloves
The history of nutmeg, mace and clove should give an idea about the many aspects involved in the exhibition: nutmeg and cloves were as coveted as gold in early modern times. Nutmeg was originally only found on the Mollucan Islands in the legendary Malaysian archipelago of the Spice Islands. As sole producer of these spices the so-called Spice Islands were the most hard fought for during the European expansionist era. In the 17th Century, the Mollucan Islands fell into thehands of the Dutch who with their drastic measures managed to maintain a monopoly on cultivating and trading these naturally rare spices until the late 18th century.
In spite of the threat of draconian punishment, Pierre Poivre (1719-1786) a French plant gatherer was daring enough to rob cloves and nutmeg seedlings from the Dutch overseas territories and planted them on the then French island of
Mauritius as well as on the Ile de Bourbon, today the French overseas department of La Réunion. This plant robbery is exemplary for a development which occurred in the course of history with all spices: the spices which grew in geographically very closely confined regions were carted all over the globe and planted in climatically appropriate
regions. The displacement of the spice plants and their subsequent spread by people had significant consequences: In the long run spices lost their original exclusivity value as a result of their widespread availability.
In contrast to earlier centuries there is not one country today with a monopoly over one particular spice. For many developing countries where colonial rulers converted them to spice production, this has become an important economic pillar. Nutmeg cultivation, for instance, plays such an important role in Granada’s economy that its national flag depicts a stylised nutmeg.
