In pre-historic times, man got his salt from
raw meat. When he began to farm, crops did not provide him enough salt, so he went out in
search of it. Salt springs and salt marshes served as sources initially. After that salt
played a prominent part in the development of the human civilisation. In 2200 BC,
Chinese emperor Yu made salt taxes a major source of revenue. One of the earliest records
of salt is in 2700 BC, when Peng-Tzao-Kan-Mu described 40 kinds of salt. Egyptians used
salt extensively for preserving mummies.
Many earlier cultures used it as currency and it was a key trade component. Some
primitive tribes gave gold, weight for weight, to purchase salt. The city of Rome may have
begun as a salt-trading center, like Venice after it. In 506 BC, salt traders of the Roman
port of Ostria raised the price so high that the state was forced to take over the
industry.
White
Gold |
Some
primitive tribes gave gold, weight for weight, just to purchase salt. |
Salt has played a vital part in religious ritual in many cultures, symbolizing
immutable, incorruptible purity. There are many references to salt in the Bible, one of
them being "With all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt." (Moses). There
always was a salt chamber in Ancient Jewish temples. It has also been the subject of many
fables and folktales. Offering bread and salt to visitors, in many cultures, is a custom.
In the Medieval era, the business of salt extraction, transport, and trade formed an
important base for political power as well as personal wealth. Central Europe lacked the
access to shipping routes that made an international salt trade possible round the coasts
of northern Europe. Salt could be economically transported only over short distances, and
local sources of salt became important commercial and political centres.
During their fight with American rebels, part of the British strategy was to deny them
access to salt. The repeal of the salt tax was a major goal of the French revolutionaries
of 1789. Salt taxes funded the Erie Canal. Even in the 20th century, Ethopia used salt
disks as money. In fact, stacks of them were kept in the treasury.
Now here’s a teaser. Today it is a well-known fact that salt is available almost
everywhere on the planet and that there is absolutely no chance of it running out. But
this was not known till the twentieth century. And that is the reason why salt was taxed,
guarded, traded and fought over. Would the history of the world have been any different
had this little fact been known to man thousands of years ago?
