It’s hard to imagine a world without spices today. Rapid global trade has made possible the import and export of all kinds of delicious ingredients that bring Indian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Malaysian, Sri Lankan (and many more) cuisines to our tables. Now, new research shows that the culinary spice trade dates back to ancient times, exactly about 2,000 years ago.

In the article published on July 21 Science Advances , we and our colleagues detail what appears to be evidence for the earliest known curry in Southeast Asia. It is also the oldest proof of curry found outside of India.

We made an intriguing discovery at the Ok Eo archaeological complex in South Vietnam. We found eight unique spices from different sources, possibly used to make curries. Even more fascinating is that some of them may have been transported several thousand kilometers by sea.

rubbing the evidence

Our team’s research did not initially focus on curry. Rather, we were interested in learning about the function of a set of stone grinding tools known as “pesani”, which the people of the ancient Funan Kingdom probably used to pulverize their spices. We also wanted to gain a deeper understanding of the ancient spice trade.

Using a technique called Starch Grain Analysis, we analyzed microscopic remains from various grinding and crushing tools excavated at the Ok Eo site. Most of these tools were excavated by our team between 2017 and 2019, and some were previously collected by a local museum.

Starch grains are small structures in plant cells that can be stored for a long time. Studying them can provide valuable insight into past plant use, diet, cultivation methods, and even environmental conditions.

Of the 40 tools we analyzed, 12 produced a range of spices, including turmeric, ginger, finger root, sand ginger, galangal, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon. This means that residents use tools to process food, especially grinding the rhizomes, seeds and stems of spicy plants to release aroma.

To determine how old the site and tools were, our team obtained 29 individual dates from charcoal and wood samples. This included the date 207-326 AD. for example, it was obtained from a charcoal sample taken just below the largest grinding plate measuring 76 cm by 31 cm (pictured at the bottom and top of this article).

Another team working in the same field applied a technique called thermoluminescence, which dated bricks used in the site’s architecture. Taken together, the results indicate that the Ok Eo complex was inhabited between the 1st and 8th centuries AD.

spicy story

We know that the global spice trade has connected cultures and economies in Asia, Africa and Europe since ancient times. However, prior to this study, we had limited evidence of ancient curry at archaeological sites, and most of our little evidence came from India. Therefore, much of our knowledge of the early spice trade comes from clues in ancient documents from India, China, and Rome.

Our research is the first to very concretely confirm that spices were valuable goods exchanged in a global trade network nearly 2,000 years ago.

The spices found in Ok Eo would naturally not be available in the region; someone would at some point have transported them there across the Indian or Pacific oceans. This proves that curry has a fascinating history outside of India and that curry spices are coveted everywhere.

If you’ve ever made a curry from scratch, you know it’s not easy. This requires significant time and effort, as well as the use of a wide variety of unique spices and grinding tools. Therefore, it is interesting to note that almost 2000 years ago, people living outside India had a great desire to enjoy the taste of curry, as evidenced by their painstaking preparation.

Another fascinating discovery is that the curry recipe used in Vietnam today is not significantly different from the ancient Ok Eo era. The main ingredients in the recipe, such as turmeric, cloves, cinnamon, and coconut milk, remained unchanged. This proves that a good recipe stands the test of time!

What’s next?

In this study, first of all, microscopic plant remains were emphasized. And we have yet to compare these finds with other large plant remains found in the area.

During the excavations carried out from 2017 to 2020, our team also collected a significant number of well-preserved seeds. We hope to analyze them in the future as well. We can identify many other spices and even discover unique plant species that will contribute to our understanding of the history of the region. By promoting more on the site, we will also be able to understand when and how each type of spice or herb began to be sold worldwide. Source