[Paper] Earliest curry in Southeast Asia and the global spice trade 2000 years ago

via Science Advances, 21 July 2023: A new paper by Wang et al. reveals the residue of spices on stone tools from Oc Eo that make up a curry, suggesting that this dish arrived to Southeast Asia through Indian Ocean trade. This paper got quite a bit of news coverage over the weekend, and the news stories are indexed below. I also re-created the curry recipe as a weekend project, and you can read my attempt at culinary experimental archaeology in my post Recreating a 2000-Year-Old Curry: A Gastronomic Adventure into Oc Eo’s Ancient Culinary Heritage

The global spice trade has played an essential role in world history. However, because of poor preservation conditions, archaeobotanical remains of spices have been limited in archaeological contexts until now. This study reports evidence for spice processing from the archaeological site of Oc Eo in southern Vietnam, an entrepôt of the state of Funan that was occupied during the early centuries CE. Analysis of plant microremains recovered from the surfaces of Oc Eo grinding stone tools thought to be of South Asian origin has identified culinary spices that include turmeric, ginger, fingerroot, sand ginger, galangal, clove, nutmeg, and cinnamon. These spices are indispensable ingredients used in the making of curry in South Asia today. We suggest that South Asian migrants or visitors introduced this culinary tradition into Southeast Asia during the period of early trade contact via the Indian Ocean, commencing about 2000 years ago.

Source: Earliest curry in Southeast Asia and the global spice trade 2000 years ago | Science Advances

See also:

• Researchers find evidence of a 2,000-year-old curry, the oldest ever found in Southeast Asia | The Conversation, 21 July 2023
• Curry may have landed in Southeast Asia 2000 years ago | Science, 21 July 2023
• 1,800-Year-Old Spices Are Earliest Evidence of Curry Making in Southeast Asia | Scientific American, 21 July 2023
• Ancient utensils bear traces of 2000-year-old Vietnamese curry | New Scientist, 21 July 2023
• Earliest Curry In Southeast Asia Found On 2,000-Year-Old Utensils | IFL Science, 21 July 2023
• 2,000-year-old curry: scientists discover evidence of ancient recipe in south-east Asia | The Guardian, 21 July 2023
• Remnants of 2,000-year-old curry shed new light on ancient trade routes and everyday role of spices in ancient civilisations | ABC News, 22 July 2023
• Evidence of ancient Vietnamese curry found by Australian researchers | Xinhua, 22 July 2023
• 2,000-year-old utensils show signs of Southeast Asia’s earliest curry | Cosmos, 22 July 2023
• Ancient curry shows spicy dish a favourite for the ages | Kyabram Free Press, 22 July 2023
• Scientists find evidence of oldest curry outside of India in Vietnam | NextShark, 24 July 2023
• Scientists decode a 2,000-year-old curry recipe | CNN, 25 July 2023
• Researchers find evidence of curry dating 2000 years in Southeast Asia – study | Jerusalem Post, 25 July 2023
• Archaeologists discover oldest evidence of curry ever found outside India | Independent, 26 July 2023
• SE Asia’s oldest traces of curry spices found in southern Vietnam | Tuoi Tre News, 26 July 2023
• Curry has tempted diners in southeast Asia for more than 1,500 years | Nature, 26 July 2023
• The latest international publication on the ‘spice route’ through Oc Eo | Thanh Nien Daily, 28 July 2023
• Công bố quốc tế mới nhất về ‘con đường gia vị’ qua Óc Eo | Thanh Nien News, 28 July 2023
• Remnants of curry dating back 1,800 years found on stone tools in Southeast Asia is oldest outside India | South China Morning Post, 29 July 2023
• Cracking the curry recipe: Iconic dish was introduced to Southeast Asia about 2,000 years ago | ZME Science, 29 July 2023
• How this 2,000-year-old curry offers insight into the global spice trade | Saltwire, 01 Aug 2023
• Fragrant finds in Vietnam | Fragrant Finds, 18 Sep 2023