Salt and the Columbian State

Salt and the Columbian State is an interesting variant on the commodity history, taking a microhistory approach to examine the effects of a specific commodity trade on, in essence, a single region of Columbia centered around La Salina. It demonstrates the usefulness of using commodity records to get access to history that might not otherwise be available. On the other hand, the book also has some weaknesses. One that several people have already mentioned is the fact that it is very much a lens book using the commodity trade to look at the social interactions (one is almost tempted to say social damage) resulting from the salt monopoly in Columbia.

Another weakness is the relative lack of focus on where the salt is going. I think, judging from the text, that a significant proportion, if not the majority, of the salt manufactured in La Salina was going to feed Columbian demand. At least a portion of it was used for fattening cattle, for instance. But I think the book could have been improved by spending 10-20 pages on additional market information about salt consumption.

I think the most significant element of this book, in displaying how the salt monopoly was a manifestation and source of strength for the Columbian state is the fact that it can be written at all. La Salina is an extraordinarily small community for a book like this to be written about, and the detail that is possible is largely due to the existence of the salt monopoly and the documentation and communication surrounding it. For a town of around a thousand residents to have a significant state presence in the 19^th and early 20^th century seems unusual, unless that town produces a valuable resource. This in and of itself would seem to help demonstrate salt’s value.

State Controlled Commodities

            In reading Salt and the Colombian State, Rosenthal pushes to explain the formation of an economically viable political state through the monopolization of a commodity. I found this theme of the state having the main agency over the production and distribution of the commodity, obviously in this case being salt, and in many ways the labor force behind it to be interesting and something that has not been tackled fully in past readings. We have read about colonially controlled trade markets but the actual formation of a state using a commodity as its foundation has been something only touched on. The cost-control element of the economic chain for salt was also fascinating to me, as it put pressure on the labor force, while also allowing them to remain viable in their ability to survive through salt production. Though I do not regard the commodity as the center of this book, it is still important in the writing of the narrative. The salt allowed for the state to become profitable but in the same vein, exert control over the working class population. So the money being made went hand-in-hand with whoever could control the market and the production.

            The book itself however seems in a way far too narrow in my view for the argument being made. I did not feel convinced by the evidence given to believe that the Colombian state rose from its conceived weaknesses on the shoulders of a successful salt market. The perception seemed to be was the importance of the single commodity of salt, and the ability for the state to control the market was the primary element of a modern Colombia, however there was much that seemed to be left out regarding other elements of the Colombian, and world economy, which, for me, weakened Rosenthal’s overall argument. Overall, it was an interested lens on how state control over a commodity chain and the regional market system could effect politics, power, and the well-being of a state and its people.

Salt and the State

I agree with everyone else that this is definitely more of a lens book in its use of salt. In fact, salt is really not the center of the book at all. The book is about the state and its effect upon local society, which seems to be Rosenthal's main aim. I think this is an important argument for Rosenthal because he wants to go against historiography that views the state as a weak actor that did not shape Colombia. For Rosenthal, the agency lay with the state, because whether its policies were successful or not, its actions were what people reacted to either positively or negatively. Thus the monopoly the state had on salt was not necessarily a negative thing for the people. They actually revolted when the state was going to close the saltworks in La Salina because it meant they would lose their livelihood or even worse be subject to capitalist forces. Rosenthal's discussion of the term "monopoly" was especially fascinating because the people saw a monopoly as anyone who bought salt and sold it at a higher price.

I felt that Rosenthal failed to argue effectively for the importance of salt, which in a lot of ways was the foundation for his book. Rosenthal argues salt was so important because the revenues it brought the state were second only to tobacco. Moreover, salt revenue was constant, and war or international events did not cause the commodity's revenues to the state to fluctuate widely. Rosenthal argues that in the 19th century salt was of prime importance to people and was a prime commodity sought after(something we take for granted today). The problem is he does not discuss consumption and who/why/where this salt is going. Is this a mass commodity that people are demanding? Rosenthal discusses how salt was important for fattening cattle, which would lead me to believe the majority of the salt was being demanded by larger landowners or elites? I think that consumption is important here because it might tell you why the government-run monopoly started in the first place or perhaps reveal any commercial connections between the government and private interests. If this commodity chain of salt was not far-reaching, perhaps the state was limited in its capacity, and was only relevant in certain areas of the state while the rest of the territory was left to function and create more "organic" markets and commodity chain networks.

Rosenthal argues that because salt is so important to people during this time period and its revenues were high, La Salina is a worthwhile area to study. Moreover, he argues that La Salina is indicative of other regions that produced salt, and can serve as a model for the history of other regions connected to salt. This is a problem for me because we have to take Rosenthal at his word for the importance of salt to society at large because he doesn't really argue this effectively. Moreover, the population of La Salina was under 200 households. This small population might mean high variability, and I wonder how representative it was. He at one point argues that indigenous peoples did not suffer the instability of other populations that were ravaged by disease because in La Salina they were connected to the saltworks and potential material wealth it provided. With such a small population, I wonder if this had more to do with indigenous survival then did the saltworks? Or maybe any losses were quickly replaced with more laborers? Rosenthal's book is based upon convincing the reader that salt was important, so La Salina was important and through a study of La Salina we can see the importance of the state in Colombian society. Had he brought more evidence to the importance of salt to society, I think this book would have been more effective, and this is one reason why if salt should be more central to the story.

Salt and the Colombian State

After reading the Colour of Paradise, it was hard for me to make the transition to view salt as a valuable commodity in comparison to the emerald, which was the topic of the previous book.  Joshua Rosenthal discusses in his book titled Salt and the Colombian Stat the strong sense of rebuilding held by the Colombian people after the colonization.  Even though he acknowledges that the Colombians did not have a strong political figure or a revolution similar to the Mexicans, yet they were able to socially reconstruct the country.   I was not fully convinced that he gave sufficient credit or agency to the indigenous population, because he did not them as ones creating the change.  However, the author shows the indigenous people’s abilities of adjusting to multiple political and social changes. 

 One aspect that I value about commodity is the social life of the product and ways in which it relates to factors such as consumption, supply and demand.  Even though Rosenthal highlights the social changes that were created by salt in the Colombia’s period of nation building and transformation, however he does not capture the same changes that Mintz mention in his book about sugar.  I feel that Mintz better discusses the ways in which commodities did a full social restructure through consumption.  In addition, Mintz to restructure commodity like sugar moves through the social classes starting mainly with the elites.   Maybe if Rosenthal used another commodity other than salt he would make a more solid argument.  Overall the book is history-based and displays life after colonization in Columbia, but it is not a book that clearly and effectively articulated some of its arguments. 

Salt and the Columbian State

In Salt and the Colombian State, Joshua Rosenthal analyzes the correlations between the management of salt production and the formation of the Colombian state. I agree with Ben – Rosenthal uses the administration and monopolization of salt production in Boyacá as a lens to view the creation of the Colombian state. Rosenthal makes salt and its production the center of analysis because he believes that more conventional ways of tracing state development are difficult in the case of Colombia. Colombia has no singular event that marks its beginnings as a state, its topography is widely varied creating diverse and isolated communities, and there exists a strong sense of regionalism throughout the country. This can make it difficult to see the emergence of the Colombian state. However, Rosenthal hopes that his analysis of the salt monopoly will provide a new avenue to view the Colombian state, while making his argument more concrete rather than theoretical. Rosenthal equates direct administration of the salt industry to a manifestation of the state and centralization of power. Rosenthal’s work reminded me quite a bit of Mintz. Both of their works take a lens approach, are production centered, and they argue that their studies, whether on sugar or salt, spurred significant historical developments (For Mintz, the birth of capitalism; for Rosenthal, the rise of the Colombian state).

            After reading Salt and the Colombian State, I find it very difficult to adhere to my current definition of what a commodity history should be (I wanted a commodity history to predominantly focus on a social history aspect). A commodity history can be about any product with exchange value that is placed within either a political, economic, or cultural/social analysis. This is a broader definition than I had before, and has made me reconsider which books I would include on my syllabus. For our course, I might focus on commodity histories that deal more with social history and cultural exchange (Sacred Gifts, Profane Pleasures tops my list), and title the course to reflect the new focus. I would probably retain Tastes of Paradise; Black Rice; A Perfect Red; Banana Cultures; Jungle Laboratories; and Sacred Gifts, Profane Pleasures, while I would remove some of the other books that do not have a strong social focus.

Salt and State Building

In his book, Salt and the Columbian State, author Joshua Rosenthal uses the salt monopoly established by the Columbian government in the 19^th century as a lens to view state building and organization following the end of Spanish colonialism in the Americas. A story of conflict and struggle, the analysis highlights the influential role a commodity can take within society and how political goals of modernization and organization can be pushed through control and taxation of goods such as salt. The author argues that while in retrospect, state policies may have been weak or unsuccessful, they had a lasting effect on the daily lives of the people in the region and the economy as a whole. Using the salt works of La Salina as a microcosm, Rosenthal breaks down and evaluates the issues of fiscal policies and implementation and sheds light on the situation of the country during a tumultuous and changing time period.

Overall, I was most interested in how the implementation of many of the reforms and fiscal policies of the Columbian state actually decreased economic diversity and raised tensions against the state in areas such as La Salina. Following the enactment of the state monopoly on salt, indigenous residents were pushed out of La Salina and their communal lands were divided for state use. Forced to resettle on the outskirts of the town and to replace the incomes they had made in the past from producing and selling salt, the residents turned to cultivating firewood or producing ceramics, occupations that both eliminated subsistence farming in the region and barely provided necessary incomes. Therefore, while salt production in the region was a successful source of revenue for the government, it actually hurt the people of the region as it forced them out of their homes and stripped them of their livelihoods. Throughout the end of the 19^th century, the anger felt by those impoverished by the changes would continually flare up, and many wars and rebellions occurred as a consequence of these tensions created by state control. Ironically, the state building techniques implemented by the government were at once developing national revenue while at the same time destroying national unity and homogeneity. For readers in the modern day, tensions rising from a basic commodity such as salt are surprising because it is readily and cheaply available. However, in the 19^th century the commodity was much harder to produce and its necessity made it an important issue of contention.  

Emeralds

Different from other commodities that we have read about, emeralds cannot be eaten, nor do they have the ability to alter our consciousness that way caffeine, tobacco and cocaine can. Unlike cochineal, they are permanent, and don't need to be replaced, as dyed cloth so often does. Like silver, emeralds have permanence, but unlike silver, their value is much greater because of their rarity. They can't be necessarily used as cash, and their value shifts based not just on their relatively quality and rarity, but also based on the relative meaning applied to them by various groups of people.

What I liked most about this book more than anything was that it was more explicitly global in its approach. Even though our focus in this course has been Latin America, the original question of the book actually starts with the Islamic empires of the Ottomans, Safavids and Mughals (three empires that are always connected together in my head as a trio together). As Daniel mentioned in his post, we see the pathway of a truly global commodity chain, from production to consumption. We see agency of the various layers of the commodity chain as well. I was also greatly intrigued by the argument that Lane makes about the role of Europeans within the greater global network, particularly in the 1450-1750 period, discussing the fact that the Europeans are actually peripheral to the Indian Ocean world's core.

The Colour of Paradise

There is no doubt that Kris Lane did his research to write The Colour of Paradise.  This book was very easy to read while it provided useful resourceful information. He chose to write about emeralds, but I am not convinced that this book is only about it; however he used emeralds as the vehicle for transmitting his argument.  Looking from the aspect of commodity chain his focus was mainly on the production, consumption of the commodity through trade.  As seen in the other books we read in the class, the Europeans are still main players factor alongside Native Americans. However with this commodity, there was a new elite from East who valued emeralds.  Similar to last week’s reading the author spends time on the ritual importance of the commodity and how it was given to indigenous Gods. 

            It was interesting to read about the Far East cultures and their uses of emeralds. I agree with Tim, he did not explore enough the art of gift giving, since it is very important in the Islamic cultures. Also it was fascinating to learn about how emeralds were valued by Muslim elites since green was the preferred color of prophet Mohamed (PBUH).

            Even though I enjoyed reading this book, I was not convinced it addressed the aspects of commodity history definition or chain we have discussed in class.  I am not sure if I will use this book as one of my final books, I don’t think it will fit well with the book I already selected. 

The Great Power of Global Economics

            Kris Lane’s Colour of Paradise represents, in my opinion, one of the best “world economy” books we have looked at some far in terms of the global reach of the commodity. The actors on all sides of the chain were truly represented as being members of a global network, all contributing in one way or another to the emerald trade. This was exciting for me because my final paper focuses on the economic importance of all commodity histories, and with the argument surrounding the possibility of “commodity history” being a sub-history of the greater “economic histories”. However, this book also reflects, as have others we have read, the importance of economic trends and the actors of change, manipulate, enhance, or detract from the flow of economic development and destruction on a global scale.

            In many of the books we have read, we have discussed the importance of how societal and cultural changes over time have effected the commodity chain and product definition of their given histories. I think we have looked too narrowly at the importance of economics, due in fact possibly to the idea of the development and stages of capitalism being the main topic. There is something greater than capitalism however being shown in this book, despite it being a great example of the development of state-controlled economy to the evolution of early modern capitalism there is something more involved as well in terms of “human economics.” Everything that these emeralds have been traded for throughout there history reflect an element of capital, in the loosest sense of the term. Instead of just focusing on hard currency, we need to take into account that for example a form of “spiritual currency” is being spent to further the goals and livelihood of those who can afford it. Whether you trade for something for the reasons of spiritual/religious upward mobility, power or social status, or simply to make another buck, you are expending some form of capital or currency to get that. Those who have access to whatever form of currency that is being used are almost always major actors in how they effect the commodity development and chain of trade. Those who have the agency to effect the commodity itself, do so in order to gain this currency from those who are willing to trade it. It is all some form of a greater economic scheme. I realize that this is off-topic from the Lane book, and I know that I used a great deal of poetic licensing as well as using generally accepted terms with hard definitions very loosely, but in the last few weeks of this class as I try and connect all of our readings, I am coming to a conclusion along the lines above. If come tomorrow I get to class and one of you completely blows up this argument or theory, I will freely admit it is way out there in some ways and not really grounded in much fact right now.

Emeralds

Two points from prior blog posts hit upon two of the major contributions Lane's book brings to our understanding of commodity history as well as Atlantic history: the importance of Jews/New Christians and the importance of Eurasia as a center of consumption. Lane argues effectively that Jews/New Christians were the critical group of traders that facilitated the emerald trade. I think too often we look at nations against nations as a way of understanding flows of goods, which is influenced by mercantilism's importance in the early modern world. As books like Lane's or Alison Games' Web of Empire show, the history of the Atlantic World has webs of people related in different ways controlling the majority of trade. For Lane, these Jews created communities in all regions of the world to facilitate trading. In addition, the fact that they were marginalized members of society that often had to hide their religion or origins helped them bond more concretely and dovetailed nicely with the illicit trade of emeralds. These traders were in my mind the agents of change in this book because they sought out the market for emeralds as well as supply of emeralds to satisfy the demand.

I appreciated this book for bring Eurasia into the world economy because though many books will say silver was being sent to Asia, very few try and put Asia at the center of the history. Although Lane spends a lot of his book describing the way the emeralds got to Eurasia, and thus the center seems to be in Europe, I think the point is that all this was happening in Europe in order to send emeralds and goods to Eurasia. If Eurasians don't want emeralds, a very different history would occur and this demand is very important. I do have to wonder how important  was this trade in emeralds though. Lane explains that emeralds provided the profit for most trading vessels, who were breaking even through their trade of bulk commodities to Europe such as tobacco, sugar, etc. This is problematic because if the ships were making a profit off of emeralds but the whole point of the expedition was to send back bulk goods, the demand would lie in the bulk goods that were the focus of the trip. This would lead the emeralds of secondary importance, and the main market and main impetus for the traders would be Europe acquiring goods for themselves, not Europe acquiring goods to trade to Eurasia. I think it is important to understand what was most important for the traders to acquire because it does change the center of the story. I think for Lane the location of consumption is most important because they are the ones moving the history with their demand. I think many of the commodity histories we have read tend towards emphasizing that production and supply are more important in the commodity chain. 

Emeralds and Asia? Not Exactly...

In Colour of Paradise, Kris Lane attempts to trace the production, transit, and consumption of emeralds in what he terms the ‘age of the sail and gunpowder.’ Lane outlines for us the gemological properties of emeralds, indigenous production of emeralds in Columbia, and trade networks linking the Spanish colonies to Europe and Asia. He utilizes many sources from a variety of disciplines, including some primary accounts of miners, merchants, Inquisitors, and royalty, as well as geological studies. I agree with Ben that Lane’s primary purpose is to explore the web of legal, as well as illicit and underground, trade networks of precious stones. His focus is on the stories of European traders and indigenous and European smugglers.

For me though, the most compelling aspects of the story – ascribed attributes to emeralds by Amerindians and the role of gift giving in the “Islamic” empires – were not explored enough. When discussing the Amerindian beliefs regarding emeralds, Lane talks about how they encapsulated the gemstones with spiritual meanings. Emeralds had close associations with the sun and with fertility. In the primary sources cited shortly after, Lane is discussing, from a Spanish colonist’s standpoint, how to find the best emerald mines. The colonist references that the best emeralds are “hatched” in the sun. Could the notions of emeralds “hatching” and their perceived superior development in sun-bathed areas have any connection to indigenous beliefs? Lane never mentions this possible connection. In addition, with the exception of the Muzo’s rebellions and some instances of smuggling, indigenous people and Africans are not given a tremendous amount of agency by Lane. Most of the time, mine workers are simply mentioned as overworked, abused, and viciously exploited people. This, of course, is a true assertion, but more attention could have been paid to other forms of resistance, indigenous knowledge, etc, rather than focusing primarily on the workers’ plight.

The practice of gift giving in Near Eastern and Middle Eastern societies is an ancient one, and it carries an enormous amount of ritual, conveying meanings of power, political posturing, and status. Lane’s book title and cover are very deceiving. One imagines that this would be a largely Asian centered work, with emphasis of the deep cultural meanings of emeralds in the context of religion and status. He also frames Mughal India (and, to a lesser extent, the Ottomans and Safavids) to be a non-traditional center with Columbia as its periphery. This is a fascinating claim, yet unfortunately, this book’s largely Eurocentric focus only pays passing mentions of this intriguing core-periphery arrangement.

Lane’s book is certainly not about emeralds (you can get a feeling for how rare they are by the amount of times he mentions them), but that is fine as they are not the true object of analysis. The expansive and dynamic trade networks, including diamonds, pearls, and other precious stones, are his real interest, and on this point he does fairly well. He successfully illuminates the key roles of the Sephardi Jews, New Christians, and “crypto-Jewish” traders and artisans. He shows how the emerald trade shifts, from being centered on the Iberian Peninsula to Northern Europe, particularly Amsterdam. This shift was a direct response to Spanish attempts to maintain high taxes and regulation on the emerald trade, which, not surprisingly, gave rise to smuggling as a means to avoid taxes. The merchants and globetrotting traders, European or otherwise, mentioned by Lane are the agents of change in this narrative. They are the ones amassing these precious gemstones, finding markets for them, and then transporting long distances into foreign lands.

Demand and consumption play important roles in Lane’s narrative. Emerald consumption is far and away the realm of the elite, encompassing the upper classes and royalty of Spanish America, Europe, and Asia. Lane makes an interesting note of comparison on the patterns of emerald consumption between Europe and Asia. While in both regions emeralds were used for fashion, displays of opulence, and for religious purposes, gender associations differed. Emeralds were almost exclusively the domain of women in Europe, while men adorned themselves with emerald amulets and other ornamentation in Asia. I wish Lane would have been able to draw more comparisons of this nature.

In all, this book left me wanting so much more, especially after reading some of the other commodity histories for this class. I do not think Lane’s work would find a place on my course syllabus.

Emeralds

Overall, I found Kris Lane’s The Colour of Paradise to be a very interesting and fast-reading book. In tracing the path of emeralds from the highland mines of Columbia to the courts of Islamic leaders and “gunpowder empires,” Lane discusses in detail the entire process of production, movement/trade and consumption. For Lane, the main focus of the book is to discuss the lesser-known trade routes and smuggling rings that passed emeralds across the Atlantic to Persian and Mughal courts. In addition, agency is given to multiple players throughout the chain, which makes the analysis much more interesting and enlightening. Emeralds were often smuggled by miners, past tax officials and mine owners into the hands of Dutch “New Christians” or families of “converted” Sephardic Jews. These Jews, with connections to jewelers and buyers in Lisbon, Amsterdam, and other trading ports, were one of the most integral and successful players in the commodity chain. Lane shows that, once the Spanish officials began to crack down on these Jews and evict them from Columbia during the Inquisition, the business of emeralds quickly shifted to the East India Company as the recent evictees moved their webs of contacts elsewhere.

While reading this book, I was also very interested in the importance of emeralds to the Islamic empires and the travel logs of those traveling throughout the region to initiate trade. Lane’s inclusion of personal accounts of East India Company traders perfectly highlighted both the immense dangers and massive rewards that could come along with searching for buyers in Mughal territory. Traders who fell out of favor could be sentenced to death by the Shah or a prince, or they could strike huge deals, earning diamonds and silver in return for high-quality emeralds. Green, the color of Islam and “paradise,” could mean prosperity or death in the empires of Asia and the Middle East, emphasizing the created cultural meanings that become attached to commodities, a subject we have discussed throughout the semester.