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.
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