Malabar Pepper

Timeline

1. c. 1581–1584Calicut · KeralaPepper gardens along the Malabar coast harvested unripe pepper spikes after the monsoon, sun-drying them into black peppercorns; local zamindars and Muslim merchants graded them by weight, with Portuguese factor-supervised purchases subject to customs duties.
2. c. 1584–1587Cochin · KeralaCochin became Portugal's main loading port in Malabar; black pepper was stowed in the holds of great carracks and sailed alongside cinnamon and gems, with the Portuguese crown collecting a forty percent trade tax before the remainder was shipped onward via Goa.
3. c. 1587–1590Lisbon · PortugalPepper ships rounded the Cape of Good Hope to reach Lisbon's India warehouses, then redistributed to Antwerp, Venice, and Ottoman markets; after the Iberian Union of 1580, pepper revenues were incorporated into Philip II's finances, and Dutch merchant ships also began tentative purchases.