Buzz
In today's era of abundance, items that our ancestors might have encountered only once in their lifetimes are now just a click away, delivered straight to our doorsteps. This dramatic change is most evident when examining the objects and materials that past generations once revered. To them, these items were rare treasures, symbols of pride and status. To us, they are so commonplace that it’s almost unbelievable they were ever considered special.
10. Pretzels
While most people today would agree that pretzels are a tasty snack, few would consider them fit for royalty. However, in early 17th-century Sweden, pretzels were held in such high esteem that they played a role in royal wedding ceremonies. Around 1614, these twisted treats were seen as symbols of prestige and were used to celebrate the unions of noble couples.
Take a moment to consider how astonishing this is. Imagine two individuals from wealthy, aristocratic families, uniting in marriage with all their combined riches, and choosing to symbolize their union with a pretzel. Yet, at the time, this humble snack carried a wealth of cultural and symbolic significance that made it a meaningful and even logical choice for such an occasion.
Originally crafted by monks and distributed to their students, pretzels in 17th-century Europe were seen as symbols of divine blessing. This is somewhat akin to how Catholics today consume wine not out of a love for fine vintages but because they believe it represents the blood of Christ.
Additionally, pretzel bakers played a crucial role in foiling an Ottoman plan to invade Vienna a century earlier, when they overheard enemy soldiers tunneling near their bakery. Given this history, the real wonder isn’t that pretzels were once held in such high regard, but rather that they no longer are.
9. Black Pepper
Wherever you are, pause for a moment and head to the nearest kitchen or restaurant. Notice that small shaker of black pepper sitting on the table? You likely overlook it most of the time. However, if you had lived in medieval Europe, that modest shaker would have left you utterly astounded. In those days, black pepper was among the most prized commodities on the planet.
Today, there’s no modern equivalent to truly grasp how exorbitantly costly ordinary black pepper once was. Picture stumbling upon a golden chest brimming with rare truffles—this might give you a faint idea of how your medieval ancestors would have reacted to discovering a pepper shaker.
Imported to Europe via the Silk Road from Kerala in southern India, black pepper was so highly valued that merchants in Venice and Genoa could set prices as high as they pleased. Even now, the Dutch use the term “pepper expensive” to describe items with outrageously high price tags.
Pepper was so precious in those times that it motivated Christopher Columbus to embark on his voyages, aiming to bypass Venetian pepper monopolies. In the West Indies, he filled his ship’s hold with what he believed to be pepper, only to later realize his error and that his entire cargo was worthless.
8. Aluminum
If a competition were held to crown the most mundane element on Earth, aluminum would undoubtedly take the prize. While undeniably useful, it’s also incredibly abundant, visually unremarkable, and found in everything from vehicles to beverage containers. Simply put, it lacks the allure of gold, silver, or even bronze. However, this wasn’t always the case. In the mid-1800s, aluminum was so prized that the U.S. government considered cladding the nation’s most iconic landmarks with it.
Back in 1884, 28 grams (1 ounce) of aluminum cost about $1. At first glance, this might not seem like much. However, when compared to the average worker’s wages, it becomes staggering. An ordinary laborer would need to toil for at least 10 hours straight to afford a single ounce. To put this into perspective, 28 grams of silver today costs around $17, which can be earned in just over 2 hours on minimum wage in 2016.
Consequently, aluminum became a symbol of prestige and wealth. The U.S. government even chose aluminum for the apex of the Washington Monument to showcase the nation’s prosperity and influence globally. There were even proposals to incorporate aluminum into numerous other monuments on Capitol Hill. Fortunately, these plans were never realized, sparing Washington from a rather gaudy appearance today.
7. Books
In today’s digital age, where countless ebooks can be downloaded with a few taps, the written word often feels almost worthless. This makes it astonishing to reflect on how highly books were once valued. A prime example of this is the third-century BC agreement between Ptolemy III and Athens, which highlights the immense worth placed on literature.
As the ruler of Egypt, Ptolemy III’s most prized possession was the Library of Alexandria, a renowned center of knowledge housing many of the ancient world’s most significant texts. The city even enforced a policy of searching every incoming ship for books. If any were discovered, they were seized for the library, with the owner compensated financially.
When Ptolemy III requested to borrow Athens’ rare manuscripts of Sophocles, Euripides, and Aeschylus, the Athenians insisted on a hefty insurance deposit. They demanded an astounding 15 talents of silver as collateral.
In modern terms, this would be akin to Greece demanding billions of dollars from Egypt in exchange for a few books. The purpose was to ensure Ptolemy III couldn’t afford to keep the original manuscripts.
However, Ptolemy III chose to forfeit the 15 talents of silver to keep the books, despite the significant financial strain it placed on his treasury. Remarkably, he didn’t hoard the originals for himself but sent copies back to Athens. For him, possessing the original texts was worth nearly bankrupting his state.
6. Nutmeg
Today, nutmeg—a fragrant spice with slight hallucinogenic properties—can be purchased at Walmart for about $3 per 56 grams (2 ounces). This statement would likely have shocked your ancestors, especially after you explained what “Walmart” even was.
In medieval times, nutmeg wasn’t merely a prized spice; it was arguably the most valuable commodity on Earth. During the 14th century, its value even surpassed that of gold.
The global obsession with spices during the spice trade era is almost unimaginable today. Spain and Portugal, for instance, waged deadly conflicts over cloves, resulting in thousands of deaths. Yet, even that pales in comparison to the frenzy surrounding nutmeg.
In the 17th century, the tiny Indonesian island of Run, rich in nutmeg, became the most coveted piece of land on the planet. The British and Dutch fought bitterly over this 3-kilometer (2-mile) stretch, narrowly avoiding mutual destruction when the Dutch agreed to trade Manhattan for it.
Yes, the Dutch exchanged Manhattan for a minuscule island you’ve likely never heard of, all for the sake of nutmeg. If you ever find yourself with a time machine and can only take one household item, ensure it’s your spice rack.
5. Beds
Shakespeare penned numerous comedies, but his will might be his most amusing work. In it, he famously wrote, “I give unto my wife my second-best bed,” delivering one of history’s greatest posthumous insults. Imagining Mrs. Shakespeare’s reaction is undeniably hilarious—no matter how luxurious the bed, the sting of that remark is unforgettable.
Our modern perspective views beds as ordinary household items, but in the early 1600s, this wasn’t the case. Historians studying Shakespeare’s era have discovered wills from that period that lovingly mention bequeathing “second-best” beds. To us, this might seem odd, but back then, furniture was so prized that even lesser-quality beds were seen as prestigious status symbols.
A contemporary comparison might be inheriting your spouse’s “second-best car.” While you’d prefer the top model, if it’s still a high-end vehicle like a Lamborghini Veneno, you’d hardly have grounds for complaint.
4. Broken Cups and Plates
Here’s a curious thought: when can something broken be worth more than when it’s intact? The answer lies in Japan a few centuries ago. In the 15th century, a shogun commissioned artisans to develop a visually appealing method for repairing broken pottery. The technique they created was so remarkable that repaired items often became more valuable than their original, unbroken forms.
This ancient art, known as kintsugi, involves highlighting cracks by filling them with a gold-colored resin. Philosophically, it aligns with the concept of wabi-sabi, which celebrates the beauty found in imperfections.
While still practiced today, modern methods lack the same prestige. However, during the pre-Tokugawa and Edo periods, kintsugi was such a revered craft that expertly repaired pottery could fetch exorbitant prices.
3. Bird Poop
It’s no exaggeration to say that bird droppings once sparked deadly conflicts. In fact, nations waged wars, financed transoceanic voyages, and rose to global prominence—all over what emerged from a bird’s rear end. During the latter half of the 19th century, the Western world was powered by guano.
While Peruvians had used guano as fertilizer for centuries, colonialists initially overlooked it, focusing instead on extracting precious metals. That changed in the early 1800s when Alexander von Humboldt, a Prussian explorer, sent a sample to European chemists. They discovered its extraordinary fertilizing properties, sparking a frenzy across Europe and marking the dawn of the “Age of Guano.”
At its peak, guano influenced 19th-century politics like no other substance. President Millard Fillmore even devoted part of his first State of the Union address to addressing guano prices, which were soaring at nearly $5 per 28 grams (1 ounce)—far exceeding the value of aluminum at its height years later.
In 1856, the U.S. Congress enacted a law permitting Americans to claim guano-rich islands worldwide for the nation. This led to the acquisition of the eight U.S. Minor Outlying Islands, parts of Samoa, and Hawaii. Without this legislation, the establishment of the Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Monument in 2014 would have been unthinkable.
Other nations also joined the guano rush. Britain’s imperial ventures in Africa, such as those off Namibia’s coast, were partly driven by guano acquisition. Peru and Bolivia even fought a bloody war against Chile over guano deposits, resulting in around 15,000 deaths. Spain bombarded its colonies for control of this resource, earning guano the nickname “white gold” worldwide.
Eventually, the guano craze came to an end. The advent of chemical fertilizers made natural alternatives obsolete, and guano faded into obscurity. Today, the notion that wars were waged and lives lost over something as mundane as bird droppings seems utterly absurd. Yet, history is full of such oddities. Undoubtedly, future generations will look back at the things we currently fight over and cherish, shake their heads, and wonder, “What on earth were they thinking?”
2. Tomatoes
Tomatoes are a staple in nearly every global cuisine. Consider how frequently you consume them—whether on pizza, in pasta, or as ketchup on a hot dog. Despite their ubiquity, tomatoes are a relatively recent addition to Western diets.
First cultivated by the Maya, tomatoes reached Europe in the 16th century. While Italians and Spaniards embraced them quickly, northern Europeans were more skeptical. As part of the nightshade family, which includes some highly toxic plants, tomatoes initially faced significant distrust.
As a result, tomatoes didn’t gain widespread popularity until the mid-18th century. This rarity in northern Europe and the American colonies likely explains why our ancestors viewed the tomato as a plant of almost unparalleled beauty.
In the early American colonies, tomatoes were as prized as rare orchids are today. They were scarce, valuable, and cultivated primarily for their visual appeal. People were captivated by them, and 18th-century Americans even composed poems about tomatoes, much like we might write about roses. The image of Pilgrims gazing thoughtfully at a tomato and pondering its beauty may seem odd, but it reflects the reverence they held for this fruit.
1. Table Salt
Salt is essential for human survival, as our bodies require it to function. Without it, health deteriorates rapidly. It’s no surprise that our ancestors held it in high regard. However, this entry focuses not on ancient times but on a more recent era when salt remained a highly coveted commodity. In fact, it was a significant point of contention during the US Civil War.
The significance of ordinary salt during the Civil War cannot be overstated. Both the Confederacy and the Union relied on it to preserve soldiers’ rations, process leather, and dye uniforms. It was a critical resource for the war effort and a key strategic target.
From the outset, Union forces prioritized attacking the South’s limited inland salt production sites. This highlights how vital salt was—more so than basic infrastructure, water supplies, or even cities. Disrupting salt production was seen as essential to securing victory.
The Confederacy also recognized salt’s importance. Jefferson Davis exempted individuals from military service if they worked in coastal salt production, making it one of the few reliable ways to avoid conscription in the South.
