[Sca-cooks] European period painkillers

[Stefan li Rous]

Thorbjorn said:
> I believe and could be wrong that Opium was a SE and Central Asian drug. I
> know that the English fought a war with China over the exportation of the
> drug to China by the English. Most of the worlds Opium comes from
> Afghanistan and that region of the world.

The war of which you speak is post-1600. Yes, the English had nothing
that the Chinese thought they wanted. But the English wanted the goods
that the Chinese had. So, by importing opium they managed to create
and supply a market. Thus having something to trade for the Chinese
goods they wanted.

Yes, you are right. Most of the world's opium comes from southwest
Asia. However, I'm not sure that much of it got into medieval Europe.

--
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
   Mark S. Harris            Austin, Texas          stefan at texas.net
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****