The True History of Chocolate - Softcover

Sophie D. Coe; Michael D. Coe

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0500286965 ISBN 13: 9780500286968

Publisher: Thames and Hudson Ltd, 2010

Synopsis

The story begins some 3,000 years ago in the jungles of Mexico and Central America with the chocolate tree, Theobroma Cacao, and the complex processes necessary to transform its bitter seeds into what is now known as chocolate. This was centuries before chocolate was consumed in generally unsweetened liquid form and used as currency by the Maya, and the Aztecs after them. The Spanish conquest of Central America introduced chocolate to Europe, where it first became the drink of kings and aristocrats and then was popularized in coffeehouses. Industrialization in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries made chocolate a food for the masses, and now, in our own time, it has become once again a luxury item. The second edition draws on recent research and genetic analysis to update the information on the origins of the chocolate tree and early use by the Maya and others, and there is a new section on the medical and nutritional benefits of chocolate.

About this title

Review:

'A true classic' - The Literary Review 'Richly detailed and illustrated... a delightful work' - The Independent on Sunday 'An indispensable companion to the chocolate lover' - Chocolatier 'A splendid treat' - The New York Review of Books 'Genuinely scholarly and highly entertaining... erudite and delightful' - The Sunday Telegraph 'Truly exceptional' - The Scotsman

About the Author:

Michael D. Coe is Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and Curator Emeritus in the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale University. His books include The Maya, Reading the Maya Glyphs and Mexico and The True History of Chocolate, all published by Thames & Hudson.

About this edition

• Publisher: Thames and Hudson Ltd
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0500286965
• ISBN 13: 9780500286968
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 280