Central Asia - Princely Raiders, Peasant Traders
We're used to loose-leaf tea and tea bags, but what about tea in bricks? Carried by horse or camel across the steppes of Central Asia from as early as the 8th century AD, brick tea was not only easy to carry but was used as an edible currency. Ground up and cooked with salt, butter fat and grain, tea makes a high-energy food stuff that is perfect for keeping people warm in cold climates.
Whether the 'Tracing Tea' team will be happy to trade their traditional English cuppa for a bowl of yak butter tea, we shall have to wait and see.
