Find out how much a cocoa bean was worth in the XNUMXth century!

A recently cited Aztec archaeological document reveals what a single seed of this fruit could buy.

The Mayans and the Aztecs, two of the first civilizations in the world to cultivate the cacao tree for consumption; in addition to preparing drinks with the almonds of their fruit for religious ceremonies, they used them as currencies to exchange goods for their cultural and nutritional value.

And although this information was already public knowledge, to date it was not really known how much the cocoa bean was worth in the XNUMXth century, until the discovery of an Aztec archaeological document that reveals it.

According to a publication in Smithsonian magazine, this document refers to the fact that a cacao almond had the same value as a tamale at that time; and that 100 cocoa beans had the same value as a whole kettle.

Currently, a tamale in Mexico has an approximate value of $1, while a whole turkey, which weighs approximately 6 kilos, has a value in Spain of 30 euros.

The value of cocoa in colonial Venezuela

During the XNUMXth and XNUMXth centuries, cocoa was one of the main items of the Venezuelan economy.

In the middle of the XNUMXth century, Venezuela positioned itself as the largest producer and exporter of this fruit in the world, with an amount of 10.000 tons per year, and its variety "Caraca" was one of the most valued in Europe.

And so much was his courage that General Francisco de Miranda he covered a part of his expenses to enter the Royal Army in Spain with cocoa beans that his father gave him before he left Venezuela in the XNUMXth century.