Precious Commodities Worth (More Than) Their Weight In Gold

The saffron war of 1374 lasted 14 weeks driven by a notion that the spice could cure plague. It can’t. But people lost their heads over it. It’s not just gold, diamonds, and oil we cherish and plunder. Seemingly benign commodities—whether it’s medicinal tea or stinky fungus—have exerted power over us for centuries. Here’s just a taste of their recent history.Learn more: http://pops.ci/67wHes--Producer/Video ByJason LedermanNarratorCorinne IozzioResearchEllen AirhartGraphsSara ChodoshMediaWikimedia CommonsPexelsPixabayAfrican Wildlife FoundationAmazonMophieDepositPhotoshttps://depositphotos.com/63608823/stock-photo-tin-can-and-a-spoon.htmlhttps://depositphotos.com/193413112/stock-photo-da-hong-pao-oolong-tea.htmlhttps://depositphotos.com/177780130/stock-photo-set-for-chinese-tea-ceremony.htmlCC BY 2.0https://www.flickr.com/photos/geishaboy500/4321852882/ (cropped and rotated)CC BY-SA 2.0https://www.flickr.com/photos/skewgee/7082047069 CC BY 3.0https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E5%A4%A7%E7%BA%A2%E8%A2%8D_-_Dahongpao(Big_Red_Robe_Tea)_on_the_Cliff_-_2010.09_-_panoramio.jpgCC BY-SA 3.0https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Beluga_sturgeon_in_aquarium.webmCC BY-SA 4.0https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Safran-Weinviertel_Niederreiter_2_Gramm_8285.jpg (original and background removed)https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:White-truffle-pic.jpg (original and background removed)https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hongwu1_crop.jpg (cropped)--FOLLOW POPULAR SCIENCEhttps://www.popsci.comFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/popsciTwitter: https://www.twitter.com/popsciInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/popsciSnapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/add/popularsciencePinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/popularscience