Introduction: A Bit of History
Once more according to Barros, it was the discovery of the New World, however, that had the greatest influence on the introduction of previously unknown plant species to the African continent: America was a rich source of new useful plants … The varied vegetation of the American tropics, and their natural products, were studied with interest and sometimes with true scientific spirit by Spanish travelers and writers … The seeds of interesting species came to Europe, and some flourished in the climate of Spain and Portugal, as happened with corn and peppers. Others, however, required greater heat; their cultivation in temperate climates was impossible, but they could develop in the tropics of Africa and Asia, where they were taken.5 Also, as I explain in my first book released in English, titled Traditional Brazilian Black Magic: The history of the discovery and colonization of Brazil [and all Americas] is intertwined with the history of the African diaspora and the slave system that was practiced all over the world. While Europe since ancient times has been the cultural center of the West, Africa has been the commercial center. … Even when the trade market shifted to Asia in the Middle Ages, the African continent remained an important commerce source. By the middle of the thirteenth century, Italy had expanded its commercial activities and dominated trade in the 5. Conde de Ficalho, Plantas Úteis da África Portuguesa (Lisboa: Divisão de Publicaðcões e Biblioteca, Agência General das Colónias, 1947), in Barros, A Floresta Sagrada de Ossain. 4
