Prehistoric writings...

is an oxymoron. Prehistory is the period before recorded history; any written record of the time would disqualify it as prehistory.47.19.43.2 (talk) 12:49, 15 March 2016 (UTC)

Spices were not the primary goods that made money. Opium was.

Can it be pointed out that historians are unwilling to say that opium was the main product that made the "spice" traders money. There is no way that spices would have made much money to justify sailing around the world to get spices and bring them back to Europe. Christopher Columbus, Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile were all opium addicts. Opium addicts wanting to sail to India to get opium makes sense. People wanting to risk their lives just to get cinnamon does not make sense. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.44.244.128 (talk) 16:36, 15 June 2016 (UTC)

Please cite a reliable source that supports your point of view. Apuldram (talk) 17:48, 15 June 2016 (UTC)

This article is not about opium

I have reverted the edits about opium, made by 50.44.237.155 / 50.44.244.128, as opium is not a spice and is not on the List of culinary herbs and spices. Although opium is one of the wide variety of goods that were, and still are, traded, it has no special connection with the spice trade. Any useful contribution about opium should be made in the articles about it and the opium trade, not here. Apuldram (talk) 13:56, 16 June 2016 (UTC)

The main product that made money, which was opium, should be included. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.45.4.118 (talk) 16:42, 18 October 2016 (UTC)

Historians do not know if actual spices made a profit for Europeans

Historians do not know if actual spices made a profit for Europeans — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.45.13.165 (talk) 15:34, 26 June 2016 (UTC)

50.45.13.165 appears not to have read the several articles by historians cited in the article, for example:
"The palaces of Venice and Genoa, the riches of the Fugger and Welser merchant families of southern Germany, and the splendor of Lisbon and Amsterdam were established mainly on the profits from the spice trade." (The spice trade and its importance for European expansion)
Apuldram (talk) 21:24, 26 June 2016 (UTC)

"Spice" is just historians code for opium. People involved in the space trade just made their money from opium. Does anyone really think after hearing that Christopher Columbus and the royals who chartered him were opium addicts that spices were the main product that made money? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 50.45.4.118 (talk) 16:53, 18 October 2016 (UTC)