How Salt Shaped Civilization: From the Roman Empire to the French Revolution

From the very first settlement in recorded history, early humans knew that to survive in the new age of agriculture, they’d need two things: access to water, and a source of salt. Without salt, our meats and vegetables wouldn’t last long enough to help us survive droughts, monsoons, and long periods between harvests. Our bodies wouldn’t have the necessary nutrients to live, and the entire experiment in building permanent villages might have failed. Salt tells the story of everything- as it was a foundational component of every culture, ever. And the lengths societies went to in order to procure the that gave us innovations ranging from commerce to hydraulics to so much more. In this video we look at the origins of the salt trade. The myths and legends surrounding its discovery, and the incredible stories from the earliest days of history all the way to the 20th century that have followed humanity’s long and important love affair with salt. - Please consider supporting OTR on Patreon and thanks so much to anyone who does; your support truly keeps us going. Website: Instagram: FB: - 0:00 - Introduction 1:07 - Salt Everywhere 4:36 - The Beginning 8:24 - Salted Fish 11:21 - Religion and Mythology 13:51 - Three Origin Stories 17:19 - The Early Salt Trade 19:54 - The Big Change 22:37 - Fish Sauce 25:54 - Riches and Salt Fortunes 28:03 - Ancient Rome 30:18 - Meat and Cheese 31:17 - Salt Wars 34:34 - Revolution and Resistance 37:33 - Salt in the Developing World 40:09 - Sausage and Sauerkraut 42:24 - On Every Table 46:32 - Burger and Fries 49:14 - American Salt History 51:17 - Conclusion - Video Credits: