Today， across the United States， there is a lively<br > interest in spices and their uses. People every-<br > where are experimenting with spices and happily<br > discovering what delicious variety they bring to<br > foods. The popularity of ethnic foods has in-<br > creased the usage of colorful and exotic spices<br > while interest in tasty diet foods has revealed the<br > low-sodium， low-calorie and low-cholesterol vir-<br > tues of spices.<br > This fascination with spices， however， is not<br > new--it is centuries old. The same spices that we<br > take for granted have greatly influenced history.<br > When prehistoric man wrapped meat in leaves to<br > keep it clean， he discovered a means of seasoning<br > food. Exactly where this first took place， no one<br > knows， for spices are native to many lands. Wars<br > have been fought to acquire certain spices. The<br > Queen of Sheba gave King Solomon spices in<br >tribute to his great wisdom. Marco Polo returned<br >to Venice from the Orient with tales of sampling<br >ginger in China， cinnamon in Ceylon， cloves and<br >nutmeg in Molucca， and pepper in India. Colum-<br >bus journeyed westward in search of a better<br >route for spice trading.<br > Spices were almost impossible to obtain in co-<br >lonial America; however， herbs were grown for<br >everyday use. During the twentieth century， avail-<br >ability of spices from all over the world increased<br >dramatically， as is indicated by the vast array of<br >spices， herbs and blends now carried at the local<br >supermarkets.<br >