Spencer LowMar 125 min16th century Dutch spy who exposed Portuguese secretsMy last post on the 15th century Portuguese merchant-spy Pêro da Covilhã prompted quite a bit of debate among some readers around how the...
Spencer LowMar 53 minPêro da Covilhã: 15th century merchant-spyIn the history of the Portuguese Age of Discoveries, the focus has been on the maritime exploits of the day, with Bartolomeu Dias sailing...
Spencer LowOct 30, 20223 minThe Portuguese impact on KeralaKerala, a state on the southwest coast of India, is perhaps not particularly well-known in the rest of the world. I first heard about it...
Spencer LowAug 17, 20212 minThe Codex Casanatense: first example of intellectual fusion between Asia and Europe?The Codex Casanatense, or Códice Casanatense in Portuguese, is a set of 16th century Portuguese illustrations. Likely the work of an...
Spencer LowAug 15, 20212 minWhen the Portuguese first arrived in India...Vasco da Gama led the first Portuguese expedition to India, setting sail from Lisbon on July 8, 1497 and arriving in Calicut only on May...
Spencer LowJan 1, 20212 minPortuguese influence on Indian cuisineIndian cuisine should perhaps be more accurately referred to in the plural: there are so many regional differences, from seafood-heavy...
Spencer LowOct 17, 20201 minThe Portuguese in IndiaIn their quest for spices, Europeans raced to be the first to reach India. The Portuguese won, but this was merely the start of their...