Nobody ever felt bad receiving a box of chocolates. In fact, nobody ever felt bad receiving a gift in general. As humans, we like presents. It feels good to receive something nice from someone.
But do you know the history of gift-giving and the journey the cacao bean took from snuggling cosily in its fruit to landing up on the shelves of supermarkets, cafes and chocolatiers, just waiting to treat people?
We’re going to take a little trip through time to examine the history of gift-giving and chocolate.
The history of gift-giving
But first, let’s have a look at the human practice of gift-giving.
Over the aeons, this practice had various aims:
- To show love and appreciation
- To show wealth and dominance
- To attract a partner
The earliest gift-givers can be traced all the way back to the Stone Age and the cavemen.
Cavemen would give gifts of bones or nice stones, which the receiver could then make into jewellery or decoration to wear around the cave and show they were appreciated or that they’d done something reward worthy. Cavemen also gave gifts as a sign of dominance.
Jumping forward a bit to Ancient Egypt, when an Egyptian became Pharaoh, they would be considered a god and their birthday was the day they began this new life as a deity. On this day, they would be showered with gifts – a precursor to the modern birthday.
Nowadays, we know you can’t take it with you when you die but they believed otherwise, and tombs of rich Egyptians would be filled with their favourite possessions so they could take them along to the afterlife.
In the Christian tradition, upon Jesus’ birth, it’s believed that three wise men brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to the newborn. This has contributed to the act of gift-giving on both birthdays and Christmas.
The Ancient Greeks believed evil spirits would visit you on your birthday, so they would give gifts and blow out candles to try to keep them away. And in Rome, emperors would get gifts at the Festival of Saturnalia.
In the Middles Ages, the concept of finding a partner by giving a dowry found its start. Men would offer a dowry to ‘buy’ their wives from their potential father-in-law.
In the Americas, the tradition of Potlatch was found among Native American tribes, where it was more about the giver than the receiver, and gifts were given to show power, wealth and status.
Today, we’ve come a long way from stones and bones, but the concept of gift-giving remains.
What about giving chocolates as a gift?
To trace the path of chocolate, we need to head to Mexico around 1900BCE. The Olmecs, one of the oldest civilizations in Mesoamerica, discovered chocolate and used it as a medicine and during rituals.
Then the Mayans took it on and created drinking chocolate made with cornmeal and chilli pepper, called xocolatl or ‘bitter water’.
The Aztecs believed that the cacao beans were gifted to them by Quetzalcoatl, the god of wind and one of the creator gods, who resembled a sort of serpent-bird. It is said that he flew over the land gifting the food of the gods to mortals. So, really, chocolate was destined to be a gift right from the beginning.
When the conquistadors came along, it is said that Hernan Cortez was gifted a basket of chocolate by the emperor Montezuma, who allegedly drank litres of chocolate each day to boost energy and virility.
If the Olmecs, Mayans and Aztecs are responsible for discovering chocolate, it was the Spanish queens who turned it into the luxurious gift it has come to be. They would dole it out around high society to their favourites and created chocolate’s association with decadence, richness and indulgence.
In particular, Anne of Austria (a Spanish princess), who married France’s King Louis XIII, and Maria Theresa of Spain, who married King Louis XIV of France were responsible for spreading it to other parts of Europe.
Queen Maria Theresa gifted her new husband a chest of chocolate and he took such a liking to it that he ordered it to be served in the Palace of Versailles on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays.
To get to box form, we need to fast-forward a bit to the Victorian era in the year 1853 when John Cadbury came up with the brilliant idea to make a box of chocolates as opposed to the usual block. And thus, the box of chocolate entered the commercial market, and this sign of love and affection became a purchasable commodity.
Benefits of eating chocolate
Besides the warm and happy feeling that chocolate gives you, there are actual health and psychological benefits when you eat it in moderation. Remember, chocolate does contain fat and some sugar, so should be enjoyed as a treat, not a meal.
Rich in vitamins and minerals
Good quality dark chocolate contains many important vitamins and minerals. In fact, if you eat a 100g bar of 75%-80% dark chocolate, you can get almost all of your recommended daily allowance (RDA) of copper and manganese, half your daily magnesium requirements, and two-thirds of your iron RDA.
Antioxidants
Antioxidants remove free radicals from your system, which are the by-products of energy production that can lead to cancer. Chocolate, especially dark chocolate, is rich in antioxidants.
Happy heart
Some studies have shown that people who consume chocolate have a lowered risk of heart disease as well as stroke.
Better blood flow
Cocoa contains bioactive compounds that produce nitric oxide (NO), and this helps to relax your arteries. This leads to a slight but significant decrease in blood pressure by improving blood flow.
Sunscreen
Cocoa has flavanols and these boost blood flow to the skin, which can guard it against sun damage by rendering the skin more resistant to UV light. Flavanols are also anti-inflammatory.
Cognitive function
Cocoa contains the stimulants caffeine and theobromine, and so can improve concentration and focus. Chocolate also increases blood flow to the brain, which boosts brain function.
Feel good function
Chocolate’s flavanols also boost endorphin release and regulate serotonin and dopamine levels, which all contribute to a feeling of well-being and euphoria.
Stress reduction
Magnesium is found in chocolate, and this suppresses the release of cortisol, which is the stress-inducing hormone. Anandamide is also present in chocolate and reduces stress levels.
Love is like a box of chocolates
Chocolate can be given to family, friends, colleagues, lovers, and anyone in between. It can express gratitude, affection, apology, love, appreciation, recognition and sympathy.
Chocolate has been used from its outset to strengthen or build relationships and connections between people and cultures. It expresses meaning where words fail and conveys friendship and love across the barrier of languages.
At Davies, we have a wide range of options for giving the gift of chocolate this festive season.
Grab a gift box to take to a dinner party or give as a Secret Santa. Take some snack bags as stocking fillers or give a gift hamper to someone special.
Check out our full range to find your perfect chocolate gift here.