[2][3] They are native to the Maluku Islands, or Moluccas, in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring, or fragrance in consumer products, such as toothpaste, soaps, or cosmetics.

[11][7] The clove tree is an evergreen that grows up to 8–12 metres (26–39 ft) tall, with large leaves and crimson flowers grouped in terminal clusters.

The flower buds initially have a pale hue, gradually turn green, then transition to a bright red when ready for harvest.

[citation needed] Cloves are used in the cuisine of Asian, African, Mediterranean, and the Near and Middle East countries, lending flavor to meats (such as baked ham), curries, and marinades, as well as fruit (such as apples, pears, and rhubarb).

[5][21][22] Clove essential oil may prevent the growth of Enterococcus faecalis bacteria which may be present in an unsuccessful root canal treatment.

[citation needed] The first notable example of modern clove farming developed on the east coast of Madagascar, and is cultivated in three separate ways, a monoculture, agricultural parklands, and agroforestry systems.

[27] Archaeologist Giorgio Buccellati found cloves in Terqa, Syria, in a burned-down house which was dated to 1720 BC during the kingdom of Khana.

[35] A study at the site of Óc Eo in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam found starch grains of cloves on stone implements used in food processing.

[citation needed] From Chinese records during the Song Dynasty (960 to 1279 AD) cloves were primarily imported by private ventures, called Merchant Shipping Offices, who bought goods from middlemen in the Austronesian polities of Java, Srivijaya, Champa, and Butuan.

This endowment included an Egyptian estate, its annual revenues, 150 libra (around 50 kg or 108 lb) of cloves, and other amounts of spices and papyrus.

[42] Cosmas Indicopleustis in his book Topographia Christiana outlined his travels to Sri Lanka, and recounted that the Indians said that cloves, among other products, came in from unspecified places along sea trade routes.

[32][33][34] These mentions of "cloves" reported in China, South Asia, and the Middle East come from before the establishment of Southeast Asian maritime trade.

But all of these are misidentifications that referred to other plants (like cassia buds, cinnamon, or nutmeg); or are imports from Maritime Southeast Asia mistakenly identified as being natively produced in these regions.

Exotic luxuries including cloves, ginger, peppercorns, and saffron would have impressed the noblemen and high church officials at the summit.

The body and coffin of Philippe René de la Motte Ango, count of Flers who was buried in 1737 AD contained whole cloves.

[49] As the Dutch East India Company consolidated its control of the spice trade in the 17th century, they sought to gain a monopoly in cloves as they had in nutmeg.

[49] Tourists are told that seedlings from this very tree were stolen by a Frenchman named Pierre Poivre in 1770, transferred to the Isle de France (Mauritius), and then later to Zanzibar, which was once the world's largest producer of cloves.