Logo: to the web site of Uppsala University

When coffee first emerged in the Western world its place within our society was heavily questioned. Seen as a morally corruptive goods, coffee was regulated by sumptuary laws and was periodically banned. These notions eventually faded which paved the way for wider commerce and coffee houses which came to transform consumption habits and cultures in Western societies. This thesis analyses British trade cards from the 18th and 19th centuries to uncover how coffee was marketed as a luxurious goods and how the trade cards came to change when coffee eventually became a commodity.