Surf and Turf (1901–1903)

Abstract

According to Savage-Landor’s August 1901 observation, two-thirds of Gilan’s trade was in Russian hands. The shops in Rasht were the final repository for unsold inventory of canned goods, wines, and liquors that had been shipped from Baku and other Russian towns. The traditional French loaf sugar had been displaced by the cheaper Russian sugar. Tobacco products were of Russian and Turkish origin. The other one-third or so of Gilan’s import trade was in the form of English goods, principally from Manchester and largely in the form of shirting, whose good quality had given it a dominant market position despite the cheaper Russian, German, Austrian, Italian, and Dutch products.¹