Global Commodities This link opens in a new windowFocused on 15 significant commodities: Chocolate, Coffee, Cotton, Fur, Oil, Opium, Porcelain, Silver & Gold, Spices, Sugar, Tea, Timber, Tobacco, Wheat, and Wine & Spirits. Each commodity is documented through manuscript materials, maps, posters, paintings, photographs, and rare books, allowing students to explore the origins of the commodity, their first uses, the trade that developed and the ways in which these items were marketed and consumed.