Abstract:Spices have a wide range of uses and great economic value in Chinese diet, medicine and daily life. The Chinese culture of using spices can be traced back to ancient times, and the introduction of spices from Southeast Asian countries greatly promoted the development of China's spice culture. Among them, the spice trade between Indonesia and China is an important factor that cannot be ignored. The ways of spice trade between ancient Indonesia and China can be divided into tributary trade and private trade. With the development of trade policy and scale, it can be divided into three main historical periods, namely the pioneering period of Han and Tang Dynasties, the heyday of Song and Yuan Dynasties, and the decline of Ming and Qing Dynasties. The spice trade between Indonesia and China has had a profound influence to China's cultural life and the economic development of the two countries.