Customs and excises are called the ‘Cinderella taxes’ because they are often overlooked and undervalued. That said, they have what no other tax has – they have gods, with a planet named after one, and an Adam. They have either two or three gods, depending on your accounting.

The Sumerian god, Gud, later known as Mercury (in Roman mythology) and Hermes (in Greek mythology), was associated with rain, agricultural fertility, and abundant harvests. To the Egyptians, he was known simply as The Messenger, while the Babylonians called him Nebo or Nebu.

In Greek mythology, Hermes was the god of commerce (trade) who crossed the boundary between life and death. He was widely considered the protector of travellers, merchants, and orators, and served as the emissary and messenger of the gods, who delivered messages and instructions between the gods and mortals.

In Roman mythology, Hermes was known as Mercury, originating from the Latin word merx, which means ‘merchandise’, from which the word ‘merchant’ originates. Mercury was the messenger of the gods, guide of the dead, protector of travellers, and inventor of letters, figures, mathematics, and astronomy. The planet Mercury is named after him.

As for the Adam, the father of economics, Adam Smith, wrote An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, published on March 9, 1776 – 250 years ago – with numerous references to customs and trade provisions. Ironically, despite being a free-trade proponent, he served as the commissioner of customs in Edinburgh, Scotland, in his final years.

Closer to home, I need to tell you about the end of the world and the origin of the tariff at a place where two continents and two oceans meet. In Greek mythology, Hermes and Heracles (Hercules) are both sons of Zeus, the king of the gods. The Pillars of Hercules, which mark the end of the world, are the marker of how far Hercules had travelled – the myth originated with the ancient Greeks and was adopted by the Romans.

Depending on the reference, the Pillars of Hercules, two promontories at the northern and southern ends of the Strait of Gibraltar, are said to have been in Tarifa, disputed to be in Gibraltar and Ceuta. Gibraltar is a British overseas territory and headland on Spain’s south coast, while Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain on the North African coast, bordered by Morocco – an enclave on the Moroccan coast. Tarifa is the southernmost city in Europe at the end of the Iberian Peninsula.

The Pillar in Tarifa is linked to international trade, as it is the city that gave the term ‘tariff’ to the field of international trade. The term originated from the fact that the Port of Tarifa charged and collected revenue (also called ‘dues’) for goods passing through the Mediterranean, now the Strait of Gibraltar. Stranger than fiction: although the word ‘tariff’ is used universally, Spain ironically calls it ‘arancel’.

So, how, and by whom, was the Strait of Gibraltar made? It was by Hercules. As for how, when he faced a huge mountain range linking Europe and Africa, some say he split the mountain in two with his great strength, while others say he pushed the land apart. Either way, this created the strait, linking the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea. This also created the two rocks we now call the Pillars of Hercules.

The ‘Monuments of the Pillars of Hercules’ primarily refers to the two promontories that mark the entrance to the Strait of Gibraltar: the Rock of Gibraltar (Calpe) and its counterpart on the African side, traditionally identified as Jebel Musa or Monte Hacho.

In Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in North Africa, stands a modern-day monument called the Pillars of Hercules (Spanish: Columnas de Hércules). This statue depicts the legendary Pillars of Hercules, two promontories flanking the Strait of Gibraltar, one on the Rock of Gibraltar and the other on Mount Hacho in Ceuta. The statue in Ceuta is a bronze sculpture of two pillars, held apart by a figure of Hercules.

I trust that this mystical customs and excise journey through time has left you spellbound.