The Forgotten Colors of Medieval Carrots: What History Books Don't Tell You Long before the familiar orange carrot became a kitchen staple, medieval Europeans filled their tables with carrots in vibrant shades of purple and yellow. These colorful roots arrived in Europe through trade routes from the East, with Arab merchants introducing cultivated carrots to Southern Europe by the 12th century. Medieval cookbooks and herbals from the 12th-15th centuries describe these carrots as dark red (atroru