ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on a detailed analysis of the diplomatic correspondence between the Savoyard and the imperial court from approximately 1730 to 1780. In order to place the Piedmontese-Austrian truffle connection in the right context, other cases of diplomatic instrumentalization of the truffle by the Savoia will also be briefly presented. The truffle enabled the emerging Savoy dynasty to create a distinct and unequaled profile for themselves, as the Truffes blanches de Piémont were, due to their rareness, simultaneously precious and as a gift object exclusively connected with the territory of Savoy. From correspondence and other diplomatic contact with the courts of Vienna, London, Paris, and Berlin, it becomes very clear that this culinary resource for the kings of Savoy was not just an object of occasional value, but rather a deliberately exploited instrument and image that sustained their quest for preeminence and prestige.
