SC - Hand washing ritual at feasts

[Stephen Bloch]

Meriel of the Marsh writes:

> ... I haven't managed to find
> anything on washing hands at feasts. 
> We would love to know just how this is done. Should the servers go
> around to each seated person with pitchers of scented water and a
> towel of sorts, with a helper to catch it in a suitable container; do just the
> fingers get washed ritually or is it both hands properly; and when does
> one time it for, so that the food doesn't cold in the process and there's an
> awful hiatus?! Or what and how, please?

I've only been to two or three feasts where this was done.  One was the
Midrealm Cooks' Collegium in 1992 or 1993.  Only a few dozen people
were there, so it didn't delay things terribly.  I think we had two
servers go around with ewer, basin, and towel.  The second was a dinner
for twenty or so in Enchanted Ground at Pennsic, 1995, with (by strange
coincedence) largely the same collection of people.  It can work, if
you have a high enough ratio of servers to diners.  A compromise, for
when you have few servers or lots of diners, is to put finger-bowls of
scented water on all the tables in advance.

In re the food getting cold: my understanding is that most medieval
cooking was done a significant distance away from the feast hall, often
in a separate building, and that most of it was close to room
temperature by the time it was served.

					mar-Joshua ibn-Eleazar ha-Shalib
                                                 Stephen Bloch
                                           sbloch at panther.adelphi.edu
					 http://www.adelphi.edu/~sbloch/
                                        Math/CS Dept, Adelphi University
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