SC - Potatoes

[Decker, Terry D.]

Greetings,

I seemed to have read somewhere about a way to make a cooler out of unglazed
pottery, like terracotta flower pots. The theories involved could have
worked in period. Basically, all you did was soak the pot in water, place
the food on a plate or the saucer of the pot and turn the pot upside down
over the two. As the water evaporated, it reduced the temperature inside the
pot keeping the food cool.

I would think it would be too cumbersome to use for large items or for an
extended period of time but I could see it being used to keep items brought
from a spring house cold until serving time. I have been thinking about
giving it a try at an event sometime. A "period" ice chest?

I don't have any documentation on it and I think I saw in Mother Earth News.

Ysabeau of Prague