[Sca-cooks] period iced foods

[Decker, Terry D.]

I think the problem here may be the may be an assumption that the current
value of the Pound is related to the period value of the Pound.

The period Pound was based on 12 ounces of silver or 240 silver pennies.
Today's LME rate for cash purchase of silver is $4.35.  That dish of ice
cream cost about $52.20 at today's rates and in terms of relative value, it
was probably quite a bit more.

Bear

> In lists.sca.sca-cooks, you wrote:
> >I can't remember where it was but
> >James 1st was reputed to have paid £1 a dish for 12 of his
> gentlemen to have
> >ice cream ( about $1.50 then!) and they talk about inflation
>
> About $1.50?  No way.  Multiply by a hundred at least for modern
> dollars... noblemen typically had incomes of around $2k or higher, to
> give you an idea, and the price you cite (1 pound) was, if I recall
> correctly, around the lower end of the price range for a horse.
>
> K.