[Sca-cooks] how to assess advice

[Decker, Terry D.]

The first sign of error is the constant use of the generalization, "period."
Period covers most of the world between the 5th and 17th Centuries, with
some people slipping over as late as 1650.  People with real knowledge of a
field may use "period," but they also place regional and temporal limits on
their statements.  Usually, the greater the knowledge, the more limitations.

Ask about documentation and sources.  Knowledgeable individuals don't mind
being asked how they know something is true.  On this list, a common refrain
is "recipe and documentation, please."  The best bull detectors are who,
what, where, when, why and how.  Ask questions and think carefully about the
answers.

Verify your sources.  If they mention other sources, try to find them and
verify their validity.

For example, last I checked, a number of online sources have coffee being
brought to Vienna in 1529.  They are in error.  This was the first siege of
Vienna, and coffee had been introduced to Constantinople less than 10 years
prior (IIRC).  Coffee actually arrives in Vienna in 1683 after the rout of
the second siege of Vienna when Georg Franz Kolshitsky claimed the coffee
abandoned by the Turks as his reward, and, according to legend, opened the
first Viennese coffeehouse.  The first documented Viennese coffeehouse
opened in 1685.

Good sources usually provide specifics which can be checked and often
provide copious notes and a bibliography to help locate original sources.
You might also check the Florilegium at http://www.florilegium.org for
clarifications, differing opinions and other citations.  While the
Florilegium is no more accurate than the people who post to the lists, it
offers greater diverity on various topics and the opportunity to check
citations and cross reference.

Being or not being a Laurel has no bearing on scholarship nor does it
magically confer omniniscience.  I've come across too many people over the
years who seem to think rank equates knowledge and are willing to
pontificate (often badly) on any subject.  Everyone has omissions and errors
in their knowledge.  The best people to learn from are those who admit the
fact and continue to learn.

Unless you know the facts, there is no way to be absolutely certain that
what you are being told is accurate.  As you accumulate knowledge in a
field, you will begin to recognize certain sources and have an opinion of
their validity and you may come to recognize when a statement is true in
point, but false in general.

When you say "period" cookbook, what do you mean?  Do you want a facsimile
of an original, a transcription of the original, a translation of an
original, or one with the recipes adapted into modern recipes?  From your
phrasing, I would say probably the latter, in which case, Cindy Renfrow's
"Take a Thousand Eggs or More," Cariadoc's "Cookbook Collection", Hieatt's
"Pleyn Delit," or Redon, et al. "The Medieval Kitchen" are the best bets in
my opinion.

If you want to try to work out your own adaptations, take a look at the
cookbook translations on Cariadoc's website:

http://www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Medieval.html

Or if you are feeling brave and have the language skills, tackle some of the
transcriptions on Thomas Gloning's website:

http://staff-www.uni-marburg.de/~gloning/kobu.htm

Bonne Chance

Bear




> I have a question about something that has been bugging me for some
> time.  I am fairly new to the SCA and I get advice from some of my
> local people and wonder just how good it is.
>
> For example, they told me that T-tunics in period were not made with
> gores. Yet I can find on-line documentation which sites
> primary sources
> to show that they were indeed made that way during the SCA period.  I
> was also told that someone's cookbook (of period recipes) was
> inaccurate.
> In light of the tunic comment I'm not sure about this one either.
> None of the people who told me this were Laurels in those subjects.
> (One of them is a Laurel; the other isn't.)
>
> How can one determine whether or not what you are being told is
> accurate?  I'd like to get a cookbook of period recipes but I want
> to get a good one!  Thanks for your advice!!
>
> --
>
> Adelheid Wolfensberger (mka Cindy Ferguson)
> crma at ix.netcom.com