[Sca-cooks] Re: flaming food - was post period was Festival

[Terry Decker]

>Another interesting thing to me, is how early this is, 1390, yet
>obvious evidence of distilling. Probably for drinking, but we can;t
>tell from just this.

Remember that Arnaud de Villnueve is credited with producing the first
brandy around 1300.

And also the use of "cotton"! We do have
>evidence of cotton cloth as Charlemange had a tunic of it. But it
>seems to be rare. Yet here we have it used as a wick. Although
>loose cotton batting doesn't necessarily mean there was cotton fabric.
>I have also heard that cotton batting, as well as the silk from
>broken cacoons was used in armor gambesons but I don't remember the
>time period or location.

The recipe does not specify cotton as a wick.  It is being used a a
reservoir for the flammable spirits.

Cotton was presumably being grown and woven in Spain by mid-13th Century.
The industry appears to originate in the Neolithic Indus Valley and was
transferred to China and Egypt during Antiquity.

>
>I wonder why a "double-wicked" candle?
>
>--
>THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra

Simple redundancy most likely.

Bear