[Sca-cooks] Spice Storage

[Stefan li Rous]

Urtatim asked:
> Some European stuff suggests that at least in some times and places
> spices were kept in leather pouches (14th c. France, IIRC)

Apparently also in apothecary jars as well. At least at the merchants.

 From my spice-storage-msg file:
> Date: Sat, 29 Apr 2000 02:22:50 -0700
> From: "David Dendy" <ddendy  at silk.net>
> Subject: Re: SC - transporting ingredients
>
> >Okay, so we have the spice box set up and the sacks for larger 
> quantities of
> >things like wheat and rice.  How did people in period store and/or 
> transport
> >powders like amydoun, powdour douce, and so on?  Do we have any 
> pictures or
> >documentation, or do we fall back on rustic jars with corks in 
> because they
> >look more period than glass screwtop jars?
> >
> >Cairistiona
>
> The most usual solution would have been in pottery jars. These are 
> usually
> known as apothecary jars -- most commonly they are in a majolica-type 
> of
> ware, with blue or green decoration. The usual shape is fairly tall,
> narrower at top and bottom than in the middle, which has a concave 
> curvature
> (sorry if the description isn't the clearest). And these jars would be
> closed not with corks (the use of cork for stoppers is very late, if I
> recall correctly), but with a piece of parchment tied down with a cord 
> over
> the projecting lip of the top of the jar. I have also met mention in 
> account
> books of pounded spices and mixtures being delivered from the spice 
> merchant
> in bags (I can't recall off the top of my head whether cloth or 
> leather), so
> I suspect that this would also answer your needs. Would you like me to 
> dig
> up the exact references?
>
> Francesco Sirene
> David Dendy / ddendy  at silk.net
> partner in Francesco Sirene, Spicer / sirene  at silk.net
> Visit our Website at http://www.silk.net/sirene/
>
>
> Date: Sat, 29 Apr 2000 06:26:18 -0700
> From: Anne-Marie Rousseau <acrouss  at gte.net>
> Subject: Re: SC - transporting ingredients
>
> hey all from Anne-Marie
> Cairistiona asks:
> >>Okay, so we have the spice box set up and the sacks for larger 
> quantities of
> >>things like wheat and rice.  How did people in period store and/or 
> transport
> >>powders like amydoun, powdour douce, and so on?  Do we have any 
> pictures or
> >>documentation, or do we fall back on rustic jars with corks in 
> because they
> >>look more period than glass screwtop jars?
>
> le menagier or Chiquart, one of those guys, mentions that you are to 
> store
> your spices in leather bags. He also mentions that you are to buy them
> whole and powder them yourself (for freshness sake? I think?).
>
> Francesco is right about the apothocary jars as well...that's how the 
> spice
> shop is shown to store them in the illos, like the Tacitium sanitas, 
> but we
> dont see folks carting them away in those beautiful majolica jars. and 
> dont
> forget your sugar came from the druggist as well!
>
> Flour and grain seem to be transported in bags of some sort of white
> material (course linen? it was the cheapest fiber for most of Europe),
> according to the manuscript illos.
>
> - --AM

> But i haven't found any clear information on in what sorts of
> containers the Arabs and related cultures kept their spices.
>
> Has anyone come across any related information?

I'm sorry, but I don't have anything in that file specifically on what 
sorts of containers the Arabs and related cultures used, but I'm not 
sure why it would be different.

Stefan
--------
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris           Austin, Texas          
StefanliRous at austin.rr.com
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****