[Sca-cooks] Above/Below the Salt was Greetings

jenne at fiedlerfamily.net jenne at fiedlerfamily.net
Wed Mar 19 15:25:18 PDT 2008


> Above/below the salt feasts are somewhat traditional in the SCA.  They
> show
> every so often and are a good way, as you point out, to provide a two tier
> feast.  But from the evidence I have seen, they are an artifact of the
> 16th
> Century and later, probably with a Victorian assumption that this is the
> way
> feudal lords did it.  The question is not a matter of wording, but
> developing a knowledge of how a 13th, or 14th or 15th Century meal was
> served and serving the historically accurate meal in as accurate a manner
> as
> possible.  Think of it as another level to the game.

Ok, now I'm curious, as I have read repeatedly, in my research, that more
elaborate foods were served to the higher ranking eaters, while messes of
less elaborate foods were served to the waiting people and hangers-on, and
that one way to show approval of a hanger-on was to send him food from
your plate. I seem to place this custom in the 14th c. or before. On the
other hand, other than a note that someone who seemed reliable mentioned
this at Kalamazoo, I have no concrete citations to it.

I know that separate kitchens for kings and queens as opposed to other
people in the castle is documented, and separate meals for king vs. queen
is also documented... that's in various sets of inventory and expense
rolls.

Bear, could you share more about this? I'm perfectly willing to believe
your research, especially as I can't put my finger on mine; I'm just
wanting to hear more from you.

-- 
-- Jenne Heise / Jadwiga Zajaczkowa
jenne at fiedlerfamily.net




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