[Sca-cooks] Weights and measures re Chocolate Drinks

[Johnna Holloway]

A couple of weeks ago there was a post regarding Chocolate
and the research being done by Master Raymond von dem Lowengrab OL.
Master Raymond and I have been corresponding back and forth about 
various aspects
of chocolate research and early sources. He sent me this post today 
regarding
some of the weights/measures that appear in the Florilegium file on 
Chocolate Drinks.
I have done some more research and will post the findings here before 
sending it onto
Stefan.

The background as constructed from posts in the florilegium:

Back in 1996 there was a post by Eric S. Haverberg that gave a recipe.
It reads in part--  Date: 26 Oct 1996 06:36:48 -0400
EHAV at oro.net (Eric S. Haverberg) wrote:I here is the recipe I have 
from 1631 published by Antonio Colmenero who had taken it from a 
Marchena physician;

            700 cocoa beans
           1 1/2 lbs. white sugar
           2 ozs of cinnamon
           14 long red peppers
           1/2 oz of clove
           3 cods of logwood or Campeche tree - similar to fennell
                or instead use
           the weight of 2 reals (or a shilling) of anniseeds
           as much Achiote to give it the color of hazelnut

 I don't know what some of these measurements are so I will leave that 
up to some one more knowledgable then I. 

Ottokar von dem Schwartwald, AoA  Shire of Blackhawk Middle Kingdom
--------------

Later in 2000 our own Anahita (now known as Urtatim) posed the questions 
of weights.
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2000 10:03:01 -0700 From: lilinah at earthlink.net
Subject: SC - Chocolate Drink - 1615

RE: From "Chocolate: or, An Indian Drinke." London, 1652, by Capt. John 
Wadsworth.

I'm trying to work out the following slightly out of period recipe
for a Chocolate beverage for personal use. As it is rather late,
being a bit OOP, it has quantities of ingredients, but even so, i
have questions...snipped
She asked:  (c.) How much does a shilling or 2 reals weight?
---------
Bear then answered on Wed, 27 Sep 2000 14:06:04 -0500

Subject: RE: SC - Chocolate Drink - 1615 (should be 1651 BTW if from 
Wadsworth's translation)
A cod in this case is a seed pod.
A shilling is 1/20th of a pound sterling equaling 12 penneyweights Troy
approximately equaling 18.6 grams or slightly over 1/2 ounce U.S. 
Customary Measure.

----------

What Master Raymond in consultation with Master Ian this am sent me this 
am is
an explanation that seems to indicate that this shilling measure is not 
quite right.

"18.6 grams is 1/20 of a Troy pound.   By the reign of Elizabeth I, the 
sterling nominal pound (i.e. 240 pence of sterling alloy independently 
of weight) had inflated to one third of a Troy pound, making a shilling 
6.2 grams." 

The post also addresses the question:

  "1) What is the "standard" accepted weight for 2 Reals ? "
The answer: "6.77 grams."

Master Raymond then asked: "[I have no idea if the reference is for a 
single 2 Real coin, or 2X 1 Real coins.]"

The answer is: "It shouldn't matter.  The standard for the one real 
was 3.38 grams."

The message this am also pointed out that since the recipe was published 
in England in the 1650's that
"OTOH, the coins of James I, which would have still been circulating in 
1631, were commonly heavily clipped, while the Spanish coins, even of 
the homeland (i.e. rather than just the colonies) were of the 'cob' or 
'macuquina' fabric, so the weight of particular coin of either type 
that the cook happened to have to throw on the scale probably varied 
more from the theoretical standard than they varied from each other."

So, according to Master Ian the proper weight for anniseeds in the 
recipe would be between 6.2 to 6.77 grams instead of the 18.6 grams 
listed by the gentleman who responded in the past post now listed on the 
Floriligium.
 I hope that you, and the SCA-Cooks list, might find this tidbit helpful 
in getting an accurate accounting for measurements involving coinage 
should they pop up again. Please feel free to post this where you think 
it might be helpful or interesting.
 I wish you and yours health and Happiness.
Master Raymond von dem Lowengrab OL

-----

So here it is then. Anniseed is called for in a lesser quantity apparently.

Hope this helps

Johnnae llyn Lewis