[Sca-cooks] Clove defined and symbolism

[Christiane]

Johnnae said:

Objections have been raised in the last few days about the presence of  
cloves in the 14th century syrosye recipe where one finishes the dish  
by "set thereyn clowe gilofre."
One possible meaning not yet discussed for the cherry pottage recipes  
to contain cherries with whole cloves is that there is a symbolism to  
the dish that we have forgotten. Cherries represented the Blood of  
Christ and the Passion of Christ. (Numerous paintings have the Christ  
Child reaching for or the Virgin Mary holding fresh cherries.) To  
place carefully on the surface of such a dish of cherries, whole  
cloves representing nails (the nails of the Crucifixion?) might not  
seem so misplaced to the diners of the 1300's.

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Thank you for looking up these things; I had a feeling that the meaning of cloves changed in the recipe from early period to later period, as tastes changed. It would also make sense in an earlier period recipe to have a symbolism that was forgotten by later periods. And since the reference to pinks as "clove gillyflowers" didn't come until well into the Elizabethan era, and cooking with them tended to be a Jacobean/17th century practice, it makes even more sense that the original recipe was referring to the spice, not the flower.

Instead of just strewing the dish with cloves, I wonder if one would garnish it the dishes by just putting three cloves in the center of each serving, to represent the three nails of the Crucifixion. 

Something to think about.

YIS,
Adelisa di Salerno