What Did the Ancient Romans Eat

In the modern U.S., the government issues dietary guidelines, with an ever-increasing number of fruits to be added to the meal plan. During the Roman Republic, the governments concern wasnt so much an ever-expanding waistline or other health issues. There were Sumtuariae Leges (sumptuary laws) designed to limit extravagance, including the amount spent on a given meal, which directly impacted how much wealthy Romans could eat at their meals. By the Imperial period, such laws were no longer in force. What Poor Romans Ate Regardless of sumptuary laws, poor Romans would eat mostly cereal grain at all meals as porridge or bread, for which the women engaged in a daily grain-to-flour grinding. They placed the hard kernels between a concave stone and a smaller one serving as a roller. This was called a thrusting mill. Later, they sometimes used a mortar and pestle. Grinding was unnecessary for quicker-cooking porridge. Here are two ancient recipes for porridge from On Agriculture, written by Cato the Elder (234-149 B.C.) from Lacus Curtius. The first porridge recipe (85) is Phoenician and involves fancier ingredients (honey, eggs, and cheese) than the simple Roman (86) recipe involving grain, water, and milk. 85 Pultem Punicam sic coquito. Libram alicae in aquam indito, facito uti bene madeat. Id infundito in alveum purum, eo casei recentis P. III, mellis P. S, ovum unum, omnia una permisceto bene. Ita insipito in aulam novam.85 Recipe for Punic porridge: Soak a pound of groats in water until it is quite soft. Pour it into a clean bowl, add 3 pounds of fresh cheese, 1/2 pound of honey, and 1 egg, and mix the whole thoroughly; turn into a new pot.86 Graneam triticeam sic facito. Selibram tritici puri in mortarium purum indat, lavet bene corticemque deterat bene eluatque bene. Postea in aulam indat et aquam puram cocatque. Ubi coctum erit, lacte addat paulatim usque adeo, donec cremor crassus erit factus.86 Recipe for wheat pap: Pour 1/2 pound of clean wheat into a clean bowl, wash well, remove the husk thoroughly, and clean well. Pour into a pot with pure water and boil. When done, add milk slowly until it makes a thick cream. By the late Republic period, it is believed that most people bought their bread from commercial bakeries. How We Know About Their Meals Food, like the weather, seems to be a universal topic of conversation, endlessly fascinating and a constant part of our lives. In addition to art and archaeology, we have information on Roman food from a variety of written sources. This incudes Latin material on agriculture, like the passages above from Cato, a Roman cookbook (Apicius), letters, and satire, such as the well-known banquet of Trimalchio. Some of this might lead one to believe the Romans lived to eat or followed the motto eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow you may die. However, most couldnt eat like that, and even most rich Romans would have eaten more modestly. Breakfast and Lunch Roman Style For those who could afford it, breakfast (jentaculum), eaten very early, would consist of salted bread, milk, or wine, and perhaps dried fruit, eggs, or cheese. It was not always eaten. The Roman lunch (cibus meridianus or prandium), a quick meal eaten around noon, could include salted bread or be more elaborate with fruit, salad, eggs, meat or fish, vegetables, and cheese. The Dinner Meal The dinner (cena), the main meal of the day, would be accompanied by wine, usually well-watered. The Latin poet Horace ate a meal of onions, porridge, and pancake. An ordinary upper-class dinner would include meat, vegetables, eggs, and fruit. Comissatio was a final wine course at dinners end. Just as today, the salad course may appear in different parts of the meal, so in ancient Rome the lettuce and the egg courses could be served first as the appetizer (gustatio or promulsis or antecoena) or later. Not all eggs were hens eggs. They could be smaller or sometimes larger, but they were a standard part of the dinner. The list of possible items for the gustatio is long. It includes exotic items like sea urchins, raw oysters, and mussels. Apples, when in season, were a popular dessert (bellaria) item. Other Roman dessert items were figs, dates, nuts, pears, grapes, cakes, cheese, and honey. Latin Names of the Meals The names of meals change over time and in various locations. In the U.S., dinner, lunch, and supper have meant different meals to different groups. The supper meal in the evening was known as vesperna in early Rome. The main meal of the day was known as the cena in the country and in early times in the city. Cena was eaten around midday and was followed by the lighter supper meal. Over time in the city, the heavy meal was pushed later and later, and so the vesperna was omitted. Instead, a light lunch or prandium was introduced between jentaculum and cena. The cena was eaten around sunset. Dinners and Dining Etiquette It is believed that during the Roman Republic, most women and the poor ate sitting on chairs, while upper-class males reclined on their sides on couches along three sides of a cloth-covered table (mensa). The three-sided arrangement is called the triclinium. Banquets might last for hours, eating and watching or listening to entertainers, so being able to stretch out without shoes and relax must have enhanced the experience. Since there were no forks, diners would not have had to worry about coordinating eating utensils in each hand. Sources Adkins, Lesley. Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome. Roy A. Adkins, Reprint Edition, Oxford Univerity Press, July 16, 1998. Cato, Marcus. On Agriculture. The University of Chicago. Cowell, Frank Richard. Everyday life in ancient Rome. Hardcover, B.T. Batsford, 1962. Lowrance, Winnie D. Roman Dinners and Diners. The Classical Journal, Vol. 35, No. 2, JSTOR, November 1939. Smith, E. Marion. Some Roman Dinner Tables. The Classical Journal, Vol. 50, No. 6, JSTOR, March 1955. Smith, William 1813-1893. A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities. Charles 1797-1867 Anthon, Hardcover, Wentworth Press, August 25, 2016.

Religion in School Publicized or Privatized Essay example

There are many people in the world, in fact at this moment there are 6,877,185,416 with a newborn child gasping for its first breath every ten seconds. With that said many may follow a religion or worship a higher power. Not everyone follows the same religion as there are twelve major religions and over 1,200 around the world (Wilson, 2006, p.11). Having religion included in the public school system is one of the most difficult issues to debate. When should the separation of church and state come into play? The fact that not everyone holds the same religious faith brings up the question of whether religion should be either public or privatized in schools. This essay will explain the history and background of religion in public†¦show more content†¦This may be extremely offensive to non-religious students or students that follow a different religion than the one forced upon, which could ultimately bring numerous complaints from parents. 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Moving to South Dakota Essay Example For Students

Moving to South Dakota Essay My life changed on February 2, 1996, when my father announced that he had decided we would move to Spearfish, South Dakota. He explained that his decision would ensure a more superior and promising future for our family. I could sense the seriousness in his voice, yet he sounded very positive. His posture was strong and his mind was made. A few days later, the journey to our new life began. Feelings of joy pulsed through my entire body as we began driving away from the place I had called home for the first four years of my life. The South Dakota boarder could not come fast enough. I was ecstatic to embark on this new adventure. Finally, after a seemingly neverending journey, we had arrived. I was in heaven! I was mesmerised by the beautiful Black Hills, the residents were welcoming and warm hearted. And best yet, the weather offered all four seasons. Immediately, I knew that this place would soon feel like home. Driving through the Black Hills was quite an experience. I had always dreamt of visiting a stunning place like that. The view was breathtaking. The mountains were enormous in size and appeared endless. They proceeded as far as the eye could see. Towering evergreens lined the mountains in dense clusters. It resembled a dreamy wonderland. There was a small but captivating waterfall in the crevice of one of the mountains. It produced gallons of fresh spring water that came rushing down to the stream below. Because fishing is so adored in South Dakota, the city would stock the streams every year. The Black Hills offer many outdoor activities, and it is a great way to meet new individuals with similar interests. My family enjoyed the fun and excitement the Black Hills had to offer. The residents all seemed to be happy, friendly, and kind. They would wave and greet one another, even if they were complete strangers. This was new to me, I had never seen anything like this before. Right away, I became friends with the other children around our neighborhood. I could sense the happy-go-lucky attitudes of each and every person I encountered. I fit right in, and it was a great feeling to be accepted so quickly. I instantly cherished these new friendships. We were innocent children. No one was looking to cause mischief or trouble, we were only worried about what game we could play next, or if the weather would allow us to go outside. This reassured me that South Dakota was going to be a perfect place to grow up. South Dakota displays all four seasons. This made it a great place to have fun all year round. The winters were long and frigid. A few feet of snowfall was pretty common, but that did not stop us. We would ride snowmobiles, ski, and snowboard all day long. My family and I also built towering snowmen, and participated in vicious snow ball fights. In spring, the weather began to warm up, the trees and grass started to grow, and green land soon replaced the dead vegetation. My schools sports team initiated our first practice for the upcoming season. In the summer, the weather was absolutely perfect! The temperature would hover around eighty-five degrees Fahrenheit, this was perfect shorts and shirt weather. My family and I would drive to the lake to go boating and cliff jumping. Summer has always been my favorite season. Fall really captured my attention. The trees exposed brilliant colors of leaves, such as: green, orange, yellow, pink, red, and purple. I had never seen such bright colors in all my life, it was peaceful and relaxing. My father made a rapid decision for our family to move. Luckily, we adjusted well and grew stronger and closer through our experience. It was our fresh start that forever changed our family for the better. We fell in love with the land and people so quickly. There is no word powerful enough to express how much I adore South Dakota.