Tastes Of History
Dispelling Some Myths: about Pirates
Asked to imagine or indeed to portray a pirate, most people undoubtedly will have a certain look in mind. Who’s now thinking of Johnny...
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Tastes Of History
Sep 15, 2022
A Brief History of Food: Sugar
Sugar is one of the world’s oldest documented commodities, and at one time it was so valuable that people kept it safe under lock and key...
Tastes Of History
Sep 13, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: Cleopatra the 'African' Queen
On August 17th, 2022 the Trimontium Trust (@TrimontiumTrust) reminded Twitter users that Queen Cleopatra of Egypt committed suicide on...
Tastes Of History
Aug 23, 2022
Bosworth Field: a King's Recipes
This year (2022) Tastes Of History was delighted to return to the Bosworth Medieval Festival at the brilliant Bosworth Battlefield...
Tastes Of History
Aug 22, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: Lady Godiva’s naked ride
Did you know the city of Coventry has an official Lady Godiva? To be honest we didn’t until recently when we discovered that Pru Porretta...
Tastes Of History
Aug 20, 2022
The Forme of Cury
The Forme of Cury (‘The Method of Cooking’ [1]) is an extensive 14th-century collection of medieval English recipes. Although the...
Tastes Of History
Aug 15, 2022
Food History: The Inimitable Mrs Beeton
Isabella Mary Beeton (née Mayson) was born on March 14th, 1836. Better known simply as Mrs Beeton, she was an English journalist, editor...
Tastes Of History
Aug 8, 2022
Rome's 'Secret Agents'
There is a tendency to attribute modern structures, ranks and roles to descriptions of the ancient Roman army (Latin: exercitus). Such...
Tastes Of History
Aug 5, 2022
Pirates of Pendennis
Our very first event as 'pirates' took place in Bedford seven years ago in 2015. Since then, having had the costume and props, it was not...
Tastes Of History
Jul 29, 2022
Eliza Acton: cookery writing pioneer
Eliza Acton (April 17th, 1799 - February 13th, 1859) was an English poet and food writer who produced one of Britain's first cookery...
Tastes Of History
Jul 25, 2022
Kitchenalia: Fish Eaters
In the 1880s, while the ‘Old Money’, the aristocracy, ate their fish course using two table forks, the ‘New Money’, the nouveau riche,...
Tastes Of History
Jul 24, 2022
A Brief History of Food: Oranges
Origins The name 'orange' derives from the Sanskrit word for 'orange tree' (नारङ्ग nāraṅga). The Sanskrit word reached European...
Tastes Of History
Jul 18, 2022
Pillory or Stocks?
The Hunt for Witches Respected historian, author and broadcaster, Dr Lucy Worsley OBE, had a new documentary series that first aired on...
Tastes Of History
Jul 18, 2022
Mithras versus Christ: a Centuries Old Dispute?
Introduction The background to the eastern mystery cult of Mithras was outlined in 'Mithras Sol Invicti: an Initiates Guide'. With the...
Tastes Of History
Jul 5, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: A Short life
Average height One of the misconceptions about history is that people were shorter ‘back then’. Would it surprise you to know that the...
Tastes Of History
Jul 2, 2022
Kitchenalia: Roman soldier's cookware
In an earlier article, we challenged the idea that Roman soldiers cooked farinata, a type of unleavened bread made from chickpea flour,...
Tastes Of History
Jun 6, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: Romans cleaned their teeth with Urine
While teaching primary school children about the Romans, and specifically hygiene, we have encountered the belief that they cleaned their...
Tastes Of History
May 27, 2022
Taking the pee: should you drink urine?
Urine has been used throughout history for many different uses. As a freely available product - everyone produces at least some each day...
Tastes Of History
May 24, 2022
Norse America
In our post ‘Dispelling Some Myths: Romans in the Americas’ we attempted to disprove a ‘theory’ that the ancient Romans had contact with...
Tastes Of History
May 18, 2022
Dispelling Some Myths: ‘Over and Out’
In the big scheme of things today’s post is a very minor ‘gripe’. It does, however, reflect on the historical accuracy of television...
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