The art of dining : a history of cooking & eating
Details
Type of record: Book
Title: The art of dining : a history of cooking & eating
Classmark: Bedford Collection B159
Publisher: National Trust
Publication city: London
Date(s): 1993
Language: English
Size and medium: 348 pages
Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/729315
Printed items catalogue: https://leeds.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/fulldisplay?vid=44LEE_INST:VU1&docid=alma991019878545405181
Description
Includes bibliographical references (pages 338-340) and index.
Good lordship and feasting : medieval and early Tudor food -- Suckets and marchpane : Elizabethan food -- Sweet herbs and strong bitter brews : Stuart food -- An elegant repast : Georgian food -- The well-ordered table : Victorian and Edwardian food.
... 'tis very fine, but where d'ye sleep, or where d'ye dine? Blenheim Palace was still being built when this verse was composed in 1714. The author - possibly Alexander Pope or Jonathan Swift - was attacking the grandiloquent baroque style of architecture which placed dining rooms far from kitchens, making food stone cold before it even reached the table. The question posed is one that fascinates visitors to historic houses - in England and elsewhere. Sleeping habits and arrangements have changed comparatively little over the centuries, but cooking and eating have undergone revolution after revolution. Behind the curious ingredients and mysterious language of old cookbooks lies a completely different world, where the foods that we take for granted were often not available, food preparation, cooking and preservation were laborious tasks, and the art of dining reflected social attitudes far removed from modern practice.
Sara Paston-Williams has used the great wealth of Britain's National Trust houses and records to produce this carefully researched book. She has tackled the huge subject chronologically, from the cavernous kitchens and great halls of medieval houses like Cotehele in Cornwall to the ingenious technology of late Victorian service areas such as that at Cragside in Northumberland, which produced food for ornate dining rooms and intimate parlors. Each chapter of The Art of Dining includes historical recipes, together with their modern adaptations. The result is a feast for the eye as well as a fascinating guide to all the arts of dining.
Features
Leeds University Library copy at D083: Contains loose clipping: The pleasures of the table, Phil Ellis (Antiques Bulletin no. 703, 16-23 Aug. 1997).
Provenance
Leeds University Library copy at Bedford Collection B159: From the John Evan Bedford Library, gifted in 2019. Twenty-first-century pictorial bookplate on front pastedown: John Evan Bedford. Former reference: HL/3.
Access and usage
Access
This material is not subject to restrictions under Data Protection or other relevant legislation that might limit access. However, other protections, such as donor conditions or conservation considerations, may still apply where advised.