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Field name | Value |
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Apicius |
Click to discover more about the Apicius Cookbooks |
Library/Archive | The New York Academy of Medicine |
Title | De re culinaria, Libri I-IX |
Author/Creator | Apicius |
Date | 9th century |
Collection | Special Collections |
Place of Publication | Fulda, Germany |
Document Type | Manuscript Cookbook |
Theme | Food Rituals, Feasting and Religion; Food Preparation |
Subjects | recipes ingredient culture class (class culture) food tradition |
Description | This 9th century manuscript is a reproduction of a classical text believed to be the earliest cookbook in the Western world. Although the authorship is in dispute, the work is most often attributed to M. Gabius (or Gavius) Apicius (ca. 40 B.C - 40 A.D) , a renowned gastronomer of ancient Rome. The work, probably written during the 3rd century, is either a compliation of Apicius' own writings or, as other scholars claim, merely dedicated to him. Although Athanaeus knew of Apicius and related his passion for eating, he makes no mention of a cookbook. The Apicius, one of the best sources of information on Roman eating and cooking behaviour, is divided into ten books and includes numerous recipes, some of which are highly sophisticated, for meats, seafood, poultry, vegetables and sauces as well as advice on nutrition and gardening. Although cooking techniques are not offered and quantities are rarely mentioned, the recipes, which reveal an abundance of spices and herbs as well as mixtures of sweet and salted items, do list all necessary ingredients. Allegedly, Apicius, after having spent a fortune on feasting, committed suicide from fear of dying of hunger. This is one of two extant copies; the other resides in the Vatican Library. This manuscript volume is the only representation of the original Latin work, which is now lost. |
Names | Apicius |
Language | Latin |
Copyright and Source Archive | Content compilation © 2020, by The New York Academy of Medicine. All rights reserved. |