We see so often in archaeological writing the descriptions of 'daily life' but rarely do we touch on food in the daily lives in the sensory aspect.Gagne's cognitive learning theory we are governed by taste, aroma and texture. We eat the same things repeatedly because it brings us pleasure. The romans were the same. I am interested in what their 'tastes' were and in their culinary practices and thankfully, they left a formidable archaeological record with which to draw on to get this information.Gagne's cognitive learning theory also written and pictorial records. This data, coupled with experimental and sensory (experiential) archaeology, in my opinion, allows archaeologists to get much closer to understanding the food in the roman world and roman food preferences.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

FM: I think the response to food history in recent years is part and parcel with a general shift in focus in our society around our food and our food supply.Gagne's cognitive learning theory all we have to do is turn on netflix, CNN or the food channel to see how interested people are becoming in food culture, food preparation, and food stories, in general.Gagne's cognitive learning theory some of it is political in nature and some of it is pure entertainment, but there is a renaissance of food culture happening right now and I like to think that it is a collective human response to our recent disconnection to food that occurred during the post- war years when increased urbanization occurred and industrialization of food production took over.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

Urbanization, leaving the farm, our dependence on restaurants and grocery stores, women leaving the home to work, has subsequently disconnected us in many ways from our understanding of food, agriculture, animal management/husbandry (dairy/meat supply) etc.Gagne's cognitive learning theory not that any of this is a bad thing, per se, but it is a result of evolution and change. I feel that we are turning around and looking at our history and food history to connect again with something that is a part of what we are.Gagne's cognitive learning theory it's also key to bringing us all together both on a local and global scale. Food archaeology to me is part of this. If we understand that value that our fore-mothers and fore-fathers placed on food cultivation and preparation, we may place a higher value on it in our day and age as well.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

AK: those are some great points that I had never considered. It makes sense that the deeply human connection to farm and food is a powerful means of reconnecting with the past.Gagne's cognitive learning theory when you get down to it, the advent of agriculture was perhaps the catalyst for civilisation, so it is only natural to study history by tracing mankind's eating habits.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

Food and identity, for example. I look at roman food frescoes and what I see is a projection of access, beauty, and taste painted on to the wall of a roman villa.Gagne's cognitive learning theory someone decided to take the time to have that food image painted in order to convey something to their guests that said something about them.Gagne's cognitive learning theory I see food that they have access to, food that they enjoy eating because it tastes good to them, and food that they consider to be beautiful enough to paint on to the wall (form, colour, etc).Gagne's cognitive learning theory

AK: you mentioned that "we are governed by taste, aroma and texture" and that the romans similarly had their own tastes and food preferences.Gagne's cognitive learning theory on the one hand, the mediterranean triad (grapes, olives, wheat) were omnipresent, but then you have staples like garum or expensive additives like silphium that would be unfamiliar.Gagne's cognitive learning theory would you say that roman cuisine, for lack of a better term, would be more or less similar in terms of flavour profiles to a modern mediterranean diet?Gagne's cognitive learning theory

FM: not necessarily. Regional flavours in the mediterranean are somewhat localized nowadays when we think of modern italian, greek, or egyptian food, for example.Gagne's cognitive learning theory there's little fusion, in that regard. The flavours and aromas that come to mind right now with respect to ancient roman food is a result of their movements around the mediterranean.Gagne's cognitive learning theory appropriation of other foods from other confiscated lands. The romans inherited their food culture from many sources. This included their own pre-roman tribal sources (latins, samnites, oscans etc), but there were also culinary influences from phoenicia, carthage, greece, egypt, judea, syria etc.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

From my experimental food archaeology projects related to roman food, I have discovered thus far that their food preparation practices and 'recipes' were quite bold and sophisticated.Gagne's cognitive learning theory flavours that I recall from some of the most memorable recipes that I've interpreted are: bold, sharp, bitter, strong, full-bodied. For example, using wine and vinegar reductions in cooking, and sweet and sour flavours in use with meat.Gagne's cognitive learning theory ingredients like garum (a salted fish condiment) and lovage. Exquisite custards and patinae (soufflés), or cheese dishes that incorporate ingredients we would genuinely be hesitant to combine in this day and age, but the end-product is incredible.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

[the now extinct plant] silphium was used in many dishes. The romans picked silphium to extinction as it was so prized by the elite class. Asafoetida (also known as hing) was suggested as a poor man's substitute, even in antiquity, as the strong, pungent flavour that silphium had was a desired additive in roman cooking.Gagne's cognitive learning theory it was cyrenian (libyan).

FM: you're correct! Amphorae turn up everywhere and in many different contexts. They were disposed of in heaps like monte testaccio, used as wall-fill, or as cooking tiles (which were heated and used to cover food in a hearth).Gagne's cognitive learning theory they were even used to cover bodies during funereal burials. The romans were brilliant when it came to recycling and repurposing. They didn't waste much.Gagne's cognitive learning theory with respect to food, it makes complete sense as famine was a very real threat for romans.

They were continually trying to find ways to feed the capital (the city of rome) by expanding and appropriating more and more land and farming territories.Gagne's cognitive learning theory when we look at the mediterranean triad, for example, roman grew grapes and pressed them to make wine. But they kept the must (grape skins) and used them further.Gagne's cognitive learning theory they would boil them and reduce them (sometimes in lead-lined pots!) to create a food preservative and additive called 'defrutum'. And it's absolutely delicious!Gagne's cognitive learning theory

The primary product of olives was oil for food, cleansing the skin, medicine and lamp fuel... But the romans knew the olive pits were combustible so they used them as kindling in bread ovens and hearths, etc.Gagne's cognitive learning theory the use of all parts of an animal for food (and I mean every part) is a signature roman practice. Reading apicius’ 1st century CE cookbooks is not only intriguing but stomach-turning on occasion as well!Gagne's cognitive learning theory

AK: A little earlier, you brought up the relationship between food history and archaeology. In addition to studying ancient frescoes and analyzing carbonized bread from 2,000 years ago, you also use experimental archaeology to unravel the secrets of ancient roman cuisine.Gagne's cognitive learning theory what have you found are the strengths and challenges of using experimental archaeology in this way?

FM: to me, experimental archaeology is key to the interpretive process.Gagne's cognitive learning theory it makes no sense to me why we should assess and interpret an object, for example, by only using our eyes. Looking at something through a glass cabinet and not understanding how we would handle it and use it is a disadvantage.Gagne's cognitive learning theory I have always felt that if we want to understand something, we should make it or use it ourselves. Observe through experience and be cognizant of our senses in the process.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

For example, a manual grain mill. How am I handling it? What does it sound like? Am I sweating because I'm exerting energy? Is my back sore now?Gagne's cognitive learning theory are my hands shaking from using it for 2 hours straight? What does the grain look and feel like? Is the flour dust in my eyes and up my nose because it's in the air around me?Gagne's cognitive learning theory is it irritating my eyes or throat? And finally, what's the flour texture like? The bread product? What can I eat with? Is it bland? Filling?Gagne's cognitive learning theory

All of this paints a much broader picture of what domestic milling and bread-making was like in ancient rome and it gives us a very clear idea as to how much time was taken up in a day to feed oneself, how much labour was pored into it, how difficult it was to procure and prepare food, and how much value was placed on food as a result.Gagne's cognitive learning theory you DO NOT get this experience by looking at a kitchen implement in a cabinet at a museum. You arrive at this understanding by engaging in experimental and sensory archaeology.Gagne's cognitive learning theory it broadens the interpretive scope significantly. It's almost like walking a mile in a roman's shoes.

FM: initially, I had started the blog to celebrate modern mediterranean culinary diversity.Gagne's cognitive learning theory I have always loved the med and have been travelling in this region for most of my adult life. But the more that I participated in archaeological projects in italy, the more I found myself going down this rabbit-hole of classical-era food archaeology and the reception to it by the public has been incredible.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

I conduct research and experiments to satisfy my own curiosity and theories but the public has been so responsive to the blog posts that it's snowballed quite a bit over the last few years.Gagne's cognitive learning theory atlas obscura, the BBC, and yourselves have taken note, which is such a compliment. I've also recently done presentations and workshops in live settings to full houses and it's been a real joy to experience this growing public interest first hand.Gagne's cognitive learning theory

This year, I launched “the old school kitchen” which is the name of the touring public education arm of tavola mediterranea. It's an opportunity for the public to come out, to get engaged in a live presentation or an immersive food archaeology workshop in a museum or institutional setting.Gagne's cognitive learning theory so far so good, as well! It's a genuine pleasure to see so many people interested in my research, experiments, and the subject in general.

FM: absolutely.Gagne's cognitive learning theory bringing people together to cook and prepare food, to begin with, is a necessary human social activity. We should be doing this more often in general.Gagne's cognitive learning theory but when people come together in groups to learn about food origins, food migrations, and experiment with how to make historical foods together something wonderful happens: we connect with each other, we connect with food, and we connect with our past.Gagne's cognitive learning theory every single workshop, conference, or culinary retreat that I've participated in has brought people together from all over the world to learn about food origins and to share ideas with like-minded people.Gagne's cognitive learning theory they take this experience home with them to their families, workplaces, schools and it grows.

'living history' is a beautiful term for it as well as I also encourage people to 'taste history' by experimenting with historical foods, ingredients, and recipes drawn from the archaeological, written and pictorial records.Gagne's cognitive learning theory the sensual experience that we have when we taste history or experience historical landscapes in an immersive or open-air museum setting ( pompeii, for example) is a much deeper experience for us and something that helps us to process and relate to the past in a much more effective manner.Gagne's cognitive learning theory