MESOPOTAMIA— Foods and Drink at the time of Abraham and after.
From the 36 lectures by Professor Alexis Q. Castor “BETWEEN THE TWO RIVERS - A History of Ancient Mesopotamia”
THE LAST LECTURE WE DISCUSSED MESOPOTAMIAN CITIES, AND WHAT EXISTED IN THE SECOND MILLENNIUM B.C. AND I WARNED YOU THAT I WAS DRAWING FROM SITES ALL OVER MESOPOTAMIA AND A LOT OF TIME PERIODS TO CREATE THAT PICTURE OF WHAT CITY LIFE WAS LIKE.
IN TODAY’S PICTURE OF MESOPOTAMIA, FOOD AND DRINK, I WILL BE DOING THE SAME THING, ONLY I WILL BE DRAWING FROM AN EVEN BROADER TIME PERIOD. BASICALLY FROM PRE-HISTORY DOWN TO THE END OF OUR COURSE.
I WILL TRY TO GIVE SENCE OF WHAT TYPES OF FOOD AND DRINK ENJOYED BY MESOPOTAMIANS; THIS WOULD CONSIST OF THE DIET THEY WOULD HAVE MAINTAINED THROUGHOUT THIS PERIOD OF HISTORY. SO IT MAKES SENSE TO DRAW ON AS MUCH EVIDENCE AS POSSIBLE.
WHEN WE DISCUSS FOOD AND DRINK WE USE REPRESENTATIONS OF FOOD AND DRINK IN ART, AND ALSO AT ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE, AND SCATTERED WRITTEN REFERENCES. ALSO TO FEASTS THAT MIGHT BE SPONSORED BY THE TEMPLE, PERHAPS BY RULERS, AND SOMETIMES EVEN POETRY CAN GIVE US AN IDEA OF WHAT FOODS WERE ESPECIALLY EXOTIC AND TASETY.
THE WRITTEN EVIDENCE ALSO COMES FROM RATION LISTS, AND CAN BE FROM ROYAL BANQUETS, AND THERE IS ONE TEXT THAT IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT IN PROVIDING THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF FOODS AVAILABLE. THIS IS AN ANCIENT DICTIONARY OF ARCADIAN AND SUMERIAN TERM, FOR DIFFERENT FOODS. THERE IS A ROW OF ARCADIAN TERMS AND A SUPPORTING ROW OF SAMARIUM TERMS.
SO WHEN I SAY WE HAVE EX NUMBER OF TERMS FOR BREAD, YOU’LL KNOW IT COMES FROM THIS DICTIONARY.
MANY REFERENCES TO RATIONS OR EVEN THE TYPES OF FOOD EATEN, AND DISTRIBUTED, SURVIVE. BUT ONLY A FEW RECIPES ARE KNOWN, SO THE KNOWLEDGE OF MESOPOTAMIAN MEALS IS SOMEWHAT HINDERED. SO WE HAVE TO USE OUR IMAGINATION TO THINK ABOUT HOW A COOK COULD COMBINE THE DIFFERENT INGREDIENTS TO CREATE A GOOD MEAL.
CERTAINLY THE RICH ENVIRONMENT OF MESOPOTAMIA SUPPLIED A GOOD DIET FOR THE INHABITANTS OF THE REGION. WE TALKED ABOUT HOW GRAINS, NUTS, FRUITS AND VEGETABLES, WERE DOMESTICATED IN THE PRE-HISTORIC PERIOD, AND THEY WERE FULLY DOMESTICATED BY THE END OF THE 3RD MILLENNIUM B. C.
BARLEY AND EMMA WHEAT WERE THE MOST REDILY AVAILABLE GRAINS. AND OFTEN BARLEY APPEARS IN FOOD DISTRIBUTED. IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST COMMON TYPES OF GRAINS. CHICK-PEAS WERE ALSO ESPECIALLY DESIRED, THEY ARE A GOOD SOURSE OF PROTEIN. I ADD THEM TO STEWS, AND I’M SURE THIS WAS DONE IN ANTIQUITY AS WELL.
DOMESTICATED ANIMALS WOULD PROVIDE BEEF, LAMB, AND GOAT, BUT WE KNOW FROM OTHER SOURCES, THE ANIMALS WERE TO PRECIOUS FOR MEAT ON A REGULAR BASIS. AND IT WAS PROBABLY MUCH MORE COMMON TO HUNT WILD ANIMALS, TO PROVIDE MEAT FOR THE TABLE. MANY TYPES OF BIRDS AND FISH WERE PLENTIFUL FROM THE AREAS AROUND THE RIVERS, IN THE MASHES AND EVEN ARTIFICIAL PONDS WOULD BE STOCKED WITH FISH WHEN NECESSARY TO HELP SUPPLY FOOD FOR THE CITY.
ANOTHER, LESS WIDELY USE TODAY FOR PROTEIN WOULD BE LOCUSTS. ONE LETTER TO A KING RECORDS THERE HAD BEEN A PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS, ON THE ONE HAND DESOLATED GRAINS, AND OTHER CROPS, BUT DID IN THEMSELVES PROVIDE FOOD, WHEN THEY WERE FRIED FOR DINNER.
EGGS TOO COULD SUPPLY PROTEIN, AND OVER 150,000 EGGS AND 50,000 BIRDS, WERE COLLECTED IN A TWO AND A HALF YEAR PERIOD BY SHULGI. AND REMEMBER THE UT 111 KINGS REQUIRED TAX FROM DIFFERENT RESOURCES, DIFFERENT REGIONS OF THE KINGDOM, AND SO THIS PARTICULAR REGIONS SUPPLIED BIRD AND EGGS. THEN THE PALACE WOULD USE THEM, FOR BANQUETS AND EVEN DISTRIBUTE TO OTHER REGIONS.
DAIRY PRODUCTS WERE OF COURSE AVAILABLE FROM THE PREVALENCE OF GOATS AND SHEEP AND CATTLE. BUT IT’S UNCLEAR HOW THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN PRESERVED WITHOUT SPOILING UNLESS THEY WERE MADE INTO CHEESE. AND ABOUT 20 DIFFERENT TERMS FOR CHEESE ARE KNOWN. PROBABLY AND FREQUENTLY A TYPE OF CHEESE WAS SOME SORT OF CREAM CHEESE THAT COULD BE FLAVORED WITH DIFFERENT SPECIES OR OTHER ADDITIONS.
ONIONS, LEAKS AND GARLIC SEASONED DISHES, BUT OTHER SPICES WERE COSTLY, AND MOSTLY AVAILABLE ONLY TO THE WEALTHY.
A VARIETY OF OILS— SESAMI, LINSEED AND OLIVE OIL WERE AVAILABLE TO ADD TO DISHES AND HELP IN THEIR PREPARATION.
SPICES DON’T SHOW UP OFTEN IN TEXTS, BUT CORIANDER AND MUSTARD WERE AVAILABLE. SOME VERY SCATTERED REFERENCES OF THOSE SPICES BEING IMPORTED FROM THE EAST, HAVE APPEARED IN 6TH CENTURY B. C. TEXTS.
AS FAR AS WE KNOW HONEY WAS NOT CULTIVATED, BUT IT MAY WELL HAVE BEEN COLLECTED IN THE WILD. HONEY DOES APPEAR IN TEXTS BUT THERE IS NO REFERENCE TO HONEY-KEEPS OR BEE FARMS.
TRUFFLES WERE A DELECY THAT COULD PLEASE A RULER. AT MARI A WORKMAN DELIVERED TRUFFLES TO THE PALACE, PROBABLY IN HOPES OF SOME SORT OF REWARD, WHICH HE RECEIVED WITH THE GRATITUDE OF THE KING.
DATES WERE A POPULAR FRUIT AND DATE ORCHARDS WERE AMONG THE HIGHLY DESIRE AGRICULTURAL PART OF LIFE. OTHER FRUITS AVAILABLE WERE APPLES, PEARS, FIGS, AND POMEGRANATES.
THIS LIST OF AVAILABLE FOODS GIVES YOU A SENSE OF THE RESOURCES.
BUT NOW, LET’S TRY TO COMBINE THEM INTO A MEAL AND GET A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW THE MESOPOTAMIANS ATE.
TWO MEALS A DAY, ONE IN THE MORNING AND ONE IN THE EVENING WERE CUSTOMARY. AND YOU MIGHT REMEMBER WHEN I DISCUSSED TEMPLES THAT THE GODS RECEIVED TWO MEALS A DAY, JUST LIKE HUMANS.
BREAD AND BEER WERE THE STAPLES OF MOST MEALS. OVER THREE HUNDRED OF MESOPOTAMIA TERMS FOR BREAD HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED. NO RECEIPTS SURVIVE, UNFORTUNATELY. BAKERS PROBABLY ADDED DIFFERENT INGREDIENTS TO BREAD TO CREATE THIS VARIETY OF TYPES. WE KNOW SOME OF THE FLAVORINGS USED WERE— FRUITS LIKE CUT UP DATES, POMEGRANATES WERE USED IN SOME BREAD. DIFFERENT TYPES OF OILS; SESIME AND OLIVE OIL WERE KNOWN TO BE ADDED TO BREAD, TO CREATE A MORE SAVORY BREAD. TERMS ALSO REFER TO THE SIZE, LARGE LOAF OR SMALL LOAF, AND EVEN TERMS FOR BREADS OF SPECIFIC SHAPE, AND DIFFERENT GRAINS. ALL OF THIS WOULD CREATE ENOUGH BREAD TO PLEASE ANYONE. EVEN THOUGH BREAD IS ONE OF THE STAPLES OF MESOPOTAMIA DIET, YOU ARE NOT EATING THE SAME LOAF EVERY DAY FOR YOUR ENTIRE LIFE; YOU HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF CHOICES.
SEVERAL CLAY MOLDS WERE FOUND IN THE PALACE KITCHEN AT MARI. AND SOME SCHOLARS SAY THAT THESE WERE USED TO MAKE DECORATIVE BREADS. THE SHAPES FOUND INCLUDE FISH; THERE IS A MOLD OF CONCENTRIC CIRCLES. OTHER SCHOLARS BELIEVE THE MOLDS WERE FOR DISHES, OR MAYBE USED TO MAKE SOME OTHER SORT OF FOODS, LIKE CHEESE OR JELLY OF SOME SORT. TO MY MIND IT DOES NOT MATTER WHAT THE SPECIFIC USE WAS FOR, IT SHOWS THAT FOOD WAS MANIPULATED TO PLEASE THE EYE, AS WELL AS THE PALET.
THE OTHER STAPLE OF MESOPOTAMIA DIET WAS BEER. AND BEER MADE OF BARLEY WOULD PROVIDE A NUTRITIOUS MESOPOTAMIAN MEAL. BEER COULD BE MADE AT HOME OR ON A LARGER SCALE, THAT WE KNOW MOST ABOUT THE INDIVIDUAL BREWERS. IT WAS MADE AT HOME FROM BARLEY, WHICH WOULD BE ALLOWED TO SPROUT, AND THEN THE BREWER WOULD CRUSH THEM INTO A MASH, THAT WAS MALTED AND FERMENTED IN A LARGE VAT. ONCE THE FERMENTATION OCCURRED THE MALT WAS DRIED AND THIS WOULD ALLOW IT TO BE TRANSPORTED OR STORED VERY EASILY. SO YOU CAN SEND THE RAW INGREDIENTS UP THE RIVER, OR YOU CAN KEEP IT OVER THE WINTER. WHEN YOU WANTED TO MAKE BEER YOU’D ADD WEATER, SOMETIMES OTHER FLAVORS. WE KNOW OF POMEGRANATE AND ANA-SEED, LIQUORICE, GAVE TASTE TO THE BEER AS MENTIONED IN TEXTS. AND ONCE THE WATER WAS ADDED, AGAIN, FERMENTATION IN A LARGE STORAGE VAT AND THE DREGS WOULD SETTLE THERE. THE RESULT IS BEER. WHICH COULD BE SOLD IN TAVENS, OR USED AT HOME.
SPECIFIC BREWS ARE DESCRIBED AS ESPECIALLY SWEET OR OLD, AND WE ASSUME THAT OLD MEANS GOOD IN THIS CASE. SOME ARTISTIC REPRESENTATIONS SHOW DRINKERS DRINKING BEER FROM A LARGE VAT, AND THERE ARE SEVERAL DRINKERS SITTING AROUND THE VAT PLACED ON THE GROUND, EACH DRINKER HAS THEIR OWN LONG STRAW. SO IT REALLY IS A COMMUNAL BEVERAGE.
WE ALSO KNOW THAT INDIVIDUAL BEAKERS WERE USE, SO NOT ALWAYS THIS COMMUNAL DRINKING, THAT WE SEE IN SOME OF THE EARLIEST REPRESENTATIONS.
THE ALCOHOL CONTENT OF BEER WAS NOT ESPECIALLY HIGH. AT ITS STRONGEST IT WOULD APPROXIMATELY BE AS THE CONTENT IN MODERN BEERS.
THE GODESS NINCASI WAS THE PATRON DEITY OF BREWERS. AND FEMALE BREWERS ARE LISTED REGULARLY; THEY ARE ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH TAVERNS. IF YOU REMEMBER WE MET A FEMALE TAVEN KEEPER— SUDORI, IN THE EPIC OF GILDERMESH, AND SHE PROVIDED OUR EARLIEST EVIDENCE OF THE WISDOM OF A BAR-KEEPER, WHEN SHE TRIED TO PREVENT GILDERMESH FROM GOING ON HIS FRUITLESS QUEST FOR IMMORTALITY.
FOOD PREPARATION USED FIRE IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS. FOOD COULD BE BROILD OR ROASTED OVER AN OPEN FLAME, OR WARMED WITH A GOOD AMOUNT OF HOT COALS.
BREAD WAS BAKED IN NEIGHBORHOOD OVENS AND YOU’LL REMEMBER BAKERS WERE ONE OF THE PROFESSIONS DISCUSSED IN THE PREVIOUS LECTURE. A NEIGHBORHOOD OVEN WOULD ALLOW A LOT OF BREAD TO BE MADE WITHOUT HEATING UP A LOT OF HOUSES, AND THIS IS STILL THE PRACTICE IN MANY PLACES IN THE NEAR EAST TODAY. BREAD IS BOUGHT ON A DAILY BASIS RATHER THAN MADE AT HOME.
THERE ARE EXAMPLES OF HOME BAKERIES, BREAD COULD BE MADE ON A CLAY CIRINGLIER BURNER, GOTTEN VERY HOT, SO IT WOULD BE PLACED OVER A FIRE AND THE BREAD WAS PLACED AT THE TOP, SO IT WOULD CREATE UN-LEAVENED BREAD, THAT COULD BE USED, AS WE USE WRAPS TODAY.
THERE ARE ALSO OVENS THAT ARE COVERED AND HAVE A DOMED TOP, SO THIS WOULD PROVIDE ENOUGH HUMIDITY TO PRODUCE LEAVENED BREAD.
POTS AND KETTLES OF CLAY OR METAL, WOULD BE USED FOR BOILING, STEWING, AND SOUPS, WHICH WE KNOW WERE VERY POPULAR.
BRASIERS FOR COOKING STRIPS OF MEAT, VEGETABLES, PROVIDED A SMALL PORTABLE KITCHEN EQUIPMENT, AND AGAIN THIS WOULD ALLOW THE HOME SHEF TO ADAPT TO THE ENVIRONMENT; IF IT WAS ESPECIALLY HOT OUTSIDE YOU DON’T WANT TO BUILD A LARGE FIRE OVEN INSIDE. YOU WANT TO HAVE THE SMALLEST COOKING SPACE NECESSARY, SO THESE LITTLE HIBACHIS SERVED THE PURPOSE QUITE WELL.
PALACE ARCHIVES FILL IN THE OTHER DETAILS OF THE MESOPOTAMIAN DIET. WHICH ALSO INDICATE WHICH SPECIFIC OCCASIONS WHEN RULERS HOSTED LARGE BANQUETS.
WINE IS DESCRIBED IN SOME OF THESE TEXTS, ALMOST ALWAYS IN A ROYAL ARCHIVE THAN IN A PRIVATE TEXT, AND THERE IS ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE FOR WINE. SPECIFICALLY FROM THE ANALYSIS OF JARS THAT HAVE BEEN DISCOVERED. AND YOU MIGHT RECALL I MENTIONED THAT A FAIRLY RECENT DISCOVERY UNCOVERED WINE JARS, IN THE CITY OF ERUK. THAT WAS BY FAR THE EARLIEST INDICATION OF WINE IN MESOPOTAMIA. WHERE UNTIL THIS WAS DISCOVERED WINE WAS THOUGHT TO EMERGE SOMEWHERE OVER THE SECOND MILLENNIUM, AND TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY LESS IMPORTANT THAN BEER.
WE KNOW THAT SOME VINES GREW IN SOUTHERN MESOPOTAMIA BUT THERE’S VERY LITTLE EVIDENCE IN CONTRAST TO BEER MAKING, THAT INFORMS USE ABOUT WINE MAKING IN MESOPOTAMIA ITSELF. MOST WINE WHEN IT APPEARS ON OUR DOCUMENTS WAS IMPORTED. AND WE GET REFERENCES TO CERTAIN VINTAGES. SUCH AS WINE FROM CARCHEMISH WHICH IS IN ANATOLIA, WHICH MAY SUGGEST WINE WAS IDENTIFIED FROM SPECIFIC REGIONS, JUST AS IT IS TODAY.
WE HAVE DESCRIPTIONS OF RED WINE, WHITE WINE, WINE OF DIFFERENT QUALITIES, SO AT ONE OF THESE ROYAL BANQUETS THE BEST WINE IS RESERVED FOR THE KING, AND THE REST OF THE GUESTS GET A MUCH LESS A QUALITY OF WINE. AND ALSO WINE OF DIFFERENT STRENGTHS, SOME WINE IS DESCRIBED AS ESPECIALLY STRONG, OTHER WINE IS SWEET OR VERY CLEAR.
WINE WAS OFTEN SENT TO A KING AS A GIFT, USUALLY FROM ANOTHER KING, AND IN RETURN THE RECIPIENT OF THE WINE WOULD GIVE IT TO HIS FAVORITE OFFICIALS. KANARABI RECEIVED WINE FROM A RULER OF A KIND THAT HE HIMSELF WOULD DRINK. SO WE SEE THAT THIS WAS PART OF THE LUXURY GOODS THAT KINGS WOULD RECEIVE TO SOLIDIFY ALLIANCES BETWEEN KINGS, AND CREATE A CONNECTION BETWEEN THEM.
THE ASSYRIAN RULERS OF THE FIRST CENTURY B. C. WERE ESPECIALLY FOND OF RECEIVING LARGE GIFTS OF WINE, EITHER FROM OFFICIALS OR FROM OTHER RULERS.
EVEN AT THE HEIGHT OF ITS POPULARITY THERE IS NO EVIDENCE THAT WINE EVER REPLACED BEER AS THE BEVERAGE OF CHOICE IN MESOPOTAMIA.
THE 18TH CENTURY B. C. KING OF MARI, SIMURI-LIM WAS JUSTLY PROUD OF HIS ICE-HOUSE, WHICH HE HAD BUILT IN HIS PALACE, ALONG THE NORTHERN EUPHRATES. AN INSCRIPTION ON THE FOUNDATION STONE OF THE ICE-HOUSE, THAT WAS DISCOVERED, CREDITS SIMURI-LIM AS “THE BUILDER OF AN ICE-HOUSE, WHICH NO PREVIOUS KING HAD EVER BUILT ON THE BANKS OF THE EUPHRATES.”
LETTERS FROM THE PREVIOUS KING OF MARI, WHOM SIMURI-LIM SUPPLANTED— YASMA-ADAD, HAD ALSO REFERRED TO ICE. YASMA-ADAD WAS QUITE THE GURMONT, HE OFTEN REFERRED TO FOOD AND WINE IN HIS TEXTS. HE WAS VERY CONCERNED WITH HIS PARTICULAR DIET AND MAKING SURE HE GOT THE BEST OF EVERYTHING. SO IT WOULD NOT BE SURPRISING HE WAS ALSO INTERESTED IN GETTING ICE FOR COOL DRINKS, OR TO PRESERVE FOOD.
YASMA-ADAD’S FATHER ADVISED HIM FROM THE CITY OF ASTU “GIVE ORDERS TO THE CUP-BEARER’S SERVANTS AND MAKE THEM COLLECT THE ICE, LET THEM WASH IT FREE OF TWIGS, AND DUNG, AND DIRT.”
THE ICE WAS PROBABLY COLLECTED FROM A MOUNTAIN THEN BROUGHT DOWN TO MARI, WHERE IT WOULD BE STORED AND WRAPPED IN SOME WAY.….
WE KNOW THAT ICE WAS SPECIFICALLY USED TO COOL DRINKS, BOTH WINE AND FRUIT DRINKS, ARE MENTIONED AS BEING COOLED BY ICE. AND THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN QUITE REFRESHING ON A HOT SUMMER DAY ALONG THE NORTHERN EUPHRATES.
KINGS SPONSORED FEASTS ON A HUGE SCALE. AND THIS WOULD EARN THEM SUPPORT AMONG THEIR OWN PEOPLE, AND ALSO IMPRESS VISITORS.
THE PALACE KITCHEN STAFF WERE QUITE EXTENSIVE, BECAUSE THEY WOULD HAVE TO SERVE MANY PEOPLE ON A DAILY BASIS, SO ON THESE SPECIAL OCCASIONS PROVIDE FOOD FOR TENS OF THOUSANDS OF VISITORS. THE PALACE WAS ALWAYS A BUSY CENTER, RECEIVING ENVOYS, MERCHANTS, AS WELL AS SPONSORING MANY DIFFERENT CRAFT INDUSTRIES. SO THEY WOULD NEED TO HAVE SOMEONE OVERSEEING ITS KITCHEN, THE SUPPLIES RECEIVED AND HOW THEY WERE DISTRIBUTED.
A WOMAN NAMED AMADUGA WAS THE KEEPER OF THE KITCHEN AT MARI. HER NAME APPEAR FIRST DURING THE EIGN OF YASMA-ADAD, WHO WAS SO CONCERNED WITH HIS TUMMY AND ICE, AND SHE RETAINED HER POSITION EVEN WHEN THE KING WAS DEPOSED, AND SIMERI-LIM TOOK OVER THE PALACE. HER NAME IS KNOW FROM HER CYLINDER SEAL, UISED TO AUTHORIZE RECEIPTS OF OIL AND GRAIN, AND THIS MINOR PEICE OF EVIDENCE INFORMS US THAT— FIRST OF ALL, THAT PALACE STAFF COULD STAY DESPITE WHOEVER WAS ON THE THRONE AT THE TIME. NOTING HOW LARGE A PALACE COULD BE IT’S NOT SURPRISING A RULER WOULD WANT SOMEONE WITH EXPERIENCE.
ANOTHER DETAIL ABOUT AMADUGA IS THAT HER CYLINDER SEAL REVEALS HER IDENTIFICATION AS THE SERVANT OF YASMA-ADAD RATHER THAN THE SERVANT OF SIMURI-LIM. SO EVEN THOUGH THERE IS THIS CHANGE OF RULER, AMADUGA CONTINUES TO DESCRIBE HERSELF BY HER EARLIER KING. AND SHE MUST HAVE BEEN A VERY POWERFUL WOMAN TO BE ABLE TO DO THIS IN THE ROYAL HOUSEHOLD.
LET’S LOOK AT ONE BANQUET SPONSORED BY A KING. IT GIVES US A SENCE OF WHAT A HOUSEKEEPER LIKE AMADUGA WOULD HAVE OVERSEEN.
THE 9TH CENTURY B. C. ASSYRIAN KING ASANASOPOL 11 SPONSORED A FEAST AT THE OPENING OF HIS NEW CAPITAL, FOR 609, 574 PEOPLE. HE PROUDLY RECORDED HIS GENEROSITY ON AN INSCRIPTION THAT IS IN DETAIL. THE CELEBRATION LASTED FOR 10 DAYS, AND THE GUEST LIST INCLUDED BOTH LOCALS, HIS ASSYRIAN SUBJECTS, AND 5, 000 FOREIGN AMBASSADORS. BY THIS TIME ASSYRIA WAS A POWERFUL NATION, SO THEY COULD ENCOURAGE THEIR PROVIDENCES TO SEND DIGNITARIES ON SUCH AS THIS BANQUET. THE MENUE FOR THIS FEAST SHOWS THE ENORMOUS AMOUNT OF FOOD THAT A RULER SUPPLIED. 10 THOUSAND SHEEP, 34 THOUSAND TYPES OF FOWL, 10 THOUSAND FISH, AND OTHER TYPES OF MEAT. THE GUESTS WOULD ENJOY THIS WITH 10 THOUSAND JARS OF BEER, THE SIZE IS NOT GIVEN. AND 10 THOUSAND CONTAINERS OF WINE.
IN ADDITION TO FOOD, PUBLIC BANQUETS LIKE THIS WOULD ALSO SUPPLY ENTERTAINMENT. WE KNOW OF DANCING, ACROBATS, MUSICIANS WOULD BE THERE ALSO, TO ENTERTAIN THE GUESTS. AND THE FEAST WAS ANOTHER OCCASION FOR THE RULER TO DEMONSTRATE HIS WEALTH AND GENEROSITY. AT THE SAME TIME A FEAST LIKE THIS WOULD ENCOURAGE HIS PEOPLE TO BE ESPECIALLY FAVORABLE TOWARDS HIM, THE KING. AFTER ALL YOU LEAVE A DINNER AND YOU’VE HAD LOTS OF FOOD AND LOTS TO DRINK, YOU OFTEN HAVE GOOD-WILL TOWARDS YOUR HOST….. ALL THE PEOPLE WOULD MEET THE KING, EAT WITH THE KING, DRINK WITH THE KING, AND THAT TOO WOULD CREATE A CONNECTION BETWEEN THE RULER AND HIS PEOPLE.
PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS LIKE THE PALACE AND THE TEMPLE, WERE CONNECTED WITH FOOD SUPPLY IN ANOTHER VENUE— PROVIDING RATIONS IN EXCHANGE FOR LABOR. IF YOU THINK BACK TO THE 4TH MILLENNIUM B. C. WE’VE ALREADY CONSIDERED THIS RESPONSIBILITY WITH THE RULING AND RELIGIOUS ELITE. THE BEVIL RIMMED BOWL WE’VE DISCUSSED, THIS DISPOSABLE CONTAINER, THAT SOME SCHOLARS BELIEVE WAS A WAY FOR GRAIN OR BEER TO BE DISPERSED TO WORKERS, WAS PREVALENT IN THE 4TH MILLENNIUM B. C. WE SEE THIS FROM ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE., WHERE THE TEMPLE’S ROLE WAS IN DISTRIBUTING FOOD.
RATION LISTS SURVIVE FROM MANY DIFFERENT PERIODS. AND THE RATIONS VARIED BY THE AGE OF THE GENDER INDIVIDUALS, BUT ALL OF THEM FULFILLED THE CALORIES NEEDED FOR A DAYS WORK. THESE WORKERS WERE USUALLY EMPLOYED IN COMMUNAL PROJECTS IN BUILDING TEMPLES, PALACES, OR LARGE AGRICULTURAL HARVESTS; THEY MIGHT WORK AT BUILDING CANALS TO BRING THIS ABUNDANCE TO THE TABLE.
THE RATIONS GIVEN IN RETURN FOR LABOR, AVERAGED ABOUT 16 GALLONS OF BARLEY A MONTH, FOR A MALE WORKER. CHILDREN FROM THE AGE OF 10 TO 15, WOULD RECEIVE 10 GALLONS OF BARLEY, AND THE ELDERLY GOT ABOUT HALF OF THAT. THE RECORDS TELLS US THAT A MALE WORKER WOULD CONSUME ABOUT 1/2 A GALLON OF BARLEY AND 1/2 A GALLON OF BEER PER DAY. IN CONTRAST WHEN AN EMPLOYER HAD TO PAY WORKERS FOR THEIR LABOR, OTHER THAN SIMPLY PROVIDING RATIONS, A MALE WORKER COULD RECEIVE UP TO 62 AND 1/2 GALLONS OF BARLY A MONTH. PRESUMABLY THE WORKER COULD SELL OR BARTER THE EXESS FOOD, AND THAT COULD SUPPLEMENT HIS INCOME.
WE SEE THAT THOSE WORKERS WHO WERE GIVEN RATIONS, COULD NOT COMMAND MORE IN EXCHANGE FOR THEIR WORK. AND THEY WERE PROBABLY THE LOWEST MEMBERS OF SOCIETY. SO WHEN WE SEE A DIVISION BY AGE, THE AGE OF THE CHILDREN, AND CHILDREN AS YOUNG AS 5 ARE RECORDED IN THESE RATION LISTS, AND THE ELDERLY, THERE ARE DISTINCTIONS IN WHAT RATIONS THEY RECEIVED. WE ARE ALSO REMINDED THAT THE TEMPLE AND THE PALACE WERE THEIR DUTY TO PROVIDE FOOD FOR THEIR PEOPLE. AND THE WAY THEY DID THIS WAS TO PUT THEM TO WORK, AND DIFFERENT TASKS.
WE’VE SEEN HOW THE TEMPLE AND THE KING ARE ORDERED TO SUPPLY FOOD FOR THEIR PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T EASILY SUPPLY FOOD FOR THEMSELVES. AND THEIR ARE ALSO OCCASIONS WHEN, SOMEHOW THE KING COULD NOT SUPPLY FOOD FOR HIS WORKERS. AND THESE DON’T RECEIVE MUCH ATTENTION IN THE TEXTS BECAUSE KINGS DON’T LIKE TO REVEAL THEIR WEAKNESSES. WE CAN IDENTIFY CERTAIN PERIODS OF FAMINE. AND I THINK I MENTIONED ONE OF THESE AT THE END OF THE UR 111 DYNASTY, THE LAST KING ABI-SIN WAS FACING A WIDE-SPREAD FAMINE IN HIS KINGDOM. AND HE SENT LETTERS TO A GENERAL BEGGING THE GENERAL TO SEND HIM FOOD, SO HE COULD SUPPLY THE PEOPLE AT UR WITH BREAD. AND HE DEMANDED THE FOOD AT ANY PRICE. SO WE GET A SENSE THAT THERE WERE DEFINITELY TIMES WHEN THERE WAS INFLATION FOR THE BASIC NECESSITIES OF LIFE.
ANOTHER OCCASION THAT WOULD CAUSE A DISRUPTION OF FOOD SUPPLY, WOULD BE WHEN A CITY WOULD BE BESIEGED. AND THIS IS ONE OF THE DRAWBACKS TO CITY LIFE, WHEN AS WAR INCREASED IN THE SECOND AND FIRST MILLENNIUM B. C. , CITIES WOULD MORE OFTEN BE BESIEGED BY RULERS TRYING TO CONTROL A LARGE TERRITORY. SO AN ARMY ENCAMPED AROUND A CITY WOULD PREVENT WORKERS FROM GOING OUT TO THEIR FIELDS. AND ANY FOOD THAT WAS SUPPLY THOSE WHO WERE CUPPED UP BEHIND THE CITY WALLS, HAD TO BE BROUGHT IN BEFORE THE SIEGE BEGAN. EVENTUALLY THE FOOD WOULD RUN OUT, IN NO SMALL PART BECAUSE THERE WERE MORE PEOPLE BEHIND THE WALLS OF THE CITY DEPENDING ON IT FOR PROTECTION.
AS WE LOOK AT MILITARY RECORDS WE CAN USUALLY FIGURE OUT WHEN FOOD, SOME TIMES THE WATER SUPPLY, RAN OUT IN THE CITY…….
THIS FOOD STUDY ALLOWS US TO SEE THE LOCAL FOODS AND SOME EXOTIC FOODS, THAT WERE AVAILABLE IN MESOPOTAMIA. SOMETIMES WHEN WE THINK OF THE ANCIENT WORLD, WE THINK THAT EVERYONE WAS EATING A TASTELESS MUSH, A VERY BLEAK DIET RARELY COOKED MEAT, BUT IN FACT THE TEXTS IMAGINE US TO SEE MEALS THAT WERE MUCH CLOSER TO MODERN MEALS— VARIETY, AND TASTES OF DIFFERENT TEXTURES.
WE’VE ALSO LEARNED FOOD WAS A COMMODITY EXCHANGED FOR WORK, OR AS A TREAT GIVEN BY A RULER TO HIS PEOPLE ON THE OCCASION OF A BANQUET. IT COULD ALSO BE THE WEAK LINK IN A CITY, WHEN THE CITY WAS UNDER SIEGE.
KEEP IN MIND THE PICTURE OF CITIES WE HAVE BEEN CREATING OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF LECTURES.
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YES INDEED AT THE TIME OF ABRAHAM AND AFTER THERE WAS QUITE THE CITY LIFE, IN HOW CITIES FORMED, AND THE DAILY WORK THAT WAS PART OF CITIES, WITH ALSO THE VARIETY OF FOODS AND PREPARATION OF FOODS AND DRINKS, TO MAKE PHYSICAL LIFE ENJOYABLE.
Keith Hunt
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