Know your onions!

It's enough to bring tears to your eyes. MedievalMorsels read this week that there is likely to be an onion shortage this year. As reported by the "Daily Mail" last year’s heatwave across mainland Europe and a wet growing season in the UK has severely hit supplies of onions. The European drought was especially hard on Spanish onions apparently, which are popular with both shoppers and food processors because of their large size and quality of their skins.

No such problem has been experienced by MedievalMorsels, which can supply plenty of miniature onions for your period or contemporary dollshouse setting. 

Loose onions, onions in bowls or in basket for your dollhouse kitchen, greengrocer's shop, market stall, rustic roombox or kitchen garden scene.

12th scale onions for a period or rustic dollhouse by MedievalMorsels

In Medieval times the onion was common throughout Europe. White or silver skinned ones found in the Mediterranean were mild, soft and juicy. They were often eaten raw. But a tougher, thicker skinned onion breed - like the one I have modelled - was found in northern Europe - better able to survive the colder winters and penetrating damp. In fact a French proverb states that three layers of skin means a very hard winter!

The best bread money could buy

Peasant and horse team harrowing the fields before sowing wheat (Luttrell Psalter 1325-1335)

In Medieval times a large part of the everyone's diet, no matter their rank in society, was cereal-based. Coarsley ground cereals were thrown into the cooking pot or cauldron. Producing a cereal based porridge or "mash". Or for a pottage, added to roots, leaves and pulses (peas, beans etc). Meat would have been an optional luxury - but only on the relatively few days in the year when the medieval church allowed its consumption. 


 And of course cereals were used to make bread. Commonly grown cereals in England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland were rye, buckwheat, spelt, millet, barley, oats and wheat. Cereals were a valuable commodity and a failed harvest was a disaster. 

MedievalMorsels' white wheat bread, "manchet" for a Tudor dollhouse manor or castle

But it was wheat that was especially vaued in Medieval society. It produced a white flour when finely milled and was thus three times as expensive as other grains. Wheat was traded to nearby towns to satisfy the overwhelming demand for use in bread making for the noble and aspiring merchant classes. For the estate dwelling, indentured peasant however bread made from any finely ground cereal was a non-attainable luxury...

Luxury wheat bread for a 12th scale Tudor Elizabethan dollshouse 

Luttrell Psalter - peasant sowing wheat on the estate 

 Peasants then would not have eaten their cereals as bread. And they certainly could not have afforded coarse wheatmeal for their cooking pot. In the rural villages it was only on nobles' estates or the monastery, priory or abbey land holdings where the mill ground and sold. The landlord's cereal meal and flours were baked in his ovens. The humble peasant would need to set his sights lower. He might afford some  inexpensive grain to pound at home. Buckwheat - which would grow just about anywhere - was a favourite for porridge and "pan"cakes. A “maza” - an unleavened cereal meal dough or paste, thicker than porridge - could be shaped and baked on a stone or in the embers of the fire..

 Never mind the fact that  it was the estate peasants who sowed the fields and harvested, stacked and threshed the grains - including valuable wheat - for his landlord. 

The estate wheat harvest, all the peasants involved

Threshing estate wheat

If a peasant was lucky enough to work directly as part of the manor household, lesser quality rye or "maslin" or mixed grain bread would be baked for the servants, in addition to the higher quality household "manchet" bread for the noble masters. 

Charitable hand-outs of used bread trenchers (akin to bread plates) were distributed as alms at the manor gates. Such bread handouts could be used as sops or soppes in a bowl with a thin gruel or pottage served on top, the forerunner of today’s similarly named "soup". In fact, reflecting on this origin, bread is a key ingredient of the classic French onion soup even today.

Historic Reprieve for Parchment in the UK!

At last! Today we were graciously informed over the airwaves that the use of parchment will be continued in Parliament, continuing a tradition of a mere 800 years (and more). There is to be a reprieve and in the UK we can continue to "keep  history to hand" for millennia to come. 

Common sense, exhibited by those representing the House of Commons or at least it's Cabinet Office, and more importantly a sense of history have prevailed. The House of Lords' recommendation to save a mere £80k by discontinuing the use of vellum (calfskin) or other parchment skins (sheep, goat) has been ignored. Savings will be found to fund the cost (Ed: what about an application to the Heritage /Lottery Fund anyone? Would that embarrass the House of Lords?)

As a representative of William Cowley (est. 1870), the last remaining Vellum maker and Parchmenter in the UK and one of only four in the world, reminded us - parchment keeps for at least 5000 years and needs no special conservation -the Dead Sea scrolls dating from 435 BCE were discovered in a cave. We cannot be sure, but Archive quality paper may last only 500 years at best. Cowley remarked that a small number of people (Ed: be they ignoble Lords perchance?) seemed to have decided that in the future ordinary people should not touch history. Vellum or prachment has provided us with more understanding of earlier civilisations than any other historical artefact.

MedievalMorsels  followed the issue back in October 2015 but did not thoroughly got under the skin of this problem....sharing its findings as a post be:

"Earlier this month House of Lords Committee recommended to the UK’s House of Commons that Parliament should no longer print the official copies of its Acts on Vellum. Instead, as a cost cutting exercise, it is suggested that record copies of Acts of Parliament  should instead be printed on archival quality paper. As now, one copy would continue to be stored in the Parliamentary Archives and the other sent to The National Archives (which has already stated that it does not require a copy on Vellum).

So it boils down to whether ‘recorded history’ will be accessible to those who follow many generations into the future. Archival quality paper has proven 250 years life expectancy and, we are told, a probable 500 year life expectancy. Centuries ahead it seems likely that posterity may not have Vellum or Parchment for to pore (?paw) over. But will it have an otherwise preserved written record?

What exactly is Vellum, and what is Parchment and what is the difference? The term parchment is a general term for an animal skin which has been prepared for writing or printing. Parchment has been made for centuries, and is usually calf, goat, or sheep skin. The term vellum from the French veau refers to a parchment made from calf skin. But even as early as the 16th century in England there has been some confusion in use of the terms.  So we had better leave it at that.

The manufacture of Parchment  involves removing the skin of an animal of any hair or flesh, stretching it on a wooden frame where the parchment maker scrapes the surface of the skin with a special curved knife. To create tension in the skin scraping is alternated by wetting and drying the skin. The Parchment must be scraped, wetted and dried several times to bring it to the right thickness and tautness for calligraphy or printing.

Parchment has traditionally been used instead of paper for important documents such as maps, religious texts, public laws, indentures, and land records as it has always been considered a strong and stable material. Even in the US the five pages of the U.S. Constitution, as well as the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Articles of Confederation are written on Parchment.

Back in the UK, parchmenters William Cowley (est. 1870) provided the largest calfskin ever for use in the magnificent re-creation of a Mappa Mundi, commissioned by English Heritage, which hangs in the refurbished Great Tower of Dover Castle. Cowleys is one of only four parcmenters in the world and probably the last to produce skins using traditional craft tools and skills. Their Vellum sheets can take up to six weeks to produce and are sold to practitioners, conservationists, bookbinders, museums and libraries all over the world. No air conditioners or hermetically sealed rooms for Vellum! (Or Parchment? Ed.).

"Going goat" is still a phrase used in Whitehall to describe the moment when the Queen's Speech has to be finalised and sent to the Palace for Her Majesty's approval. But the Monarch’s speeches, formerly printed on goatskin Parchment we must assume, are presently printed on sheepskin Parchment! And now will be for thhe future...

Now (Ed: October 2015) I have been unable to find out how the Parliamentary Acts question was finally resolved in the Commons. Lets leave the last, spoken, word to William Cowley: "There is bitter irony that the very year we celebrated 800 years of Magna Carta, we may also witness the end of recording Acts on Vellum. Vellum has excellent 'green' credentials, needs no specialist aftercare, and has provided us with more understanding of earlier civilisations than any other historical artefact." "

Cheddar cheese - King Henry II's favourite!

Just how do we know which cheese was the favourite of King Henry II (1154-1189)?  It was Cheddar cheese there’s no mistake. And today Cheddar is Britain’s favourite cheese still. But can we be sure we are dealing with Medieval fact and not ancient folklore invented in Somerset to bolster their cheese's claim to fame?

A 1:12 scale historically accurate doll, King Henry II by Angelique Miniatures

Medieval, Tudor Dollhouse Cheddar cheese by MedievalMorsels

Well, meticulous records were kept by the equivalent of the Medieval Treasury. The 'Great Roll of the Exchequer' or pipe rolls as they came to be known, contain accounts of the royal income, arranged by county, for each financial year. The Medieval financial year ended at Michaelmas, that is the 29th September which coincides with bringing in the all important harvest. I wonder if this is relevant - a fiscal year tied to hard won pickings and profit grudgingly given up from land under cultivation?

The pipe rolls - great lengths of parchment sewn and rolled together in one long document - represent England’s earliest surviving series of public records. They are essentially continuous from 1155 onwards until the 19th century.

Henry, skilfully made by miniaturist Louise Goldsborough Bird

From the Somerset pipe roll of 1170 we know that King Henry II purchased 10,240 lbs (pounds weight) or 4.6 tonnes of Cheddar cheese at a cost of a farthing (a quarter penny) per pound weight. It is said he declared Cheddar cheese to be the best in Britain.









Furthermore Henry’s son Prince John (later called  “Bad King John”, reigning between 1199 and 1216) thought the same of the Somerset staple. Why? Because in the pipe rolls there are records of John continuing to buy the cheese for the great Royal banquets. His elder brother King Richard, so-called Lionheart, spent so little time in England that perhaps he did not develop a taste for English cheese.

Angelique Miniature's King John. He too favoured Cheddar, made here by MedievalMorsels!

More one inch scale dollshouse food, Cheddar cheeses by MedievalMorsels

So we can be sure that Cheddar making in Somerset goes back more than 800 years!  

Henry II spent only 13 years of his reign in England; the other 21 years were spent on the continent in his territories in what is now France. This goes to suggest that English cheese of the day compared favourably with those produced in Normandy and Aquitaine - where Henry held extensive Dukedoms.

Cheddar cheese, one inch dollhouse scale, handmade by MedievalMorsels

Cheddar cheese achieved later royal acclaim. In the reign of Charles 1 (1625 to 1649) parliamentary records show that the cheese made in Cheddar was sold before it was even made! Consequently it was only available at the court. An illustrious cheese indeed. I like mine extra mature or vintage.

Assorted English cheeses by ancient tradition

Miniature cheese for a 1:12 scale dollshouse, by MedievalMorselsMedievalMorsels

As a Christmas present I was given a slim volume on cheese making, a gift from my elder sister. There is one question puzzles me. And it has always puzzled my sister’s oldest friend, who has had a keen interest in history all her life.

Why is it in England that we have always been so fond of cow's milk and its dairy products whereas as a nation we have tended to shun goat's and ewe's milks and their cheeses? Generally speaking this seems to hold true for our Medieval forebears as well.

Copyright Public domain: Luttrell Psalter c.1325-1335 sheep milking pen

Cheese making, but not by monks.  A Medieval/Renaissance woodcut.

The slim volume, alas, did not answer this directly. But it did shed light on the question by revealing what I believe to be a very strong hint. It let slip the interesting fact that Wensleydale cheese, made by Cistercian monks in Yorkshire since 1115, was originally made from sheep's milk. Cow's milk was only substituted much later. Now, I have also learned from the radio this week  that the Cistercian monks, when they broke away from the Benedictine order, preferred a hard life not an easy one. So they settled in very remote locations.

One imagines then that in Upper Wensleydale the Cistercian monks were, with help from lay shepherds who were part of their self sufficient community, able to tend flocks of milking ewes. Hardier and less expensive to keep than cattle, they would have endured the wintery conditions better than cattle or indeed the monks themselves. In fact the monks had to relocate to Lower Wensleydale in later years because of inclement weather and hostile natives!

Cheshire or Wensleydale  type cheese, 12th scale dollhouse food for a period setting

MedievalMorsels' pale crumbly Wensleydale, Cheshire texture

Cheddar making in Somerset goes back more than 800 years with records from King Henry II’s accounts showing that in 1170 the King purchased 10,240 lbs (4.6 tonnes) of Cheddar cheese at a cost of a farthing (a quarter penny) per pound weight. He declared Cheddar cheese to be the best in Britain and his son Prince John (later “Bad King John” reigning between 1199 and 1216) thought the same. Why? Because there are records of him continuing to buy the cheese for the great Royal banquets.

The land around the village of Cheddar has been at the centre of England's dairy industry since at least the 15th Century and, being prime land, one tends to assume by then it was based upon herds of cows and not flocks of sheep. Its earliest origins may have lain with sheep however...

And for other ancient English cheeses, whose large scale production started in the Middle Ages, there is tantalising early reference to sheep’s milk. Originally cheese made in the valley of the River Severn was made from the milk of Cotswold Sheep. As early as 1498 so much cheese was being made in Gloucester that a permanent market was set up in the City of Gloucester, the site of it’s indoor market today. But by Tudor times (post 1485) cow’s milk was the norm across the Vale of Berkeley and down to Bristol. This came mainly from Old Gloucester cows whose milk was ideal for cheese-making with small fat globules that made a fine even textured cheese. In 1745 cattle plague all but wiped out the breed and was replaced by the Longhorn cow, with no reversion back to sheep!  Double Gloucester cheese, probably made with the previous evening's skimmed off cream set by, was a prized cheese comparable in quality to the best Cheddar or Cheshire, and was exported out of the county. Whereas an inferior Single Gloucester tended to be consumed within the county.

And all this without mentioning that Cheshire cheese is England's oldest cheese! The claim that Cheddar cheese is referenced by name in the Doomsday Book of 1086 cannot be substantiated, it would seem. A rival claim is for Cheshire cheese, also not substantiated, but actually likely to be England's cheese of cheeses! The Doomsday Book would amply demonstrate, I am sure, that many more sheep, goats and pigs were kept than indulgent milking cows in the 11th century! I suspect the same probably cannot be said of beasts of burden, oxen.

So a picture does emerge of England’s dairy practice in Medieval times first evolving patchwork like around clusters of sheep’s milk production, and then moving up a gear as the Englishman’s appetite grew for cheese grew with cow’s milk production concentrated in valley areas of lush pasture.

One inch scale cheese,  Parmesan for a Medieval Tudor or Renaissance dolls house

And just a word on Parmesan cheese, or Parmigiano Reggiano®  as it is now known.  An ancient cheese made by monks in Parma, Italy from skimmed cow’s milk. Imported into England in Medieval and Tudor times, Samuel Pepys buried his "Parmazan cheese" during the Great Fire of London of 1666 "...as well as his wine and some other things" to preserve them. Historical documents show that in the 13th and 14th centuries, Parmigiano (Parmesan cheese) was already very similar to that produced today, which suggests its origins can be traced to a far earlier Medieval times. And sheep rather than cows originally I wonder?

And what about England’s “red” cheeses such as Red Leicester? Lets just leave that story for another blog post shall we? But here is a miniature taster by MedievalMorsels!

Red Leicester cheese for a period or rustic 1;12 scale setting by MedievalMorsels

Oranges - a treat of a Christmas fruit

Western culture associates oranges with Christmas.  I certainly grew up with an orange, in later years  a tangerine, mandarin or satsuma, in the toe of my stocking. (Not to mention an assortment of shelled nuts.) But why this practice?

Festive 1:12 oranges for a wealthy Medieval or Tudor dollshouse by MedievalMorsels

Tradition in parts of Europe has it that Saint (Bishop) Nicholas rescued poor maidens from being sold by their families into slavery by supplying their dowry gold. Stealthily doing good in his neighbourhood at night, he throws bags of gold in through the window. It landed in stockings left to dry before the fire. The money is often shown as gold balls and these are later came to be symbolized by oranges, or even apples. So the orange in the toe of the stocking is a reminder of Nicholas' gift. Of course today gold foil covered chocolate coins can also fit the bill nicely!

MedievalMorsels' oranges at one inch scale for your period dollhouse

St Nicholas' Day is celebrated on 6 December across the world in honour of this benign bringer of gifts. In Europe, especially in Germany and Poland, boys dress up as bishops to beg alms for the poor, while in Ukraine, children expect St Nicholas to place a present under their pillows if they have been good throughout the year. The tradition differs across countries, so in the Netherlands, Dutch children put out a clog filled with hay and a carrot for St Nicholas' horse. (Did anyone in America see a gap in the market for other carrot eating quadrupeds being deployed as part of this tradition, removed to Christmastide later the same month?)

Saint Nicholas later came to be identified as "Father Christmas". In America Sankt Niklaus became "Santa Claus" a natural phonetic alteration from the German.

But who was the original Saint Nicholas? Nikolaos of Myra (270 – 343 AD) was a historic Christian saint and Greek Bishop of Myra, in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). Fabled in local cultural practice as the patron saint of marriageable maidens, children and many others besides, Nicholas was widely revered as the friend and protector of all in trouble or need. His popularity spread during the Middle Ages. Sailors, claiming him as their patron, carried stories of his favour and protection far and wide. St. Nicholas chapels were built in many seaports, including my home town of King’s Lynn. Now thousands of churches are named for him: three hundred in Belgium, thirty-four in Rome, twenty-three in the Netherlands and more than four hundred in England.

Peeled navel oranges imported to Medieval Tudor England via MedievalMorsels

Now on to the oranges…a rare treat in a Christmas stocking even as late as Victorian times in England. Until relatively recently a few oranges would have made a “statement” on any dining table. So imagine the wonder in Medieval times! Oranges arriving on British shores would most likely have come from a grove in Spain, Italy or Sicily. Oranges were traded in larger quantities in Tudor (Renaissance) times, from much of southern Europe to central and northern Europe, including England. But still they would have  been an unimaginable luxury, despite the fact that they tasted very bitter indeed!  I can imagine a crate or sack of oranges being sent as a gift for royalty by England’s ambassadors in those far away, sun-kissed places, or transported by enterprising merchants for wealthy clients in England.

Stonemasons' 1000 year old tradition

In Norwich, Norfolk last Saturday members of an ancient guild were on parade, wearing colourful tabards and black felt hats, and carrying banners with depiction of the cross of St George.

The master stonemasons and their current apprentices of the Guild of St Stephen and St George set off from St Clement's church in Norwich and called at Norwich Castle and the Guildhall as part of their procession on foot through the ancient city.

Their particular guild has a history going back over one thousand years, its antecedent having been founded in the eleventh century!

Cheese for a 1:12 scale dollshouse of any period

One inch scale dollhouse rye bread by MedievalMorsels

Miniature food, cheese and ale snack suitable for a stonemason

And what would that skilled craftsman and his apprentice stonemason eat for their meal halfway through the long working day? MedievalMorsels would suggest it was most likely rye or mixed grain bread and cheese !







And plenty of ale (small beer) to refresh and revive and rehydrate after  hours of labour - dusty and physical work it must have been. The same today as always.








Saint Stephen was the Patron Saint of stonemasons. I suppose there is a clue in the name of the Guild come to think of it! A disciple of Christ he was martyred for blasphemy by stoning, which may be the main

reason he was adopted as patron saint by this guilded profession. His feast day is 26th December, mentioned in the Christmas Carol "Good King Wencleslas". In several European countries this remains a public holiday, but is more commonly known as "Boxing Day"in England. I'm pleased about that (it being a holiday I mean) because it's a special day for me - it just happens to be my birthday!

MedievalMorsels' round rye loaf, one inch scale dollshouse food

Wholemeal bread 12th scale Medieval, Tudor or rustic dollhouse

Maslin (mixed grain) bread at 1:12 scale