[OT] Sandwichery of the Dark Ages

[Creamsteak]

What is a Sandwich?

From Dictionary.com
Two or more slices of bread with a filling such as meat or cheese placed between them.
A partly split long or round roll containing a filling.
One slice of bread covered with a filling.

There are many stories that I have read or heard about concerning Sandwiches. There are also a number of things that were not introduced to the sandwich initially. As far as I can tell, the invention (if you should call it that) of Sandwich comes from the Earl of Sandwich, sometime before his death in 1792.

I just can't stomache the concept that people hadn't thought to put meat or cheese between sliced bread before 1750. Also, tomatoes were supposedly considered poison by Europeans until the 1600s, though Persians and the Chinese seemed to accept the concept much earlier.

The question here is, why didn't someone discover and document the simple concept of bread/meat/cheese/bread until the 18th century? Why didn't sandwiches exist in the dark age, or at least, why do sandwiches recieved no mention?

If there was some reason why sandwiches didn't recieve notice or discovery, then I'm wondering to myself, would those reasons be applicable to a traditional fantasy setting? Would Greyhawk have a lower sandwich count than the Forgotten Realms? Should certain regions consider the sandwich foriegn or exotic? And what about taking things even further, and assuming that some regions will think foods in other regions are distasteful or poisonous? In Hedrad, in the Scarred Lands, the concept of eating pickled foods is absolutely foriegn, they may even say that, "Anything left in it's own juices will go bad in a week, without doubt."

 

[alsih2o]

strangely enough a lot of concepts were just plain overlooked. picasso "invented" collage with braque last century, and calder made mobiles for the first time last century.....doesn't it seem that someone in the htousand s of years of human history would have hung some twigs and weights from the ceiling?

 

[Rodrigo Istalindir]

As I recall, the Lord of Sandwich didn't *invent* the sandwich so much as make it famous. As a flamboyant member of the nobility, he became something of a trendsetter. A lesser member of the nobility attends one of the Earl's famous gambling marathons and sees the Earl eat one of these bread-meat concoctions, and dubs it a 'sandwich' either as a joke or an attempt to curry favor. The others adopt the name and their servants have to learn to make them. The servants adopt the name, and it just spreads from there.

 

[Dr. Strangemonkey]

The sandwhich strikes me as too casual a use of food for any but a fairly affluent culture to indulge in it.

The first known reference to calzones is from the 11th-12th centuries. They could be considered a very hot form of sandwhich.

 

[jonesy]

I just can't stomache the concept that people hadn't thought to put meat or cheese between sliced bread before 1750.

Sometimes I even find it hard to believe that the human race managed to invent fire. Or indeed toast. Or pants.

 

[Viking Bastard]

I'm quite sure that pants were originally a tragic sewing accident.

 

[Azlan]

Also, tomatoes were supposedly considered poison by Europeans until the 1600s, though Persians and the Chinese seemed to accept the concept much earlier.

Tomotoes came from the New World, and thus were not available to the Europeans prior to the early 16th Century. Other things that were "discoveries" from the New World were bellpeppers, chocolate, tobacco, kidney beans, lima beans, avocados, and blueberries. In exchange, the Europeans brought horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, honeybees, sugar cane, onion, lettuce, and wheat to the New World.

So, believe it or not, prior to the early 16th Century the Italians did not - could not - put tomato sauce on their pasta! (Myself, I cannot imagine life without tomato sauce. Or chocolate, for that matter.)

 

[jgbrowning]

Re: Re: [OT] Sandwichery of the Dark Ages

Tomotoes came from the New World, and thus were not available to the Europeans prior to the early 16th Century. Other things that were "discoveries" from the New World were bellpeppers, chocolate, tobacco, kidney beans, lima beans, avocados, and blueberries. In exchange, the Europeans brought horses, cattle, pigs, sheep, honeybees, sugar cane, onion, lettuce, and wheat to the New World.

So, believe it or not, prior to the early 16th Century the Italians did not - could not - put tomato sauce on their pasta! (Myself, I cannot imagine life without tomato sauce. Or chocolate, for that matter.)

Wild onions were eaten by the Native Americans but the pilgrims did bring their own "domesticated" variety.

Bees were culitivated for honey in mexico and south america. The europeans brought the european honey bees to new england.

Potatoes are the biggest new world food contribution.

joe b.

 

[Piratecat]

The first known print reference to a sandwich is in 1762. From the OED:

Said to be named after John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich (1718-1792), who once spent twenty-four hours at the gaming-table without other refreshment than some slices of cold beef placed between slices of toast.

This account of the origin of the word is given by Grosley Londres (1770) I. 262. Grosley's residence in London was in 1765, and he speaks of the word as having then lately come into use."

1762 GIBBON Jrnl. 24 Nov., Misc. Wks. 1796 I. 110 note, I dined at the Cocoa Tree... That respectable body..affords every evening a sight truly English. Twenty or thirty..of the first men in the kingdom,..supping at little tables..upon a bit of cold meat, or a Sandwich.

 

[Anthron]

Considering the ancient Romans had hamburger like sandwiches sold at fast food like store's I would say there were unquestionably sandwiches before 1750. They even still have the recipe! Third link down Here though its not exactly the same recipe I saw on a TLC show.