Pertinax

Sourdough GO! I think they might amble to the brewery. On reflection the best description for the spelt loaf is "like a madeira cake" in density and porosity. I tried goats milk butter (as a nod to barbaric German custom) , with aioli (as posted above in this thread) on the bread and it was a hefty snack. I think making a 1lb loaf is quite enough for all non- Legionary types out there, unless you are marching 15 Roman miles between outposts before lunch.

The first loaf was very close textured indeed, but not unpalatable. I found that id produced something with the overall texture of a dense malt loaf (but not as heavy as a dark rye), roughly half the risen size of an ordinary shop bought loaf. My first thought was, "hmm handy size to put in your pack".I might attempt an oven bake to produce "slipper" shaped loaves.

No, but you are close...I shall be wearing a scandalously loose fitting toga, carrying Mandrake root to ward of evil spirits and a copy of "Dangerous Tastes".

I have dropped a line to this group of late era re-enactors: http://www.comitatus.net/Home.htm I hope they may be able to send a representative to speak to us , however briefly. I would add that I intend to visit the Goathland event in their schedule the week preceding our own meeting.

First attempt at the "Roman Army Bread" now in train. As I am using a breadmaking machine (boo hiss) I am trying the first loaf let down with a buckwheat flour and using cane sugar. If the machine produces a reasonable loaf my next endeavour will be the exact recipe, using borage honey : thus I can claim a "local" Brigantine flavour additive. Machines seem to have a problem with spelt (to a degree) , in that the loaf tends to be very fine textured and dense ,I also intend a "three way" grain mix to emulate the loaf of the late Republican era (spelt/rye/coarse wheat). Back to the lab.

Unfortunately I believe the stairs are extant only from the time of Tiberius.

The DVD extras (season 1) make it plain that the producers acknowledge th e"modernity " of the storytelling , but...the physical world created for the action is as authentic as they could strive for , and if not authentic in fact they hoped to achieve veracity "in spirit". The sprawl of the story , and the need for the "small scale " figures of Vorennus and Pullo as narrative continuity and identifiable heroes has meant an elbowing out of some rather large personalities.

Proserpine as the female "animus" is perhaps the key-Venus ( the light ie:life , beauty/conception/abundance ) versus (or rather day versus night of the same entity) Hecate as crone and bringer of death/solace/peace. http://www.usefultrivia.com/mythology/proserpine.html an undemanding look at the mythology.

I presume we are seeing the relationship of venus/hecate here (though I havent seen the episode). The interpretation is as follows, the female principle as virgin/wife-lifegiver/crone-death(life taker), ie: the full life cycle of the feminine principle . Hecate or Proserpine as a deity(of death/subduction to the underworld) associated with mortality is intimately related to Venus as the ascendant figure of female beauty/fertility/desire/fecundity.One might say Hecate is the obverse of Venus, or Venus ripe with years and doom- lifegiver/lifetaker-return to to oblivion. Violentillas post mirrors this with the Isis /Osiris cycle- I am intrigued by these posts and hope we can see the series soon!

Ok , mambers are suggesting the link with venus-birthgiver in this thread: http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?showto...amp;#entry53320 I suspect that this linked thread will be the focus of debate given the very positive posts here. Ill keep an eye on both threads and try and meld posts as appropriate , so we dont get a scatter of debate. Please continue to post dear friends!

OK , numbers are looking quite good. Next thing is itinerary and site visits, also possible re-enactment involvment (by which I mean an invite to Comitatvs, the local 3rd C AD group , to send a representative as our guest ). Persons who have kindly offered to speak are as follows, ( they will not be obliged to speak for more than 20 minutes-unless possesed of an overwhelming desire to transmit learned information ): Dalby A , Wot Wotius, Phil 25,and myself . There is an excellent spot on the City Wall where a small group may sojurn (weather permitting) , otherwise I have my eye on an appropriate indoor venue. Other delegates are invited to speak or (as in NNs case) perhaps display the fruits of their handiwork. Please do not take things too seriously , we are engaged in "testing the water" on this trip , once we have a grasp of the range of personalities and talents , interests and bad habits then we can plan accoringly. TRhe City is awash with interesting historical items , Roman, Viking and Medieval (also technological , the Railway Museum is excellent). The pubs arent bad either.

I bought a pack of "Dove's Farm" Organic Spelt flour: on the back was this! Roman Army Bread 1lb of spelt flour, half tsp of sea salt, 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 tsp honey, half oz of freash yeast, 14 fl oz water. place flour in bowl, blend yeast and honey into half the water,mix these roughly together.Dissolve salt in rest of water, add to the mix then finally add the oil. Mix vigorously for 15 mins. Allow to rise for 20/25 minutes.Pre-heat oven to 180c/350 f and bake for approx 40 mins. http://www.dovesfarm.co.uk/products-dietcompatibility.htm

The forerunner of modern pizza. I thought that the Roman soldier was fed meat at least once a day? The analysed garbage from around military sites on the Wall (and the Antonine) certainly reveals a prodigious amount of animal bones, from many species-id suspect therefore that whilst the issue of meat rations is an uncertain thing (in terms of ability to supply consistently) , the supplementation of the basic diet with meats via trade or hunting is certain(in Brittania).Dont forget here the Vindolanda attestation as regards seafood.

This is odd because the "jumping offf point" for Ireland was mooted to be from the Stranraer area (like modern day ferry traffic) , Deva is much more related to strategic stranglehold over Wales.

Docoflove , I think you are making an oblique reference to Sumerian beer/ bread in your first post-that being a twice baked malt loaf that could either be stored dry or recycled and used as a "mash" to form the basis of a very nutritious beer.The japanese have attempted to re-create the recipe. The Roman storage solution in Brittania ia of course stone built granaries with very well ventilated underfloor areas to dispel heat and moisture. http://www.unrv.com/forum/index.php?act=mo...si&img=1410

It is nutritious http://chetday.com/millet.html but insufferably dull

I think I might start smoking a pipe, now I have the gravitas of age upon me.Also if it annoys Blair, feminists and small animals I will feel contented.

1) Is 'yuck' the true Roman name for millet? (sorry, I had to) 2) Last night I saw a good repeat of Food Network's "Good Eats," where Alton Brown :wub: went into barley, and its ancient roots as a grain and as a ground flour. I know that barley is common in the eastern Mediterranean, but is it as common in the western Mediterranean? The barley question is very interesting, very shortly I will be posting a review of "Famine and grain supply in the Graeco-Roman world". -one key structural element in the rural economy(and urban provisioning) of both Greece and Rome was the the underpinning of wheat production (of whatever type ) by barley as a "fallback" staple. The reason being straightforward, failure rates for wheat far outstripped those for barley; any peasant agronomist would therefore plan to minimise risk by making sure a barley crop was available (either grown by himself or available via kinship ties). I suggest that barley was ubiquitos wherever subsistence farming took place, and in early Attic and Republican times this was widespread.Barley certainly doesnt come across as the grain of choice , when a choice can be exercised. Yuck is my personal linguistic designation for millet.Whats the "Seven Samurai " quote? "Ive tasted your millet diet...its disgusting!"

more Blackadder overexcitment I see...I was going to post a turnip recipe , but somehow I felt the worthy vegetable too dull to consider. I did find a note which had slipped by me previously, as regards grain varieties: Spelt appears to have been one of three grains mixed to produce flour, the other two being wheat (triticum) and rye (secale). Millet (yuck) as "millium" being more prevalent in the South . Pliny (XVIII) mentions millet flourishing in campania and making a very white puls, as well as a decent bread.I note that he says "the Sarmatians live primarilyy on millet porridge(even eating it raw!- is that apocryphal? ), mixing it with horse milk and blood (black/white pudding).Interestingly the oat was veiwed as a weed , but as it grew so well in dank climates that it was used often by the Germans and Celts.

The choice of hotels/guesthouses is enormous, however if anyone spots a place they are unsure of pm me with a link and I will pontificate: weve stopped in so many of them over the years that I can (usually) give a thumbs up or down. http://www.iknow-yorkshire.co.uk/north_yor...l_specialities/

The caledonii and the maetae etc? why that is where Hadrian built a wall to separate Rome from barbary!

I venture to suggest that any maritime route (within the appropriate sailing season) is by far the easier method of moving bulk produce in the period under discussion, when I reviewed "Britain and the Roman Navy" some time ago I was struck by how (logistically) the Roman campaign hinged on seaborne transportation and the tactical superiority of seaborne interdiction.The most irritating factor is that so few structural works remain as evidence as , like sailing vessels, they are impermanent entities at the mercy of sea level change. Civilisation? What have southerners got that we havent? Do they have black puddings, clogs, magnificent victorian industrial archaeology sites, Boddingtons and Hadrian's Wall? NO!! What they have is Eastenders. I rest my case! :beer: This is because in the North our Civilisation is of a higher, intellectual , non-quantifiable nature, like our glorious Brigantine forebears.

Not to be outdone this side of the herring pond , I find this link : http://www.graigfarm.co.uk/pkbread.htm the spelt cob looks like the loaf NN is speaking of , and to my mind, this is how I envisage the "roman " bread . AD do you have a comment on bread shapes at all?

Due to one or two textual inaccuracies I must move this thread to the Hora Postillia area.