Repast: The story of food

This article is from World Archaeology issue 131

Subscribe now for full access and no adverts

REVIEW BY CARLY JONES

If there is one thing that unites the many, incredibly varied cultures that have inhabited the world throughout human history, it is that we all need to eat. Catching, cultivating, cooking, and consuming food have been key concerns for communities stretching back thousands of years.

Eating is not just a source of sustenance, however. Shared meals play an important social role, forging bonds between families and communities and marking major milestones in our lives, while some foodstuffs hold a special ceremonial significance or are forbidden by dietary taboos. Food-related culture has also fired the human imagination, giving rise to an eclectic array of tools and technologies, artistic creations, and even new building-types: kitchens, restaurants, pubs.

Any attempt to trace this consistent but complex relationship risks biting off more than you can chew, but in this wide-ranging book, Jenny Linford serves up a very satisfying overview. In around 250 pages, she covers a huge geographical and chronological span, focusing not just on what past populations ate, but how we have fed ourselves over time, as well as examining how this need has shaped our material culture, drawing on the collections of the British Museum to illustrate each point with a wealth of interesting artefacts.

Linford begins by exploring the earliest evidence of hunting, gathering, and fishing, then discusses the transformative impact of agriculture some 12,000 years ago. The ability to domesticate plants and animals ensured a more reliable food supply that could support much larger populations. The rise of settled lifestyles focused on farming had social consequences, too: increased investment in specific spots led to a greater sense of ‘owning’ land.

This is not a static story. In a chapter on travel and trade, Linford demonstrates how human mobility has always influenced, and been influenced by, our interest in food. The expansion of the Roman Empire saw the introduction of new delicacies, from fish sauce to wine, to the territories that its armies encountered and, centuries later, a desire to control the spice trade was a key motivator for expeditions to the ‘New World’. The colonial movements that followed introduced European tastes to many foods that we now take for granted, including sugar cane, potatoes, tomatoes, chilli, and chocolate (which was initially enjoyed as a drink, and was not eaten in solid bar form until 1847), but Linford does not shy away from what these voyages meant for indigenous populations.

We learn about the influence of religion on dietary practices, too, whether feasting, fasting, or following strict rules about food preparation, animal slaughter, and what should be eaten. Humanity’s relationship with alcohol is equally involved, encompassing ritual use and religious proscription; a safe alternative to polluted drinking water; an essential ration doled out to ancient Egyptian labourers and post-medieval sailors; and a social scourge.

Ending with a thought-provoking chapter on sustainability, this book is packed with interesting information – and, with over 300 images, it is also a visual feast.

Repast: The story of food
Jenny Linford
Thames & Hudson, £30
ISBN 978-0500481158