Activities through 12-13-20

Made a little progress this week, but the “sundials” end of things is slow for some reason. There’s a little cookery, a little embroidery, a lot of pictures, more of the advent pictures, a sewing project getting started and some Project Day and the usual links.

All meetings are on hold for the moment, although Project Day and the Monthly Potluck are being held in the Virtual Realm. We’re also doing mini-potlucks, just Anja & Loren and one other “pod” at a time. Let us know if you’re interested!

Virtual Potluck this coming Sunday!

Herb Bunch – At Ancient Light, Saturdays, 11am-1pm
Sewing Time – At Ancient Light, Saturdays, 3-5pm
Project Day – At Ancient Light, Sundays, Noon to 6pm
Cheese and Wine happens irregularly, usually announced with little notice on our Facebook group.
Next Virtual Potluck – 10/18
No Winter Feast in 2021. We’ll revisit for one in 2022 next spring.

Here is the direct Portfolio link which has all the past Project Day reports and various projects, original here: https://housecapuchin.wordpress.com/portfolio/ and new one here: https://housecapuchin2.wordpress.com/portfolio/ and number three is here: https://housecapuchin3.wordpress.com/portfolio/

Educational Events

A Master List for finding classes, webinars and other things – https://moas.eastkingdom.org/list-of-online-webinars/?fbclid=IwAR20OE8b6vvYKvmwrqwpule27szarZ7EPV-8R72F1eV2CxcdmOXQhZf9ayk

Dance Vids – St Brogans Leaving Cert Music – Medieval CAROL (an fancy version of Sciarazula Marazula)

Classes –

EarlySweden – Online Class: Woodworking 101 With Baron Alasdair #6 –Fauldstools – Join Baron Alasdair Mac Roibeirt for the sixth in a series of woodworking classes designed to help you build both your skills and your tool kit. This time Alasdair will be teaching you how to make a fauldstool. Tools used will include those discussed in his previous classes and the next expansion in your tool chest – Drills. For more information on this class please go to my blog post here: https://earlysweden.wordpress.com/202…

Early Sweden – Online Class: Redacting Recipes from Primary Sources w/HL Fina

Tablet Weaving for the Absolute Beginner

Morgan Donner – Projector VS Paper Patterns // ft THAT HAMILTON PATTERN!

Survival Russia – How Do We Keep Warm In -40C 2019

RUM – Nalbinded Hats, Mittens and Socks

RUM – Zsof’s Rules on Becoming a Peer

Early Week – …was just more of the same, keeping on, keeping on….

Cookery – Another fritter came up during the week and was supposed to be tried Saturday evening, which is also when we were making Lucia buns. Anja ran out of oomph and then we thought it was going to be tried on Sunday. Didn’t happen until late in the evening. More below in the Cookery section.

A blog post on the history of Lucia Day – https://confrariadobaraodegourmandise.blogspot.com/2020/11/glad-lucia-e-historia-do-lussekatter-um.html

Confraria Gastronômica do Barão de Gourmandise – Still life with cheeses, almonds and pretzels

(Nature-Dead with Cheeses, Almonds and Pretzels) by Clara Peeters, c. 1615.

Antwerp painter Clara Peeters was one of the first painters of dead natures of food, and her ′′ banquets ′′ or banquet pieces had a great influence on painters in northern Netherlands.

Clara Peeters has the characteristic of having specialized in dead natures with beautiful objects, delicious fruits and expensive food. This kind of dead nature is called ′′ banketje ′′ in Dutch. The symbolism of these paintings is not entirely known. It can be a temperance incentive or a reference to the Last Supper. Or it could simply be a display of opulence and wealth.

In this painting, in addition to the objects quoted in the title, there are also butter bunches (the decoratively cut butter pieces with the same utensil that makes chocolate and wax zest) on a plate on top of cheese, figs and a bun in the background , next to a Venetian gold veneer glass. Almonds and figs are on a Wanli Chinese porcelain dish.

In addition to putting her signature on the bridal silver knife, Peeters also painted herself. In the tin cap of the pottery jar, you can see the reflection of a woman’s face in the clear and mirrored part of the white cap. This is Clara’s self-portrait.

She therefore followed the example of Jan van Eyck, who painted her self-portrait in the mirror in her Portrait of Arnolfini of 1434. Peeters made a total of seven self-portraits, including this one.

The initial story of painting is not known. It was kept in a private collection in France from 1920 until it was auctioned at Drouot-Richelieu in Paris in 1998. It was purchased by Richard Green Gallery and sold to a private collector of the United States in 2000.

The painting was acquired by the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague in June 2012. The sale was made possible thanks to the support of Vereniging Rembrandt (and his A.M. Roeters van Lennep Fonds, Utrechtse Rembrandt Cirkel and Caius Fonds).

It is currently exposed at the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague.

Aachener Printen – Seasonal Cookies in Aachener, Germany – http://crawfishandcaramel.com/aachener-printen/

Instructiones to make Cakes – https://rarecooking.com/?fbclid=IwAR0q-arug4tuIBHqh0gBRbLSKINW7ufSxFD-IVj8m4N4yKHP5yksOaVeUm4

Nick Saint-Erne – Hippocras Spiced Wine

Lynne Fairchild – Making Tudor Hippocras at Home | Medieval Spiced Wine

RUM – Historical Winter Beverages

Sewing – Just embroidery until late in the week when the fabrics for the pouch frame showed up.

Lining cut, too. (will be trimmed after sewing)

Project Day – The day started with the Lucia buns and coffee. (Pix with recipe, below)

Then Claire posted, “I thought finishing this was going to be today’s project but I got it done last night finally. It’s my mother in law’s Christmas present. Today is working on some socks, filling some thumb drives to mail out and eventually baking mince pies, also to mail out. The crust and filling is made, just need to put together and bake.

Arlys says, “I hope to have something to share by the end of the day. So far I have managed to avoid every obligation to myself since rising!”

…and then later, “My project for Project Day was embroidering 2 blackwork motifs for use on 2 emery pillows.”

Peggy says, “Not able to do much right now, but I am getting better at two-color lucet cord. Note difference between beginning of cord and where I am currently working.”

Isabeau says, “Daniel and I went searching for our tree. We found a delightful 5 foot grand fir.”

…and we closed down a little early, since both Anja and Loren were really tired.

…and then did the cheese fritters late in the evening.

Recipes

Cheese fritters – Meister Hans 1460 cookbook – Recipe #146 Ain gepachens von kaes – A fritter of cheese

About 1 inch by 1 inch 4 inch segment of bacon
½ cup grated “hard” cheese
1 egg
1 tsp cheese salt
2 TBSP flour
½ cup bacon fat for frying

Tools

Mixing bowl
Mixing tool (fork)
Small cutting board and knife
Small frying pan.
Draining spatula

Method

Chop bacon into small pieces.
Add to frypan and cook. Add bacon fat, if necessary.
Break egg into bowl and muddle.
Stir cheese into it.
Stir in cheese salt
Stir in flour.
Mix well.
When bacon is cooked to limp, but not crispy, pull it and drain, then add to bowl.
Stir well.
Get the (rest of the) fat hot.
Put about ½ the “dough” on a cutting board and use a knife to arrange it into ½ side strips.
Push them one at a time into your frypan. (My small pan did only 3 at a time).
Use a spatula to keep them from sticking. You may have to flip them to get them to start to brown all the way around.
Do the next set until used up. Mine did 10. One fritter was in kit form.

Original recipe (translation & notes Volker Bach)

Item take hard cheese and grate it and break eggs into it and chop bacon into it, and a little flour. Mix that together and spread (streich) it into the pan. When it is fried, spread (bestreich – poss. mistake for bestreu – strew) it well with sugar.

Cheese fritters are found often in the German corpus – at least three times in this collection alone. This one is unusual in the addition of bacon and sugar. The instruction to spread it in the pan (streichen is the action of smearing butter on bread) also suggests a softer consistency than in parallel recipes where the fritters are rolled and shaped. It is probably closer to the soft pastelike doughs moved into the pan from a cutting board, like spaetzle.

Comments from online discussion

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – What kind of cheese do you think would have been used…. or rather what modern equivalent? Parmesan is the only one I can think of.

Volker Bach – ‘hard’ cheese only means it’s not of spreadable consistency as far as I can tell. I made a similar fritter just today with mimolette (very good) and mozzarella (boring). Almost anything works. My favourites are middle-aged, flavourful cheeses like cheddar. If I make them for larger groups, my standbys are Emmental or Gouda, cheap and uncontroversial. Parmesan would work, but I suspect it would come out unpleasantly dry.

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – Gouda and emmental sound good…and anything with bacon catches my eye.

Friederike Gunzel – As far as I know the technique of making cheddar wasn’t invented until much later. I’ll try it with something like Gruyère or Conte. (And probably without the sugar!)

Do you fry the bacon before mixing it in or will it be cooked enough in the mix?

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – Oh, definitely cheddar is later. It’s just an old cheese that I have for a trial run. I’d have to go to the store for the others. …and having tried a couple of these recipes, they’re going to fry too fast to cook the bacon, even if it’s really minced…

Volker Bach – the bacon won’t cook in the fritter, but if it is cured (as I assume it would be), there is no need to cook it.

Friederike Gunzel – but it might taste nicer if fried before?

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – I think it would, besides, if the grease ends up in the fritter it’s going to be a bit much, I would think. Might be better to fry first and then use the grease to fry the fritters in?

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – Volker have you done one with it still uncooked?

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – …and it might depend on what is meant by “bacon”….

Volker Bach – Speck can mean both raw and cured, but I assume it means cured bacon here. The German word has a wide range, from the purely white Rückenspeck (all fat) to the leanish Schinkenspeck (which would be considered ham in most countries).

I would use marbled bacon here, and not a lot of it. As to the fat – a lot of historical German food is very fat, excessively so by modern standards. So I think that is part of the point. Frying the bacon first is possible, but I suspect it would be mentioned. It is not common.

Jeremy Fletcher – If you’re using lardo (cured fatback) rather than US or Canadian-style bacon, you won’t need to cook it. I may have to try this one.

MaryAnne Anja Bues Bartlett – I’m thinking that the fritters would tend to fall apart with uncooked fat in them. Ham-ish “bacon” wouldn’t need to be cooked. I’m mostly thinking of texture. I’ve minced bacon and put it in vegetable fritters and they do fall apart. That’s where I’m coming from. There’s going to be fat from the cheese, too. Well, I’ll have to try it both ways.

Volker Bach posted some of his german cooking, mostly from the Meister Hans 1460 cookbook.

Anna Wecker cookbook – 225-krapffen-von-dem-ubergebliebnen-fleisch (meat pasties)

Miscellaneous pix

Bed with carved dragon headboard, 8th century — discovered in the Oseberg burial Photo: Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, #Norway

Merry Christmas from DGB Conservation Studio by Dana & Marie – From – https://calendar.myadvent.net/?id=e9c4682fec304b6e770a7fee780eb0a9&fbclid=IwAR2xIeT7WIyFNVS9Rf5-5wAFKg7jd98Q-VtPLteKiklKuYYIZ7aQ8AR7L98

12/7 – Sticking to the Bronze Age theme… today is a celebration of our biennial Chinese Bronzes collection survey work at the fabulous Compton Verney Museum – we’re planning to be back there mid January. We are lucky enough to have to take time looking close at all surfaces of each piece – checking each look stable and noting technological features: like these curious criss-cross lines on the base of a vessel – relating to the casting mould and workshop practice of the foundry that made it. Check out the collection and beautiful patinas on: https://www.comptonverney.org.uk/whats-on/permanent-collections/chinese/ And their cool timeline to help put the collection into context: https://www.comptonverney.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Chinese-Timeline-March-2015.pdf

12/8 – We had a special project relating to the earliest Christian days in England this year; last year we worked on the preservation of, an Eastern Church monastery far away in the Gulf on what is now known as Sir Bani Yas Island, Abu Dhabi… Dana might be going back to the island in Feb 2021- for more works around the site – opened with a new covered structure last year – the Year of Tolerance in the UAE. Exciting !! (video, too, on the site!)

12/9 – The CSI: Sittingbourne Shopping Centre Lab – Conservation Scientist intern Moupi working with Darcie, our local school work placement student, taking supporting layers off of a block lifted Roman glass vessel. Moupi is now a PhD student at Getty/UCLA, doing more great public engagement (see video)

12/10 – Half cleaned Lead Medieval Bulla – 1 of 3 we conserved for CAThttps://www.archaeology.co.uk/articles/early-evidence-for-st-albans-cathedral-emerges.htmhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-beds-bucks-herts-42255514

12/11 – Getting suited up for a very special project…

12/12 – This is what we were all suited up for and camping out in a church for last January – the half cleaned Anglo-Saxon reliquary the held St. Eanswythe’s bones. It was secreted away in the walls of a Folkestone church before the reformation and discovered during Victorian renovations – This year we were part of a team to study and conserve this special find. You can read more of it in this new book on the project: https://www.facebook.com/folkestonemuseum/posts/3339154582975591 and/or in this piece recently published on relics: https://www.kentonline.co.uk/kent/news/countys-intriguing-religious-relics-237000/

12/13 – We have been delighted to be sharing our work with the fabulously talented creative artist duo Lunatraktors !! https://lunatraktors.bandcamp.com/album/the-truth-of-eanswythes-bones

Historical Textiles – Lots more pictures on each days’ posts! Look at the right-hand column to access the rest of the calendar (up to today’s date….) – https://historicaltextiles.org/advent-calendar-december-1-2020/?fbclid=IwAR0mT0x7ZHAhN-vc9RXSdG7AyLRmQKb6Gma6vs_UaVI2cf6SV3G5tpubKXo

12/7 – We stay in Gent state archives. Today we have have another important document. This one dated 1385. The silk ribbons connected to the seals are all green. Some are loop braided and some a woven round, most likely in a rigid heddle./ Amica & MariaIf sharing photos: please cred us.

12/8 – Today we give you an old textile and it’s reconstructed younger cousin.The Dalhem 1 coverlet, gilt leather and intarsia technique. Dated to 15th century.Today in the collections od The Swedish History museum.Reconstruction made by many people. Read more about the project here:/ Amica & Maria (new one)

12/9 – Today it’s a lovely embroidery made in silk. The embroidery covers a relic box. The box is made out of wood. Possibly a bent wood box since it’s round. The embroidery is made by the nuns of the Birdgettine Order in Vadstena, Sweden. Split stitch, couched work and don’t miss to check out the cool ribbon, in red, white and blue, sewn onto the embroidery. Dated to mid- late 15th century. Today in the collections of The Swedish History Museum. / Amica & Maria (one of two)

12/10 – Today we want to show you some spangles/ sequins and some mini-mini pearls. It’s a top of a sudarium. (a hanky) The top is silk, metal thread, linen thread, spangles and pearls. The linen is also embroidered with red and blue silk. The seams are covered with silk ribbons, woven in a rigid heddle. Dated to 15th century. Today in the collections of The Swedish History Museum. / Amica & Maria

12/11 – When we analyse old textiles we use simple equipment. Phones, a clip on magnifier, glass magnifier, measuring tape, ruler and in special cases we use a USB microscope. Here you can see the benefits of using a clip on magnifier. It’s a simple thing that you can buy at any IT shop that sells mouses or charger for phones. This piece is a linen fragment from the so called The time capsule . You can find more finds related to it at our blog. The linen fragment have got lovely decorations at the edge. We don’t know what it was before it became a fragment. A part of a veil? A towel? A table cloth? / Amica & Maria

12/12 – Today we post a picture of a small piece from an embroidery, silk on linen. It’s a sort of brick stitch that is called eye stitch in Swedish. We don’t know the English term. It’s quite small and described as a part of an antependium. Dated to 14-15th century. Now in the collection of the treasury in Uppsala cathedral. /Amica and Maria

12/13 – Today all swedes celebrate a saint. St Lucia. So let’s go for a saint today. Or two. This lovely chasuble in blue velvet decorated with embroidery on the back. A magnificent piece! Check out the piecing on the bottom of the chasuble. Dated late 15th century. In the collections of Västergötlands museum. / Amica and Maria

Music

Musica Medievale – Music, fire, snow outside and time disappear.
A tiny version of “Quant je voi yver retorner“, COLIN MUSET, XIII Cent.
http://www.facebook.com/murmurmori, http://murmurmori.com

Lyrics and translations:

Quant je voi yver retorner
lors me voudroie sejorner;
se je pooie oste trover
large, qui ne vousist conter,
qu’eüst porc et buef et monton,
maslarz,faisanz et venoison,
grasses gelines et chapons
et bons fromages en glaon,
et la dame fust autresi
cortoise come li mariz
et tout jors feïst mon plesir
nuit et jor jusqu’au mien partir,
et li hostes n’en fust jalous,
ainz nos lessast sovent tout sous,
ne seroie pas envioux
de chevauchier toz boous
aprés mauvais prince angoissoux.

[ENG]
When I see Winter returning, then I would like to stay indoors. If I could find a generous host who wouldn’t spend too much time counting money, who has pork, ox and mutton, ducks, pheasant and game, fat hens and capons and good cheeses in wicker baskets, and if the wife were as courteous as her husband and would do my pleasure night and day until my departure, and the host weren’t jealous – indeed he often would leave us all alone – I would have no desire to ride all muddy and anguished behind an evil prince.

Links

How Centuries-Old Dice Reveal Changing Attitudes About Fate – https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/how-centuries-old-dice-reveal-changing-attitudes-about-fate-1-180968090/
Weave Along with Elewys, Ep. 11: Virunuka Belt – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5J-NDX_SM8&fbclid=IwAR0ZZEzFhyAQPWph9n0d_-iq_MwpzsaCR13EoLHh03Z1o3rdAPRM0t2kROg
Six modern foods with medieval origins – https://www.medievalists.net/2019/12/modern-foods-medieval-origins/?fbclid=IwAR2wOi47ry5Ovlb03ahq1AoWOKBs9faoB-4C7cAIs2WOGQalMLWdCxChJDA

Video Links

1066: A Year to Conquer England – In this three-part drama documentary series, Dan Snow explores the political intrigues and family betrayals between Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and Normans that led to war and the Battle of Hastings. When King Edward the Confessor dies without an heir, it triggers a bitter race to succeed him as King of England. Earl Harold is on the spot and takes the crown. But in Normandy, Duke William believes the throne has been promised to him and decides to invade. Meanwhile, in Norway, the Viking king Harald Hardrada also fancies himself as King of England, and he too puts together an invasion force. Very soon, England will be under attack. https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b08h7zsb/1066-a-year-to-conquer-england-series-1-episode-1

Funnies

Largesse Item Count – (includes gifts, prizes, auction items, etc.)

ASXLVII = 24
ASXLVIII = 88
ASXLIX = 794
ASL = 2138
ASLI = 731
ASLII = 304
ASLIII – 146
ASLIV – 227 (included 3 balls) plus 4 puppets, 3 hippocras mix, 4 powder fort, 8 cheese spice and 9 powder douce packets, 1 kiss-lock pouch, 9 tiny bobs, 7 pincushions, 3 pins, 3 snip case w/snips, lucet cords, 25 pouches for block-printing, 1 medium pouch, 4 small pouches, 12 bookmarkers, 14 unfinished pincushions, 1 sewing kit (except for bone needle), varnished stuff (124), 2 emery strawberries, 1 woolen spool-knit cord

Total as a Household = 4058 handed off

In ministerio autem Somnium! Anja, graeca doctrina servus to House Capuchin
Page Created 12/8/20 & published 12/14/20 (C)M. Bartlett
Last updated 12/14/20

House Capuchin 3

An historical recreation household centered on the Central Oregon Coast (households are not official groups of the Society for Creative Anachronism and do not represent the views or policies of SCA, Inc. )