Saturday, April 7, 2012

Another Viking Cookbook

A day or so ago I found a link to another cookbook, by a different archaeologist, that also has reconstructed Viking-era recipes:
Małgorzata Krasna-Korycińska, Viking and Slavic Cuisine: Recipes Included. Triglav (2011).
Triglav appears to be a Polish reenactment organization. Its website describes the author and her book in part as follows:
ON THE AUTHOR: Archaeologist and museologist. A graduate and a doctoral student at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University of Warsaw; an assistant in the National Museum of Archaeology in Warsaw; a member of the Stowarzyszenie Naukowe Archeologów Polskich (Scientific Association of Polish Archaeologists). For over 12 years, she has been occupied with the experimental archaeology. Initially, this was connected only with herbalism and plant chemistry in the prehistory and the Middle Ages; but over time, her additional specialization has become weaving and reconstruction of clothes.

In 2002, as the result of cooperation with „Wiedza i Życie” magazine, she became interested in issues connected with food in the Early Middle Ages in the area of western Slav lands. This interest bore fruit in a form of the first article on this topic: „Wokół piastowskiego stołu, czyli kulinaria w czasach Bolesława Chrobrego” (“Around the Piast Table, that is Cuisine of Boleslaw Chrobry Times”). Development of this topic, as well as, its completion are numerous presentations, lectures, and popular science shows, as well as, organization and coordination of thematic international events (Slavic Heritage Days). The active participation in the reconstruction movement has enabled her to conduct experiments and shows during the biggest historical festivals; among others, in Wolin, Grzybów, Moesgard, Borre and Kernave.
The price of the book, 42 złoty, is only about $13 USD, but I haven't been able to decipher the webpage well enough to make a guess at shipping costs, and Triglav only takes foreign payment by bank transfer, a process that for my bank usually means the item ends up costing me more than twice the asking price. However, I found another website selling the book that will accept payment from a service called PayU. That sounds like a more promising way of obtaining what sounds like another very interesting book. If I succeed in obtaining and reading a copy, I will review it here.

EDIT:  I've ordered a copy from a different Polish website.  I still need to make payment arrangements, but the site in question takes Paypal so that shouldn't be too bad.  Yes, the cost is more than $13 with shipping, but I figured that would be the case and can live with it.   Wow.  *Two* "Viking" cookbooks in the same month!

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