Pastie bought near Metro Revolución, Mexico City. Photo by Hippietrail (2009). Wikimedia Commons.
No, no, no—not those. I know what you’re thinking.
I’m talking about one of the food staples of the iron ore workers in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan—the pasty. Think in terms of a giant Italian Stromboli. A flaky crust (usually a pie crust) enveloping meat, diced potatoes, carrots, onions, or anything Mom or Dad could think of. It was (and is) a hearty baked meal—one to satisfy the hunger of very hard working people.
Do you know why the edges of the pasty are so thick? It’s because the iron ore workers didn’t wash their hands and so they picked up the pasty by the outer crust and then discarded the crust after eating the main section of the pasty.
Pasties were eaten in the Middle Ages as part of the supper. Instead of beef or pork, the meat would usually be roast boar, pigeon, or wild game that was hunted. The pasty originated in England, and in particular, Cornwall where miners ate them for lunch. By the mid-1800s, the pasty had been introduced to the diet of the Upper Peninsula miners.
Today, we raise turkeys, pigs, cattle, and other animals for our consumption. During the Middle Ages, other animals were considered a delicacy. Besides the boar, deer, and other hunted animals, the nobility would gather up, fatten up, and glutton up on the following:Read More Pasties and Medieval Suppers
Bubonic plague victims in mass grave. Photo (2011) by S. Tzortzis. Wikimedia Commons.
You all know me by now. I couldn’t pass up this one.
On the corner of Rue Réaumur and Boulevard de Sébastopol in the second district of Paris stands a Monoprix supermarket. In January 2015, archaeologists discovered the building sits on top of a medieval cemetery.
Rows after rows of complete human skeletons (316 in total) were found buried in a mass grave. It turns out this was near the site of a medieval hospital called Hôpital de la Trinité. The occupants of this grave ranged from babies to the elderly (remember, in medieval times, elderly was often no greater than 40-years of age). Hospitals during the Middle Ages were not like the ones we know (i.e., places to cure the sick). They were primarily places where the poor could get food and a place to sleep.
Medieval burials in Paris were done in large pits. Once the pit was filled, it was covered up and a new pit was dug. During this excavation, they found 8 separate pits. The main pit contained 175 occupants. The lead archaeologist, Ms. Isabelle Adadie, indicated there was no trauma to any of the skeletons thus leading to the question of how these individuals died. DNA testing will reveal a lot. If it is found that all the skeletons are from a narrow time frame around the mid-1300s, it could be the bubonic plague that took their lives.
As most of you know from my prior blog posts, all the cemeteries located within the city limits were closed down in the 1800s with the remains transferred to the Paris Catacombs. As the archaeological team points out, Paris has been continuously occupied, and as such, excavations are difficult. A great example of this was the excavation during the construction of I.M. Pei’s pyramid at the Louvre. They discovered the foundations of the great royal palace and sections of the wall built by King Charles V.
One of the city’s archaeologists points out that over the centuries, Paris was continuously flooded. As they rebuilt, the soil was compacted and the level of the city slowly rose. Just think of what still lies below the surface on the Île de la Cité and other parts of Paris.
The archaeologists were very excited to find skeletons and not your average run of the mill ancient building. I guess it’s sort of like finding the remains of the English King Richard III buried under a church parking lot or the remains of the naughty nuns from an old English nunnery.
Anyway, stay tuned, as more information becomes known about these folks.
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Stewart Ross’ book is full of interesting documents and research, it put you well on the tracks of Marie Antoinette, Danton, Robespierre and many more, whether in Paris or in Versailles, extremely interesting and easy to read!
Raphaelle Crevet | Certified Tour Guide, Paris, France
Paris Occupation History and Guide Book
This book presents three detailed walking tours and numerous metro station oriented short walks that identified significant occupation locations. Each location on the walk is fully explained. In addition, the author uses many sidebars to provide additional supporting information. The appendix provides a wealth of additional information and pictures that the novice and well read Occupation scholar will find helpful. Whether your first exposure to the Occupation or one of many books you have read, this book is a must read prior to visiting Paris. The format and size of the book make it easy to carry in your carry-on luggage. The book is the first of a three volume set. I can’t wait to see the information to be presented in Volumes 2 & 3.
Patrick from Albuquerque.
