Irish Eating Habits in the Iron Age

Angela

Elite member
Messages
21,823
Reaction score
12,327
Points
113
Ethnic group
Italian
See:

http://www.archaeology.org/news/4780-160822-ireland-iron-age

"CORK, IRELAND—The Irish Times reports that an international team of researchers collected data on animal bones and seeds from archaeological digs across southeast Ireland, and analyzed pollen extracted from a sediment core taken from a lake in Kilkenny, to learn what people ate between 2,700 and 2,000 years ago. “Cattle and pigs provided dairy and meat, barley was a staple, and we also have evidence of a variety of wheats, including spelt, emmer, and naked wheat,” said Katharina Becker of University College Cork. The researchers partnered with baker Declan Ryan to attempt to recreate baked products of Ireland's Iron Age. Since houses from the period do not contain recognizable hearths, Becker suggests that people may have gathered at boiling pits to eat. She speculates that the Iron-Age diet was probably plant-based, with meat and dairy foods served on special occasions. "

Griddle cakes:
bread1.jpg


Wild boar stew:
ft5s-boar.jpg


These pictures come from the blog of a woman who tried to recreate these foods. I don't know how authentic they are, as she used an egg in the griddle cakes, and I don't know if they had chickens in Ireland at that time.
http://www.irishcentral.com/culture/food-drink/Eating-like-the-ancestors-An-experiment-in-Irish-Iron-Age-cuisine-PHOTOS.html
They included pictures of the houses too:
MI-hut-crannog-iron-age.jpg


"Because remnants of houses from the period do not have any recognizable hearths, it is believed that communities may have gathered around fulachtaí fiadh (boiling pits) for meals, reports the Irish Times."
http://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/New-study-reveals-what-Iron-Age-Irish-ate-2500-years-ago-.html
 

This thread has been viewed 2855 times.

Back
Top