Menu for Lent assizes, ca. 1620, L.f.45

For related articles, consult Manuscripts (disambiguation).

This article features a transcription of a Folger Shakespeare Library manuscript,Menu for Lent assizes, L.f.45, (ca.1620), featured in the Age of Lawyers Exhibition, September 12, 2015-January 3, 2016.

More manuscripts from this collection can be found in Guide to the E. Williams Watermark Collection, including the Papers of the Hale Family of King's Walden and Other Papers


This lavish menu for a judges' dinner at an assize strains the mind as it tempts the palate. Among many other foods, it includes salads, stewed oysters, roast turkey, mince pies, boiled pigeons, roast tongue, fresh salmon, soused pig or veal, unspecified hors d'oeuvres, Westphalian bacon, fruit jelly, and custard—all followed by a second course and washed down with a choice of wine.

Transcription

Below is a semi-diplomatic transcription of leaf 1 recto of Folger manuscript L.f.45. The transcription below was created by the Early Modern Manuscripts Online (EMMO) project. To access an image of the original leaf, click on each transcription's heading.

L.f.45, leaf 1 recto

[note: following written in the left hand column]

ffryday Grant Iurye vndershreif

& preachers

Boyldemeate & stewed broth

Ling & Butter

Rost Beife

Rost veale

mutton pastye

Boyld Roches

Rost Tungh hot

mynsed pyes boyldes

boyld Eyles

Made dish

salt Salmon

Rost Capon

Sowst pigg

Rost Lambe

Leach

pippen pye or custerd

_________________

ffor ordinary

Butter & green fish

Boyld meate in stewed broth

Rost beife

minsed pyes

Rost porke

Rost veale

[note: following written in the right hand column]

ffirst Assisses

ffor Master sherifes Table

ffriday dinner 3 messe

Brawne

Butter & Sallets hote

stewde oysters

Boyld Chickings

Grant Sallets

Colde meate

ling

Rost Turkye

lambe pastey

Boyld pike

minsed pies

Boyld piggions

Rost Tungh

ffresh Salmon

Rost phesant

fforst Boyld meate

Madedish

Sowsed pigg or veale

Cold bake meate

Rost Capon

westvalia Bacon

leach

Custerd

______

Second

Rost cocke & paterige

fruit leach

Rost Plovers

oyster pyes

Boyld Carpe hot

Rost piggeons

potato pye

layde tarte

Rost Rabbets

Shrimps

Warden pye

sowst Eyle

Cold bate meate

Dreid tunge

Oringado pye

pickled oysters & anchoves

Sturgion

preserue tarte

Note: the following two lines are written to the side of the main text

A Surleine

Of Beife

Note: the following notes are written horizontally at the bottom and struck through

Att Thomas Hills the elder

Taylor iij beddes

Att Campson Clarkes house

Taylor ij beddes

Att James Goodmans house

Chandler ij beddes