PRESERVARE
Large-scale conservation of perishable foodstuffs in the Low Countries, 1600-1800
How did early modern communities keep their food from spoiling in a world without refrigerators? What did the hands-on processes of fermenting, salting, pickling, and smoking look like in action? And how did the knowledge about these conservation methods develop across generations of scholars, artisans, and tradespeople?
PRESERVARE (2024-2029) explores the history and practice of early modern food conservation in the Low Countries. It aims to show how knowledge about food conservation evolved through a dynamic interplay of formal, written knowledge and embodied, tacit knowledge. PRESERVARE studies the role of scholars, artisans and tradespeople alike. To uncover this fascinating history, PRESERVARE employs an innovative methodology. Specifically, the team of researchers will combine classical historical source interpretation, digital information extraction, analysis of archaeological finds, and historical reconstructions.
Image: Smoking and packing herring. Detail of an etch by Claes Jansz. Visscher (II), ca. 1600. Rijksmuseum RP-P-OB-77.521
How can we retrieve and understand embodied, practical historical knowledge about food conservation?
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