The Deipnosophists; or, Banquet of the Learned of Athenæus, Vol. 2 (of 3)Athenaeus, of Naucratis
Philosophy
The Deipnosophists; or, Banquet of the Learned of Athenæus, Vol. 2 (of 3)
Athenaeus, of Naucratis
Civilization, Greco-Roman; Dinners and dining -- Greece; Greece -- Social life and customs; Homosexuality -- Greece
And we must also take notice of this, with reference to Speusippus,
who says that the cuttle-fish and the squid are the same fish. But
when Hipponax, in his Iambics, uses the words σηπίης ὑπόσφαγμα, the
interpreters have explained the expression as meaning "the ink of the
cuttle-fish." But the word ὑπόσφαγμα is, properly speaking, equivalent
to ὑπότριμμα, a dish compounded of various ingredients, as Erasistratus
tells us, in his Cookery Book. And he writes as follows—"But ὑπόσφαγμα
is made with roast meat and blood stirred up and compounded with
cheese, and salt, and cummin, and assafœtida; but the meat may also
be boiled." And Glaucus the Locrian, in his Cookery Book, writes
as follows—"Ὑπόσφαγμα is blood boiled, and assafœtida, and boiled
lees of wine; or sometimes honey and vinegar, and milk and cheese,
and sweet-smelling herbs are shred and mixed together in it." And
Archestratus, that man of the most varied learning, says—
The cuttle-fish of Abdera and the middle of Maronea.
And Aristophanes, in his Thesmophoriazusæ, says—
Has any fish or cuttle-fish been bought?
And in the Danaides he says—
Osmulia, mœnidea, and cuttle-fish.
Theopompus, in his Aphrodite, says—
. . . But eat, my friend,
This cuttle-fish, and this small polypus.
But concerning the boiling of the small polypus, Alexis, in his Wicked
Woman, introduces a cook speaking as follows—
Now these three cuttle-fish I have just bought
For one small drachma. And when I've cut off
Their feelers and their fins, I then shall boil them.
And cutting up the main part of their meat
Into small dice, and rubbing in some salt,
After the guests already are sat down,
I then shall put them in the frying-pan,
And serve up hot towards the end of supper.
[Sidenote: FISH.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account