The gastronomic map of Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery in the 16th century

Abstract

The article is devoted to one of the most important aspects of the inner life of any monastery - the monastic meal. It illustrates the tradition of monastic gastronomy, developed by the end of the XVI century in the Uspensky Kirillo-Belozersky monastery. On the basis of a number of historical sources, introduced into a scientific turn by Russian researchers of the beginning of the XX century and nowadays, namely "kelarsky books" and "table books", the author of this article tries to present a gastronomic map of the Old Russian northern monastery. It reflects not only the quantity of raw materials, but also the names of the finished products, the menu of dishes, characteristic for a certain part of the annual liturgical circle. The guest menu - dishes which were served at the princely (tsar's) and boyar's tables - is reflected. A brief description of the sources of foodstuffs and funds for their purchase is provided. It shows the historical value for research of the monastery's internal documentation, where the monastery's relationship with the outside world, with the sphere of medieval ethics, is behind the listing of foodstuffs and the figures of expenditures and incomes.