Food Rules and Rituals - Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2023 - Mark McWilliams

Food Rules and Rituals - Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2023 - Mark McWilliams

The Roman Napkin: From Simple Tools to Status Symbols

Food Rules and Rituals - Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2023 - Mark McWilliams

Scott A. Cochrane [+-]
Scott Cochrane is a classics educator living and teaching in Tennessee. His research focuses on Roman cultural practices during the late Republic and early Empire.

Description

Napkins appear several times throughout Roman literature. While they are often mentioned in passing, napkins are occasionally the focus of poems by authors including Catullus and Martial. Through examining the literature of the time, this paper outlines rules of etiquette surrounding napkin use in Rome while examining their multiple roles in society as essential tools, status symbols, objects of sentimentality, and targets of theft.

Notify A Colleague

Citation

Cochrane, Scott A.. The Roman Napkin: From Simple Tools to Status Symbols. Food Rules and Rituals - Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery 2023. Equinox eBooks Publishing, United Kingdom. p. 104-108 Jul 2024. ISBN 9781800505766. https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/view-chapter/?id=46055. Date accessed: 11 Dec 2024 doi: 10.1558/equinox.46055. Jul 2024

Dublin Core Metadata