Translate

10/25/2013

Serbian medieval feast

The Last Supper, Theotokos Church, Studenica Monastery, early XIII century (restaurated in mid XVI century) (Photo: Artis Center
























Author:

Tamara Ognjević,

art historian and gastroheritologist



Food, although necessary as a basic factor for survival, but also as a kind of an indicator of the economic power of individuals and society,[1] was never a subject of interest and even less of research of so many people from different professional backgrounds, as it is the case in recent years. As a matter of fact, and as it is clearly shown by European historical and other sources, the food was not enough attractive to writers, chroniclers, historians and artists practically until the late Middle Ages. Well, even then, with the exception of the first European culinary collections such as the Roman cook-book by Apicius, emerged at the crossroads of the old and the new era, or the cook-book of Richard II from the year of 1390, mentioning of different foods or their visual presentation is based on the summary listing or reduced images of rich tables with luxurious tableware, interior and guests` clothing, and we can only speculate on what is in the bowls and plates. 

When interest in food, or more accurately in dietary culture increased during Renaissance, in the European west, the lands of so-called Byzantine circle came under Turkish occupation, so in the medieval art of Southeast Europe remain only rare shows of certain biblical episodes such as the Last Supper, or the Wedding at Cana, or Abraham's Hospitality in which the food is in the shadow of religious instruction. Insofar the effort to reconstruct menu of Serbian medieval table, which is the ultimate goal of the research that Artis center initiated in the winter of 2009, represents a major challenge. 

In order to approach the phenomenon of medieval culinary heritage with scientific-research approach, while simultaneously wanting the project "Living the past" to receive utilitarian dimension, for some time we are experimenting with so-called ideal reconstruction of some medieval dishes. Our intention is, with slight variations of the medieval banquet menu, because dietary culture in the meantime evolved significantly, to create an exclusive educational program in the field of study and cultural tourism which would encompass workshops of Serbian medieval cuisine and fine dining concept based on the idea - the art of cooking in artistically shaped environment. 












Tree Angeles as personification of the Holy Trinity in Hospitality of Abraham, King Dragutin’s Chapel, St Georg’s Pillars Monastery, Old Ras, late XIII century (Photo: Artis Center)


To make a perfect reconstruction of Serbian medieval table, it was necessary to explore traditional foods, as well as those imported or brought in any way to the ground of medieval Serbia in pre-Columbian period, the dynamics of retail trade, hunting and fishing, diplomatic activity, various regulations related to agriculture, trade, various permits and fees, and above all, a number of restrictions when it comes to the sale and resale of certain foods, but also few written sources, archaeological findings and a number of Fine and Applied Arts works. The focus was primarily on the menu of King Milutin Nemanjić (1282-1321) because there are reports written by people who ate on feast of this ruler along with the king in the winter of 1298.[2] Royal feast of Milutin Nemanjić is interesting from the point of Byzantine gastronomic heritage, because he is a ruler who takes a range of practices specific to the protocol of the Byzantine court (dress code, festive audience, festive meal). The Serbian medieval term feast[3] is used instead of widely accepted European notion banquet. Serbian fest is banquet which in addition to plenty of food and drinks is accompanied with appropriate parties in terms of music, singing, dancing and from the perspective of the church so unpopular "clapping hands".[4]

From the period of reign of King Milutin, and thanks to his great founding activity,[5] there is a significant number of art works in the wider field of Serbian medieval countries that directly, since those are not a genre theme or historical compositions, but the illustrations of biblical episodes, provide insight into the possible appearance of Serbian rulers table. At the same time, there is no doubt that Milutin's royal chefs in the rich and diverse selection of dishes and desserts that they presented before their sovereign and his guests, not only knew how to prepare dishes that were highly valued at Byzantium[6], but their skills also include local Serbian cuisine, and dishes that came from other parts of Europe.[7] The fact that the imperial envoy of Andronicus II Comnenus (1282-1328), Theodore Metochites (1270-1332), arrived at the court of King Milutin in the transition from the so-called carnival week to Lent, is of particular importance for the study of the medieval Serbian cuisine, because this extraordinary diplomat and writer, due to the above circumstances, left an important mark on what was eaten on fasting days, and what in those days when strict religious regulations allowed consumption of meat and animal products.

Although comprehensive in almost unexpected and for a medieval Byzantine practice travelogue unusual details when it comes to gastronomy, Metochites's report does not provide insight into specific recipes based on which food was prepared, and also does not reveal any ethnic background of royal chefs. However, the culinary influences in Serbian court can be fairly reliably inferred from other facts of cultural history in which, at least when it comes to the culinary heritage, of the utmost importance is the influence of chosen ladies of medieval Serbian rulers. Milutin's paternal grandmother Ana (1217-1265) was the grand daughter of the Venetian Doge Enrico Dandolo (1107?-1205), and the king's mother, energetic and capable Queen Helen of Anjou (1243-1276; +1314), the French, cousin of King Charles of Anjou (1226-1285), king of Sicilia, who himself often stayed in Serbian court during the second half of the 13th century.[8] Milutin's ancestors were married to Byzantine princesses, and his brother, King Dragutin (1271-1282), was married to Hungarian princess Catalina (1271-1282), daughter of King Stephen V(1270-1272). The king himself changed several wives of different origin. Among them there were Hungarian, Bulgarian princesses, Serbian nobles ladies, and eventually the daughter of the Emperor Romeus, Simonida Paleologina(1299-1321).[9] All Stefan Milutin's wives arrived to the Serbian throne with the appropriate accompaniment, as benefits the king's chosen ones. Were there chefs in their accompanying personal, one can only assume, and it is very probable that they brought with them certain dietary habits, ways of cooking, and even seedlings of certain fruits.[10]





















The Last Supper, Theotokos of Ljeviša Church, Prizren, late XIII century (Photo: Artis Center)



Besides the most immediate impact of royal wives, in Serbian medieval towns and the royal court, were staying or were officially engaged people from various corners of the known world then. It primarily refers to the large number of mercenaries who formed the king's personal guard and the backbone of his army.[11] From the era of King Milutin, who has led a number of conquests, the sources about mercenaries in his service are numerous and interesting, because they indicate that the king gathered under arms a colorful ethnic suite comprising a significant number of Asians, especially Kumans, Ossetians and Tatars, but also a large number of western knights - German, Italian and French.[12] Especially interesting are reports related to nutrition of the army and people who were in charge of supplying such a large army with weapons, equipment and food.[13] 


During the total duration of medieval Serbian lands in the Middle Ages of the utmost importance in the exchange of all kinds of goods, especially food imports and exports is immeasurable influence of traders, led by skilled merchants from Dubrovnik.[14] Documents preserved in the archives of Dubrovnik point in an exact way what kinds of culinary influences were transmitted to Serbia from to Dubrovnik and from large shopping centers on the ground of nowadays Italy and other areas where Dubrovnik purchased their goods. It is reasonable to believe that the Saxon miners, whose settlements have formed the core of large mining towns such as Srebrenica in Bosnia and Novo Brdo in Kosovo, brought their own traditions and customs when it comes to nutrition. Thanks to the development of mining in Serbia 14th century, there was an expansion of the urban way of life that inevitably arised the need for professional food producers, so the data on the existence of public bakers, butchers and fish stores[15] is not surprising, and also regulations according to which miners are not required to pay for bread, cheese, fruit, lentils or fish if these are not of good quality.[16] 

















Wedding in Cana, The Presentation of Theotokos, Kalenić Monastery, early XV century (Photo: Artis Center)



Finally, despite the fact that he constantly fought with the Byzantine Empire, from whom he conquered in the late 13th century considerable territory in what is now Macedonia and northern Greece, the king considered Byzantine way of life as high ideals as it is evidenced by Metochites in his report. Milutin had a special relationship with his mother in law, the Byzantine Empress Irina, an aristocrat of western origin, with whom he exchanged visits, embassies and gifts.[17] All these data indirectly suggest a variety of effects that could appear on the menu of King Milutin in terms of food choice, and in the mode of its preparation and serving and consumption in particular. King Milutin, who saw himself as the new Constantine, had to have that kind of public performance, even if it seemed to a sleek Byzantines of Metochites's rank as a pawn competing with the Lydian chariot, as the old Byzantine proverb describes an unequal balance of power between contestants.[18] 


















Zlakusa pottery (Photo: Artis Center)



In the abundance of wildlife and a variety of birds, fish and eel, fruit and cakes and other delicacies which the king had to offer in gold and silver vessels to his distinguished guest of sensitive palate and noble manners,[19] in the process of trying to reconstruct the king's table, was prepared a sort of variation of "sumješica" or the medieval Serbian bread that includes at least two types of grains[20], lamb with spicy weed in milk using traditional technique of cooking in clay pots, perch in saffron fried in boiling lard, casserole of fresh water fish and wine, wild mushrooms with garlic and local spices, venison in a sauce of onions, almonds and prunes, as well as several kinds of sweets - cake with fresh fruit and nuts, candy made of dried fruit and carob, pear in sauce of wild berries, “rožada” (Venetian sweet caramel cream) and a cake made of sweet cheese – “prijesnac”


The ideal reconstruction of the medieval bread preparation method was significantly facilitated by the fact that in the late 20th century at the site of Ras fort near Novi Pazar was reliably identified, and then expertly analyzed the rest of the scone made of ground, the so-called "black" flour, which included whole wheat.[21] Leavened bread is knead of wheat and rye flour milled on a manual mill, and then baked in the crepulja (ceramic bread baking pan)[22] which clearly indicates that the method of preparation of bread in Serbia did not significantly change over several hundred years. Except for the fact that the hand mill which was used to painstakingly ground a small amount of flour for everyday household use in the meantime are gone, in some rural households of Serbia can still be seen the same way of preparing and baking bread as finding from Ras suggests.[23] 


Traditional Serbian medieval style cooking in an open air hearth (Photo: Artis Center)










































Based on analysis of residues of different cereals in the fort of Ras, which is now the only medieval site in territory of which are carried out thorough archeoetnobotanical research in Serbia, we reconstructed an authentic medieval bread as well as its contemporary, culinary and nutritionally more quality variations. According to discovery from Ras, in Serbian medieval cookery for preparation of bread, and various mashes, were used in addition to wheat and rye, barley and oats, flour, so these four grains were combined into leavened bread. The evidence that in Serbia is eaten bread made from so-called sourdough includes the chrisobula of the monastery of Holy Archangels near Prizren, the foundation of the first Serbian Emperor Dušan Nemanjić (1331-1345), in which the sovereign stated that the monks shall be given a sour bread between the so-called bread and wine meal.[24] To the traditional medieval bread was previously added soaked flax seeds and few teaspoons of cumin, in order to improve its nutritional quality. During the first workshop bread is baked in sauce with cover in the wood stove, and during the second workshop in a classic pan in the gas oven, because for now, in urban conditions, it was not possible to organize baking in bread baking pan covered with fire in an open fireplace. 



Bread was served with cheese, salted meat and pickled mushroom and spicy weed that is Serbian medieval term for onions and garlic.[25] Special emphasis was on salted meat that is still in the mountain regions of Serbia local, but also a national specialty, while during Middle Age besides cattle, cheese, oil and honey, was one of the most important Serbian export products to developed urban centers in the Adriatic.[26]

A kind of superstructure of classic dishes with bread, which is still served in inland, as well as in a number of the restaurants, we got by combining certain components of the Serbian medieval diet in a salad - a form of food unknown in Middle Ages. Decision to make such variation is mainly contributed by numerous frescoes of the Last Supper with the notion that in addition to the precious bowls with lamb, are painted root vegetables that on the basis of leaf shape could be identified as a beet or beetroot, and in some cases as young or wild onions. 


This unadorned vegetables on fancy, holy tables inspired the making of salad of “sremuša” (plant as well known as bear or wild onion), goat cheese and walnut kernels in combination with at the time imported precious item that could be found only on the tables of the highest social structures - olive oil.[27] Salad is flavored with lemon for which there is reliable information that, together with other Mediterranean fruit, was imported to the ground of medieval Serbia. [28] Cranberry, berries characteristic for cooler, mountainous regions of north, central and eastern Europe, which also grows in the mountainous regions of Serbia, is modern culinary addition to this salad, whose main ingredients are goat cheese and wild onions. 



Historical resources, and above all, the trading related documentation, attest to the significant production of various types of cheese and dairy products from the territory of the Serbian medieval countries coming into the Adriatic coast.[29] Serbian cheese, or cheesing, as it is called in the charters of rulers and monastery documents, was so important and valued product that at one time served as a means of payment.[30] 
















 

Sumješica – Serbian medieval bread made of at least two types of grains (Photo:Vladislav Mitić)



A dish of mushrooms sautéed in butter with addition of spices, garlic and crushed pepper is a variation of meatless stew of wild mushrooms that undoubtedly could be found on the menu of Serbian rulers, and on the menu of ordinary people. No medieval regulation does prohibit the harvesting of wild mushrooms, and from ancient times is well known their nutritional value. Mushrooms are fried in butter as a finer kind of fat, although it is certain that the medieval cooks in Serbia mostly used lard and sheep fat.[31] Since the lard was more appropriate for frying, and a mild smell, and the sheep fat on the other had an important purpose in mining, so its price was high, the butchers were sentenced to fines if they do not give the sheep fat to the miners.[32]


Medieval technique of roasting in ceramics dishes, and rarely bronze kettles like the one found in Ras[33] includes brief heat treatment of small pieces of meat or fish in boiling fat or oil. This is how we prepared perch that was previously rolled in a mixture of integral wheat flour, crushed saffron, salt and pepper. Perch prepared in this way was served with prunes, in which were inserted raw almonds after several hours of soaking in sweet wine.



Fish in medieval Serbia was regularly used in everyday diet in regions that were located near rivers and lakes.[34] It was especially important for monastic dining table, which is documented numerous times in royal founding documents and other important documents that require purchase of fish and seafood, even for Serbian monasteries.[35] Fish is a delicacy, and the tables of the sovereigns, and the Metochites's report suggests that King Milutin could afford some fish species from the Danube, that were prized and expensive in Byzantium.[36]

















Perch with prunes and raw almonds (Photo: V.Mitić)



In addition to deep-fried fish recipe, a recipe for casserole of fish was also reconstructed. This dish of pieces of high-quality fresh water fish (catfish, carp, pike) was prepared in a puree of onion, wine, bay leaf and pepper, using technique of simmer for several hours in a crock casserole type of pot, in Serbia this type of ceramic dish is also called called “djuvec”. This method of preparing fish is a variation of similar kinds of` fish meals that were prepared for centuries in Serbian Orthodox monasteries.


Livestock in medieval Serbia was the main economic sector, so there was a wide selection of different types of meat that could be found on the table during the feast. The most popular livestock were sheep, which were conducive to the mountainous terrain and the climate characteristic for those terrains, and then pigs, goats, cattle, horses and feathered poultry. [37] Interestingly, according to the analysis of bones found at the site of the fortress of Ras, the poultry was the least used in the diet.[38] 



When it comes to meat dishes, the decision to prepare lamb during ideal reconstruction and to use cooking technique, grew out of insights into written and visual sources from the era, but also from direct archaeological finds in some medieval sites.[39] Lamb is cut into small pieces and arranged in the crock, then a spicy weed is added, carrot, parsley root and wild apples, and then cow's milk is poured over that, as it is done nowadays in rural, mountain regions of Serbia and northern Montenegro, and cooked in a covered clay pot from Zlakusa which is made on the hand wheel, a hundreds of years old technology.[40] 



Pottery from Zlakusa, primarily intended for preparing food on the open fire and in the grill, according to the typological division of medieval pottery is the most similar to the pottery used for cooking.[41] At the same time, thanks to the relation of clay and calcite, which allows exposure to high temperature, this cookware allows the preparation of quality food in modern urban environment in which cooking on open fire is not possible. It is particularly important that the food that is prepared in pots from Zlakusa, does not essentially change the taste when prepared on stoves using electricity or gas.



















River fish casserole with onions and vine (Photo: V.Mitić)



In a large ceramic pan with lid like a shallow bell from Zlakusa was also prepared venison stew with prunes, onions, red wine and herbs. Similar traditional Dalmatian food – “pašticada”, this way of preparing red meat and game with the addition of honey, dried or fresh fruit, can be found even in Antiquity.[42] Honey and various aromatic spices and pepper, were common addition to wines that were of much lower quality than in present days, and in special way prepared wort, was a base for cooking numerous Roman dishes.[43] While on the ground in Serbia in period preceding to the Nemanjić dynasty to the middle of the 12th century vineyards were rare,[44] wine was imported from the coast areas, and the regulations of its sales were so numerous that the information itself speaks about the importance of this noble drink for Serbian medieval banquet. In medieval Serbia there was red and white wine, and Malvasia was especially coveted.[45]




































 Forest mushrooms with garlic, pepper and herbs (Photo: V.Mitić)



Sweets have a special place in the Serbian medieval gastronomy. Documents related to trade and barter with the coast areas clearly suggest that the medieval Serbs loved and ate fruit.[46] The medieval sovereigns table had fresh and dried fruit, even in the cold winter months.[47] Rich in forests, medieval Serbia had the most diverse choice of berries. In Serbian court they ate figs, apples, strawberries, cherries, pears, homemade plum (Prunus domestica), blueberries, blackberries, currants, pomegranates, dates, citrus and peach. Findings and careful analysis of peach stones (Prunus persica) found at the site of the fortress Ras clearly shows that this expensive, juicy fruit, that could be propagated only by plants, were consumed in Serbia in the 12th century.[48] 

















 Pear in sweet sauce of wild red fruits (Photo: V.Mitić)



In addition to fruit, a special treat and for a long time the main sweetener was honey, which was one of the main export items of medieval Serbia.[49] Sugar appears only in the late Middle Ages in the form of so-called heads of sugar that merchants from the coast sold at very high prices almost exclusively to the lords and sovereigns.[50]  Merchants of Dubrovnik donated sugar and sweets to aristocracy in Serbia and Bosnia from whose benefits depended their trade. Although there is no direct evidence of that, it is unlikely that in late medieval Serbia did not arrive candy and "rožada" - sweet caramel cream from Venice, as it is certain that in the Serbian court in the era of Milutin there were fine sweets, because Metochites unambiguously states that he was served with cakes.[51]


In order to reconstruct the medieval Serbian desserts table, we tried to make both combinations - those that include only fruits, nuts and honey, as well as those that are based on flour, eggs, milk, butter, sugar and fruit. Bearing in mind that in Serbia nuts such as walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds were consumed,[52] we combined these important ingredients in attempts to reconstruct a treat. So, pear is made in sauce of wild fruits that in addition to blueberries, wild strawberries, currants and wild cherries, contains chopped almonds. Walnuts and hazelnuts were used in making candies from dried fruits, which at the final phase were rolled in carob flour. With almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts was made a cake of flour, eggs, blueberries, peaches and apples. "Rožada" and “prijesnica” or cheese cake (torta de caseo) [53] were made of eggs, young cottage cheese, sugar and flour. 










  Dried fruits candies rolled in carob and walnuts flour and traditional Serbian apple pie with raisins (Photo:V.Mitić)



A special part of the "Serbian medieval table" project is serving and food consumption in the corresponding proto-medieval environment. Intention to study the customs related to eating, as well as accessories and other elements vital for serving and eating of food is not aimed to make literal replicas of identified medieval works of art from the era, but to encourage the selected artists to create their own, original design that incorporates elements of medieval aesthetics and contemporary applied arts, based on medieval tableware, tablecloths, napkins, glassware, wood items, pottery, bone and precious metals.
SUMMARY
Previous studies of Serbian medieval culinary heritage clearly suggest that food in the Serbian areas of this era was a fusion of different culinary influences, with important sway of some of the oldest dishes and food preparation techniques specific to the rural areas population that are predominantly engaged in cattle breeding. As a source of great significance for the study of nutrition in the medieval Serbian states, have proven to be secular and ecclesiastical laws and regulations that clearly indicate the presence of a number of foods and food products, their use and origin. Insight into the kitchen of the Adriatic coast, southern Italy, Venice, Dubrovnik and the Dubrovnik hinterland, were also of great importance in the reconstruction of certain foods, especially desserts which due to extensive trade undoubtedly found their way to the Serbian Court. In this context, the idea of the tables of the sovereigns, and especially the one after the conquest of the Byzantine territories by Milutin in late 13th century, in the era of Emperor Dušan during mid 14th and despots Lazarević and Branković in early 15th century, will get even clearer after it is thoroughly explored the legacy of Byzantine cuisine with an emphasis on cuisine of Thessaloniki, but also the cuisine of the not so distant medieval Bulgarian capital in Trnovo. 


Finally, it is very important to note that the process of analysis of some of the old Serbian dishes that were present in diet virtually until the beginning of the 20th century, and in some rural areas can be eaten even in present time, proves the longevity of certain culinary forms. These patterns are not evident only when it comes to simple mash of cereal and milk or water, in which during or after cooking is added cheese, cream or ointment, but also in specialties such as calf's head in tripe or lamb liver in a tissue that by their cooking technique point to some of the oldest ways of cooking food that were used in Serbia until the end of the 19th century. Although in urban areas in the meantime disappeared hearth cooking or cooking in the heat, as well as the use of clay pots and earthenware dish pie, this dishes due to its culinary qualities are still part of the diet of modern Serbian man. What's more, some of them are considered to be the most representative of contemporary Serbian cuisine.

This paper was presented during ICOM ICR Annual Conference "Home and earth: Regional museums and Gastronomic heritage" that was held inSerbia 23rd-28th of September 2012

All rights reserved by Tamara Ognjević & Artis Center




[1] T.Stendidž, Jestiva istorija čovečanstva, Beograd 2010, 11-14
  
[2] Vizantijski izvori za istoriju naroda Jugoslavije VI, SANU, Beograd 1986, 110-114
[3] S. Bojanin, Svetkovine i zabave u srednjovekovnoj Srbiji, Beograd 2005, 67-70
[4] S.Bojanin, ibidem, 165-166
[5] Arhiepiskop Danilo, Životi kraljeva i arhiepiskopa srpskih, Beograd 1935, 97-106
[6] A.Dalby, Tastes of Byzantium, London 2010, 59-81
[7] Metochites explicitly says that at the king's table he ate "their (Serbian) and other dishes", Vizantijski izvori VI, 131

[8] K.Jireček, Istorija Srba, Knjiga I, Beograd 1952, 181-184
[9] K.Jireček, ibidem, 183, 190, 194
[10] K.Borojević, Analiza biljnih ostataka sa tvrđave Ras (12. vek i početak 13. veka), Starinar LI/2000, Beograd 2003, 201; See also in English: Borojevic, K. (2005) Nutrition and environment in medieval Serbia: Charred cereal, weed and fruit remains from the fortress of Ras. Vegetation History and Archaeobotany 14:453–464.)
[11] S.Ćirković, Rabotnici, vojnici, duhovnici, Beograd 1997, 349-366
[12] M.Popović, Veština ratovanja i život vojnika, Privatni život u srpskim zemljama srednjeg veka(priredile S.Marjanović-Dušanić i D.Popović), Beograd 2004, 227-228
[13] M.Popović, ibidem, 232-233
[14] About Dubrovnik merchants and trade was written extensively, among which when it comes to food trading specially should be mentioned M.Gecić, Dubrovačka trgovina solju u XIV veku, Zbornik Filozofskog fakulteta u Beogradu 3, Beograd 1995, 95-152; D.Dinić-Knežević, Trgovina vinom u Dubrovniku u 14. veku, Godišnjak Filozofskog fakulteta u Novom Sadu 9, Novi Sad 1966, 39-85; D. Dinić-Knežević,Trgovina žitom u Dubrovniku u XIV veku. Godišnjak Filozofskog fakulteta 10, Novi Sad 1967, 79-130; D.Dinić-Knežević, Trgovina uljem u Dubrovniku XIV veka, Historijski zbornik 23-24 (1970-1971), Zagreb 1971, 290-304;  M.J.Dinić, Iz Dubrovačkog arhiva, Beograd 1967; Đ.Petrović, O siru u srednjovekovnom Dubrovniku, Istorijski glasnik 1-2, Beograd 1988, 21-24 i drugo. 
[15] D.Kovačević-Kojić, Prilog proučavanju zanatstva u Novom Brdu i okolini, Zbornik Filozofskog fakulteta u Beogradu 8-2, Beograd 1964, 527; V.Jovanović, Novo Brdo srednjovekovni grad in Novo Brdo, Beograd 2004, 48
[16] M.Spremić, Jelo i piće, Privatni život u srpskim zemljama srednjeg veka (priredile S.Marjanović-Dušanić i D.Popović), Beograd 2004, 117
[17] Vizantijski izvori VI, 171-175, 178-179; D.Nikol, Vizantijske plemkinje, Beograd 2002, 90-91
[18] Vizantijski izvori VI, 112
[19] Vizantijski izvori VI, 113-114
[20] M.Spremić, ibidem, 116
[21] K.Borojević, ibidem, 196-197
[22] In location in which charred part of the bread was found, were also found hand mills for grinding grain, fragments of ceramic pots for cooking, as well as earthenware dish for baking bread, K.Borojević, ibidem, 196.
[23]Besides ceramic bread beaking pans, the bread traditionaly beaks in bread furnaces. Medieval sorces mantion bread furnaces in Serbia, B. Djordjević, Three Facets of Traditional Pottery Making in Serbia, Belgrade 201,1 7-31.

[24] Lj. Kovačević, Svetoarhanđelska hrisovulja, Spomenik SKA 4, Beograd 1890, 111
[25] M.Blagojević, Zemljoradnja u srednjovekovnoj Srbiji, Beograd 1973, 169-174
[26] V.Živković, Kotor-Model kasnosrednjovekovnog grada, Privatni život u srpskim zemljama srednjeg veka (priredile S.Marjanović-Dušanić i D.Popović), Beograd 2004, 99
[27] M.Spremić, ibidem, 124
[28] V.Živković, ibidem, 99
[29] F.Miklosich, Monumenta Serbica spectantia historiam Serbiae, Bosnae, Ragusii, Viennae 1858, 139
[30] Lj.Stojanović, Stare srpske povelje i pisma, knjiga I, prvi deo, Beograd-Sremski Karlovci 1929, 220; Đ.Petrović, O siru u srednjovekovnom Dubrovniku, Istorijski glasnik 1-2, Beograd 1988, 21-24
[31] M.Spremić, ibidem, 124
[32] N.Radojčić, Zakon o rudnicima despota Stefana Lazarevića, Beograd 1962, 51 - 53
[33] V.Bikić, Kuhinja i trpeza: Posuđe u svakodnevnom životu, Privatni život u srpskim zemljama srednjeg veka (priredile S.Marjanović-Dušanić i D.Popović), Beograd 2004, 147
[34] M.Spremić, ibidem, 122
[35]M. Spremić, ibidem, 122-124
[36] Vizantijski izvori VI, 114
[37] M.Spremić, ibidem, 119
[38] S.Blažić, Ostaci kostiju sa lokaliteta Ras-Gradina u M.Popović, Tvrđava Ras, Beograd 1999, 439-445
[39] M.Spremić, ibidem, 119;  K.Borojević, ibidem, 200
[40] B. Djordjević, ibidem, 33-55.
[41] B. Djordjević, ibidem, 49-51.
[42] Rimski kuvar po Apiciju, priredila Slađana Milenković, Beograd 2005, 18-20
[43] Rimski kuvar po Apiciju, 24
[44] M.Spremić, ibidem, 128
[45] M.Spremić, ibidem, 130
[46] V. Živković, ibidem, 99
[47] Vizantijski izvori VI, 114
[48] K.Borojević, ibidem, 200
[49] M.Spremić, ibidem, 126-127
[50] Đ.Tošić, Trg Drijeva u srednjem vijeku, Sarajevo 1967, 222
[51] Vizantijski izvori VI, 114
[52] K.Borojević, ibidem, 200; M.Spremić, ibidem, 118
[53] D.Roller, Agrarno-prozvodni odnosi na području Dubrovačke republike od XIII do XV stoljeća, Zagreb 1955, 118,221