Shakespeare's Restless World 3. Snacking Through Shakespeare
Apr 18, 2012
Julian Bauscher, an archaeologist who led digs at Elizabethan theatres for the Museum of London, joins to examine theatre finds. Short scenes cover food remains like nuts, oysters and bread. They reveal a fancy iron fork, how penny entry and the box office worked, and how eating and drink shaped Southwark entertainment and onstage spectacle.
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Theatre Snacks Revealed
- Archaeology reveals what Elizabethan playgoers actually ate during performances, from nuts to mussels and fruit.
- A stylish iron-and-wood fork found at the Rose shows people also brought personal, durable cutlery to theatres.
The Elegant Fork From The Rose
- The fork found at the Rose is nine inches long with two prongs, an engraved brass knop and wooden handle pins.
- It lay for centuries on the theatre site and signals a durable, personal item dropped by a theatregoer.
Early Box Office Evidence
- Excavations recover money-box tops used by gatherers to collect penny entrance fees, likely the origin of ‘box office’.
- Money boxes made up nearly a fifth of identifiable pottery from Elizabethan theatres.