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When is "back in the day?" It was my understanding that techniques like brining date to the early medieval days, and inventions like brining haring were what ga
by AlecSchueler 3y ago
When is "back in the day?" It was my understanding that techniques like brining date to the early medieval days, and inventions like brining haring were what gave the Dutch a leg up in their expansion, long after Rome had fallen.
I'm not disagreeing with you entirely, I do agree that salt was an important preservate in Rome and before that, but maybe not to the extent that 4 litres per week would be practical for most people.
- tuatoru 3y agoI don't know anything about Roman food preservation, nor about exact quantities. I was making the points that before refrigeration, a lot more salt was used for food storage, and that salt has other major uses besides flavoring food or providing necessary physiological electrolyte. As Ed Conway writes, the production of some important industrial chemicals starts with salt. I'm also not claiming that legionaries were literally paid in salt. I don't believe that would have been true after the very early Republic at the latest. Probably not after the first kings. The Roman genius for bureaucracy and record-keeping would have sorted out a more efficient payment system quite soon, I believe.
- trompetenaccoun 3y agoCrazy idea but maybe they got paid in coins (money), since money was widely used in Ancient Rome already: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pay_(Roman_army) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pay_(Roman_army) A lot more practical than kilos of salt.