Summary

Diet in the ancient world was not only important to health but was also seen as a way of curing diseases. Monitoring and advising on diet was part of the role of the doctor, and digestion was seen as a way of ‘cooking’ the food to make it become part of the body. Vegetarian diets, like raw food diets, were not seen as appropriate for human beings. For babies, breast milk was essential, and its value meant it could even be used as a medicine for adults. Exercise was important to control weight, but excessive exercise was thought to damage the body.

Figure 14 Still life with eggs, birds and pewter dishes, from the House of Julia Felix, Pompeii

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An image of a wall fresco depicting a series of objects, including a metal vessel with a ladle, a wide plate containing ten eggs and a large metal jug, all arranged on a low platform or step. On the wall above the eggs are about half-a-dozen small birds hanging together off a hook. To the right of these is a napkin also hanging from a hook, and below that a simple clay bottle is propped against the end of the step.

Figure 14 Still life with eggs, birds and pewter dishes, from the House of Julia Felix, Pompeii

Diet is known about not only from written sources, but also from the images that decorated wealthy people’s houses, and the remains of what they actually ate. Next week you’ll be delving into another type of evidence: what came out of the body, as found in the sewers of the ancient world.