Monday 23 January 2012

Montagu Knight's Edwardian Christmas

The star of the exhibits on display for the Edwardian Christmas was a hand written and illustrated menu for Christmas Dinner 1911sent from Sokoto, (Nigeria) listing all the fare of a traditional Christmas dinner:

Soup
Fish Mayonnaise
Stewed Pigeons on Toast
Tomatoe Farcies
Roast Turkey
Saddle of Mutton
Rum Pudding
Fruit Salade
Foie Gras
Coffee & Dessert

We matched it against one in a contemporary cookbook; a game ledger with an entry for the day after Boxing Day 1911; photographs of beaters ready for a shoot; instructions for handmade gifts; an illustrated colour-printed book of entertainments for the family; and a book of eighteenth-century prints that belonged to the Edwardian owners, Montagu and Florence Knight. The book of prints was displayed open at a page with a snowy scene and appropriately drew together two of the most significant periods of the House's history.