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The fork is cutlery, consisting of a handle and several narrow teeth (usually from two to four). Widely used for cooking and also during eating for holding or carrying individual parts food. The fork is sometimes called the "king of kitchen utensils."
The fork has been around for centuries as a cutlery. In Neapolitan national museum a fork found in one of the graves of the ancient city of Paestum in southwestern Italy is kept. It is more than two and a half thousand years old. Cardinal and Bishop of Ostia (the ancient trading harbor of Rome) Peter Damiani, who lived in the 11th century, argued that the use of a fork at the table was introduced into fashion by one princess originally from Venice, and from there it spread further.
In France, the fork first appeared on the royal table during the reign of Charles V, more precisely in 1379. The first forks were imported into England in 1608 from Italy.
How was the fork shape created?
The rules of good manners prescribed not to take the meat with all your fingers, especially with two hands, but only with three fingers; Do not wipe your fingers on clothes, but rinse them in a special bowl of water.
In wealthy European homes, it was fashionable to eat with gloves to keep your hands clean. After lunch, the gloves stained with grease were thrown away.
A fork is a prototype of a hand. The first forks were huge and had only one sharp tine, later - two. The ancient Romans used them to remove pieces of meat from a cauldron or brazier. These tools cannot yet be called forks in our understanding, since the noble patricians continued to eat meat with their hands, along which fat flowed down to their elbows.
Small silver, often gilded, richly decorated food forks in recognizable proportions and shapes came into use only in the middle of the 16th century, replacing the two knives that were used at the table in “decent houses.”
In 1860, England began mass production of cutlery, including modern forks, made from silver or silver-plated metals. Stainless steel cutlery began to conquer the world in 1920.
Russia kept pace with plugs historical process. Even under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, as one European wrote in travel essays, “at dinner, spoons and bread were placed on the table for each guest, and a plate, knife and fork were only for honored guests.”
Alexei Mikhailovich's son Peter the Great also contributed to the history of the fork in Rus'. Not without his help, the Russian aristocracy recognized the fork in the 18th century.
In the publication “Russian Antiquity” for 1824 there is information about how the table was set for Peter I: “A wooden spoon seasoned with ivory, a knife and fork with green bone handles were always placed at his cutlery, and the orderly on duty was required to carry them with him and put it in front of the king, even if he happened to dine at a party.” Apparently, Peter was not sure that even in " best houses"He will be given the entire set of cutlery.
Modern tables are served with cutlery, among which there may be a dozen types of forks:
- Lemon fork. Has two sharp teeth.
- Double-horned fork - for serving herring.
- A sprat fork with a wide blade-shaped base and five tines connected at the ends by a bridge.
- Device for crabs, crayfish, shrimp. Long fork with two prongs.
- Fork for oysters, mussels and cold fish cocktails - one of the three prongs (the left one) is larger than the others and is designed to separate the pulp of oysters and mussels from the shells.
- Lobster needle.
- Chill fork - for hot fish appetizers. It has three teeth, shorter and wider than the dessert one.
In addition to traditional serving forks, there are unusual items.
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The world's largest fork is located in Springfield, Missouri. The sculptural form, which is 10.7 meters high, was built by an advertising agency that considers this cutlery to be its talisman. In Kyiv, too, there is a monument to a fork, and not even one, but two. The Vilka monument is located near the Beer Duma pub, which is located on Drahomanov Street. Presumably, it was the pub that initiated and, accordingly, sponsored the installation of this monument. The author of this strange monument to a fork is the sculptor Vladimir Belokon. One of the most strange monuments is a huge fork, which, thanks to the efforts of the Nestle corporation, ended up stuck in the bottom of Lake Geneva. The sculpture, created in 1995 and located in front of the Alimentarium food museum and Nestle headquarters, is called the "Monument to Food".
Many people, imagining the times of knights and noble ladies, and later gentlemen and ladies, the court etiquette of French kings or Italian doges, do not even think about how exactly they ate. And if you ask, they will answer that with a knife and fork.
Interestingly, there were no forks in Europe until the 14th century (with the exception of Italy, which had close contacts with the Byzantine Empire). But first things first. The history of the invention of the fork is as follows...
The fork was invented in the Middle East around the 9th century AD (at least mentions of a similar device are found at this time), at that time “enlightened Europe” used a knife and... A second knife. Or a knife for cutting meat and hands for transporting it from plate to mouth.
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| Serving with two knives |
A little earlier, in Ancient Egypt used forks while cooking. In ancient Rome, two-pronged forks were used to remove meat from a cauldron or brazier. That is, a purely utilitarian item used in order not to burn your hands. We ate at Ancient Rome, of course, with your hands.
The fork came to Europe from the East through Byzantium. There are references to the fact that the Byzantine princess, not wanting to eat with her hands like all other people, ate with a two-pronged fork. The fork first came to Italy in the 11th century. Then, to France in the 14th century. At that time, Queen of France Jeanne d'Herve had one fork.
Forks came to England only in 1608 from Italy. But it was in England that mass production of forks was launched in 1860.
Modern forks with curved four prongs originated in Germany in the 18th century.
TO XVI century, the fork came into use in aristocratic society. It was an item of insane luxury. The rules of good manners of the 16th-18th centuries still dictated that meat should be handled exclusively with three fingers, and not with all five. Do not wipe your hands on clothes or a tablecloth, but rinse them in a special bowl of water. Sometimes aristocrats, in order not to get their hands dirty, wore gloves, which they then simply threw away.
Catholic Church I didn't like the fork. Its use was considered as excessive luxury, godlessness, or even connection with the devil. Sometimes forks were called “spoons of splitting,” and it was often said that “God in his wisdom gave man a natural “fork”—his fingers. And to eat with a fork means to offend God.”
A fork is a simple household item, so familiar to modern man and easy to use, nevertheless, it has interesting story. Just think, its use was once the subject of attack and the basis for writing pamphlets. Next - a selection interesting facts from several Internet sources. All of them, despite some inconsistency, can give a clear picture of the worldview and views, including the time period we have chosen with regards to it.
When did the fork appear? There is no clear answer to this question. The first mention of a fork was found in the 9th century in the Middle East. Such forks were huge and had only one sharp tine, later - two. The ancient Romans used them to remove pieces of meat from a cauldron or brazier. These tools cannot yet be called forks in our understanding, since the noble patricians ate meat with their hands, along which fat flowed down to the elbows...
A cooking set whose approximate age is estimated at three thousand years
The Naples National Museum houses a fork found in one of the graves of the ancient city of Paestum in southwestern Italy. She is more than two and a half thousand years old.
In 1072, in Byzantium, in the city of Constantinople, in the imperial palace, a single fork was made of gold, its handle was decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay on ivory. This fork was intended for the Byzantine princess Maria Iverskaya, the widow of Emperor Michael Duca, who considered it humiliating to eat with her hands. The fork had two straight tines, which could only be used to skewer, not scoop, food.
After 100 years, the fork came from Byzantium to Italy, where it was first made in two copies - for the Venetian Doge and the Pope.
Back in the 16th-18th centuries, rules of good manners prescribed not to take meat with all your fingers, much less with two hands, but only with three fingers; do not wipe your fingers on your clothes, but rinse them in a special bowl of water... At one time it was fashionable to eat with gloves so that your hands remained clean. After lunch, soiled gloves were thrown away.
The first mentions of forks in Europe date back to the 14th century: for example, there were several forks in the treasury of Duke John II of Breton. True, they ate not meat, but fruits or fried cheese. Peter Galveston, a favorite of King Edward II of England, had 69 silver spoons and three forks with which he ate a pear. The inventory of the wealth of the Hungarian Queen Clementia for 1328 mentions thirty spoons and one fork made of gold. After her death, the French queen Jeanne d'Evreux left one fork, carefully packed in a small chest, and 64 spoons. The fork became a necessary attribute at the meals of the Italian nobility and merchants.
In France, the fork first appeared on the royal table during the reign of Charles V, more precisely in 1379. The first forks were imported into England in 1608 from Italy. Charles V had several golden forks with handles encrusted with precious stones, which were used for rare desserts served at the most refined courts of the time.
Small silver, often gilded, richly decorated food forks in the proportions and forms in which we know them now came into use only by the middle of the 16th century, replacing the two knives that were used at the table in “decent houses.”
Cutlery from the era of Louis XIV, made by Nicholas Bellier in 1680
In the pamphlet “The Island of Hermaphrodites,” published in late XVI century and directed against the minions of the French king Henry III, who adhered to an unconventional sexual orientation, it is said as something extraordinary that they never touched the meat with their hands, but used forks, “no matter how much work it cost them.” However, already in the 17th century, the fork began to win its place on the banquet table.
Attempts to introduce the fork into use encountered stubborn resistance from the Church. The Catholic Church, calling the fork “an unnecessary luxury,” did not welcome its use - its use in the courts of monarchs was considered as godlessness or even a connection with the devil.
Rococo knife and fork, circa 1730-1750
The fork appeared in Russia in 1606, and Marina Mnishek brought it. At her wedding feast in the Kremlin, Marina with a fork shocked the Russian boyars and clergy. This fork was given as one of the arguments for the popular uprising against False Dmitry. Since the Tsar and Tsarina eat not with their hands, but with some kind of spear, it means that they are not Russians, but the offspring of the devil. Even the word fork itself finally entered the Russian language only in the 18th century, and before that time this object was called “rogatina” and “fork”. To this day, superstitions reflect a wary attitude towards the fork - it is believed that it should not be given as a gift - this is a sign of arrogance.
Under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, as one European wrote in his travel essays, “at dinner, spoons and bread were placed on the table for each guest, and a plate and a knife; and a fork - only for honored guests."
Alexei Mikhailovich's son Peter the Great also contributed to the history of the fork in Rus'. Not without his help, the Russian aristocracy recognized the fork in the 18th century. The publication “Russian Antiquity” for 1824 contains information about how the table was set for Peter I:
“A wooden spoon, seasoned with ivory, a knife and fork with green bone handles were always placed at his cutlery, and the orderly on duty was required to carry them with him and place them in front of the king, even if he happened to dine at a party.” Apparently, Peter was not sure that even in the “best houses” he would be given the entire set of cutlery.
Replica cutlery from 1747-1776
Modern tables are served with utensils, among which there may be a dozen types of forks: regular and snack forks, for meat, fish, side dishes, two-pronged - large and smaller, used for cutting meat fibers, special for cutting lobsters, a fork complete with a knife for oysters, forks in combination with spatulas - for asparagus... All of them are of recent origin: XIX - early XX centuries.
England's first fork
In 1608, the Englishman Thomas Coriat visited Italy. During the trip, he kept a diary in which he wrote down everything that struck him especially strongly. He described the splendor of Venetian palaces standing in the middle of the water, and the beauty of the marble temples of Ancient Rome, and the formidable grandeur of Vesuvius. But one thing amazed Coriath more than all the beauties of Italy put together.
In his diary there is the following entry: “When Italians eat meat, they use small pitchforks made of iron or steel, and sometimes silver. There is no way to force Italians to eat with their hands. They think it’s not good because not everyone’s hands are clean.”
Before heading home, Koriat acquired such a pitchfork. The fork he bought bore little resemblance to a modern one. This fork had only two tines, and the handle, decorated with a knob at the end, was very tiny. In general, this instrument was more like a tuning fork.
Arriving home, Koriat decided to show off his purchase to friends and acquaintances. At a dinner party, he pulled a fork out of his pocket and began to eat the Italian way.
All eyes turned to him. And when he explained what this thing was in his hands, everyone wanted to take a closer look at the Italian eating tool. The fork went around the entire table. The ladies admired the elegant decoration, the men were surprised at the ingenuity of the Italians, but everyone unanimously decided that the Italians were big eccentrics, and that eating with a fork was very inconvenient.
Thomas Coriat tried to argue, arguing that it was not good to take meat with your hands, that not everyone’s hands were clean. This caused general outrage. Does Mr Coriat think that in England no one washes their hands before eating? Are ten fingers given by nature not enough for us and we must add two artificial fingers to them? Let him show how easy it is to handle these ridiculous pitchforks.
Koriat wanted to show his art. But the very first piece of meat he took from the dish fell from the fork onto the tablecloth. There was no end to the laughter and jokes. The poor traveler had to hide his fork back in his pocket.
It took at least fifty years before forks came into fashion in England.
(c) compiled based on materials from online publications by N. Konopleva, “Science and Life” No. 1, 2003;
E. Kolodochnikova, "Popular scientific historical magazine".
The history of the fork from ancient times to the present day.
Surprisingly, such a simple and familiar cutlery as a fork has a rich and very interesting history of origin. There is even a mention of it on the pages of the Bible. The Jews used a fork-like device during religious ceremonies.
The age of the very first fork found during archaeological excavations is more than 3 thousand years. Appearance The device that belonged to the ancient Romans was different from the modern one: it consisted of a handle with one tooth at the end and was used to remove large pieces of meat from a common cauldron.
Single prong forks used in ancient China, are considered the predecessors of modern Chinese chopsticks. Unlike Europeans, Asians did not prick food, but captured it using similar devices.
The Byzantine princess Maria Iverskaya contributed to the spread of the device around the world. It was she who first introduced its mandatory use during court meals in 1072. The fork belonging to the princess was made of gold, the handle was made of ivory, and the decorations shimmered with mother-of-pearl and pearls.
The wife of the Roman emperor Theophana is also called the ancestor of the fork in Europe. She disdained eating with her hands and ordered the production of an unusual device for that time - a fork with two teeth. Unfortunately, the woman did not live long, which was perceived by the official church as God's punishment for using the “hellish” object.
Since the 17th century, the fork became firmly established among the Italian nobility. It already had the usual 4 teeth and a slight bend. In those distant times, such cutlery was considered an unprecedented luxury and was used exclusively at court by rich people and members of the royal court. Each guest present at the meal was required to bring personal utensils with them; there were no forks for guests.
The fork came to England only after 1600 thanks to the traveler Thomas Coryeth. She didn't earn Great love and popularity. On the contrary, the use of gold or silver cutlery was considered a sign of effeminacy and pampering. Forks were ridiculed and condemned in every possible way. The Church condemned their resemblance to a pitchfork, an instrument of the devil. Only in 1860 did England establish continuous production of instruments.
In Russia, the fork was recognized around 1600. Marina Mnishek brought her to the royal court, which incredibly surprised and shocked the representatives of the clergy and boyars. Around 1650, forks were already served during the royal meal for especially close nobility and honored guests.
The 19th century was marked by new developments in silverware. At this time, separate devices for fish, meat, snails, salads, lobsters, cheese, and side dishes appear. At the beginning of the 20th century, precious metals were replaced by more durable and hygienic stainless steel.
There are many interesting facts associated with the history of the origin and spread of the fork:
Until it became widespread, the fork was considered a luxury item; it was kept in treasuries and passed down from generation to generation. Queen Clementia of Hungary had a single gold fork, Charles V had several of them, the cutlery was decorated with scatterings precious stones. The favorite of the King of England, Peter Galveston, was the proud owner of three forks designed for eating fruit.
The fork used at the wedding feast by Maria Mnishek and False Dmitry I provoked a popular uprising. For Russian men, an unusual object was proof of the tsar’s foreign origin.
The orderly of Peter I always had with him a set of royal cutlery: a spoon, a knife and a fork. The king used them during dinners and promoted their spread among the nobility.
The aluminum fork, served in canteens, became a symbol of Soviet public catering and, in fact, weaned Russians off the widespread use of a spoon.
Monuments dedicated to the fork were installed in Springfield and New York, Vevey, Havana, Kyiv, Izhevsk.
Popular rumor associates signs and superstitions with the fork. A device that has fallen from the table promises uninvited guests, and presented as a gift - a quarrel.
There are many types of forks: from ordinary cutlery found in every home, to special devices for eating olives and fondue. Instructions and guidelines, designed specifically for food lovers.
Fork history January 31st, 2014
No trick against the fork
one hit - four holes!
Word fork(English fork) comes from the Latin “fulka”, which means garden fork. The fork, as a cutlery, was familiar to the ancient Greeks. At that time, forks were relatively large, had only two massive straight prongs and were used to distribute large chunks of meat among dishes. Another early mention of a fork can be found in the Old Testament, Samuel 2:13 (“When someone offered a sacrifice, a priestly boy, while the meat was boiling, came with a fork in his hand.”).
When in art gallery you admire old portraits noble beauties, it never occurs to you that these refined creatures at the banquet tables ate meat and fish with their hands. Back in the 16th-18th centuries, the rules of good manners prescribed not to take meat with all five fingers, especially with two hands, but only with three fingers; Do not wipe your fingers on your clothes, but rinse them in a special bowl of water...
At one time, in wealthy European homes, it was fashionable to eat with gloves to keep your hands clean. After lunch, the gloves stained with grease were thrown away. But forks already existed then...
The first forks were huge and had only one sharp tine, later - two. The ancient Romans used them to remove pieces of meat from a cauldron or brazier. These tools cannot yet be called forks in our understanding, since the noble patricians ate meat with their hands, along which fat flowed down to the elbows...
By the 7th century AD, in Asia Minor the fork had become a symbol of wealth and power and was used royal families during feasts. From the 10th century, forks spread to the territory of the Byzantine Empire, where similar cutlery was also used only by aristocrats. From there, in the 11th century, the fork was brought to Venice by a Byzantine princess who became the wife of the Doge.
However, in Italy the fork did not find use for a long time (more on this later) and only gained popularity by the 16th century. It is not difficult to guess that in the rest of Europe this necessary cutlery appeared only at the end of the 16th century. And it spread only by the 18th.
However, there is evidence that the fork was born in 1072 in Byzantium in the city of Constantinople in the imperial palace.
It was made in one copy from gold, and its handle was decorated with mother-of-pearl inlay on ivory. This fork was intended for the Byzantine princess Maria of Iveron, who can be considered the inventor of the fork. Considering it humiliating to eat with her hands, she came up with it herself. At that time, a fork was made with two straight teeth, with the help of which it was possible only to string, and not scoop up food. Initially, it was rather a kind of indicator of the monarch’s prestige, and not at all a cutlery. It was considered more convenient to eat with your hands or a spoon. In the 14th century, the French queen Jeanne d'Herve had only one fork. She kept it in a case.
The spoon and fork were practically banished from France until the 16th century and came into use only in the 18th century.
Today we take the fork for granted. In addition, no one has yet canceled the ease of use of it. Why then did the fork so slowly make its way to our table?
The fact is that, despite the fact that, as we remember, in Greece, meat was laid out on dishes with a fork, it was customary to eat with your hands. They also ate it in Ancient Rome. This habit was so firmly rooted in the hearts of people that it was very difficult to dislodge it. With the beginning of the spread of Christianity, the position of the fork only weakened: the fact is that by preaching monotheism, Christians naturally waged a “war” against the pantheons of gods of Rome, Greece, Egypt... It was decided that since only God and the Devil exist, then all the old gods were recorded as demons - minions of the Devil, who have power over individual elements of nature, and thus confuse the minds of people with their imaginary power. Accordingly, much of what had to do with the ancient gods was declared prohibited - including the fork: the trident of Poseidon. In addition, the pitchfork was also assigned an unseemly role: the persistent expression “Devil's Pitchfork” is still preserved.
Thus, unlike the “eastern barbarians,” all “enlightened Europeans” until the 16th century ate mainly with their hands, or at worst with a knife. When the fork appeared in England, it was simply ridiculed. “Why do we need a fork, if the Lord himself gave us hands,” approximately the same sentiment reigned throughout Europe at that time. So the path to recognition of the fork was very thorny.
Now let's talk about why it is customary to place the fork with the tines down when setting the table. There are several theories on this subject: according to the first of them, one day during a feast, King George 5th was upset about something and, in a fit of anger, slammed his fist hard on the table... As a result, the monarch’s hand fell on the teeth of the fork, and his mood deteriorated even more .
According to another version, since the fork for a long time was a luxury item, the nobility often boasted of the fame of the master who made this or that piece of utensils. Since the brand and engraving were applied to reverse side, then the fork was placed so that from afar one could see its origin.
According to the third version, which is again associated with the English royal court, there was a tradition of cutting off all the corners of the sandwich served with tea. And so that God forbid the monarch should suspect hostility towards himself, the fork was held only with the teeth down. For the same reason, the knife was placed with the blade inward towards the plate, so that the presence of such a dangerous object on the table would not look like a threat.
Another interesting point, modern European tradition involves holding the fork with the tines down while eating. Americans, on the contrary, prefer to use it with the teeth facing up. This feature was played out in several films, where American spies were exposed only because they ate with a fork, as is customary in their homeland. So, if you are an enemy agent, take the trouble to learn the traditions of the local population.
The fork was brought to Russia from Poland in 1606 by False Dmitry I in the luggage of Marina Mniszech and was demonstratively used during a feast in the Faceted Chamber of the Kremlin on the occasion of the marriage of False Dmitry to Marina. This caused an explosion of indignation among the boyars and clergy, and served as one of the reasons for the preparation of Shuisky’s conspiracy. As they say, the fork failed. It became a compelling argument proving to the common people non-Russian origin of False Dmitry.
Traditionally, misfortune was associated with signs involving a fork - dropping a fork was considered the eve of misfortune, a bad omen. They spoke disapprovingly of the fork, as evidenced by the proverb: “A spoon is like a net, but a fork is like a fish,” that is, you cannot scoop up anything.
Russia has kept pace with the historical process when it comes to forks. Even under Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, as one European wrote in travel essays, “at dinner, spoons and bread were placed on the table for each guest, and a plate, knife and fork were only for honored guests.”
Alexei Mikhailovich's son Peter the Great also contributed to the history of the fork in Rus'. Not without his help, the Russian aristocracy recognized the fork in the 18th century. In the publication “Russian Antiquity” for 1824 there is information about how the table was set for Peter I: “A wooden spoon seasoned with ivory, a knife and fork with green bone handles were always placed at his cutlery, and the orderly on duty was required to carry them with you and put it in front of the king, even if he happened to dine at a party.” Apparently, Peter was not sure that even in the “best houses” he would be given the entire set of cutlery.
Modern tables are served with utensils, among which there may be a dozen types of forks: regular and snack forks, for meat, fish, side dishes, two-pronged - large and smaller, used for cutting meat fibers, special for cutting lobsters, a fork complete with a knife for oysters, forks in combination with spatulas - for asparagus... All of them are of recent origin: XIX - early XX centuries. Books have been written on how to distinguish them and how to use them. And this is a separate conversation...
In the 19th century was invented new way gilding and silvering of metals - galvanoplasty. The Christofle company (France) bought a patent for his invention from the author of the method, Count de Ruolz, and began using electroplating in the production of cutlery. And from that time on, a huge number of different forks, knives, spoons, spatulas and other beautiful, and most importantly functional tableware items began to be developed and produced.
Today, in the production of cutlery, the main material is 18/10 steel. This is the most durable and durable material, used even in medicine. 18/10 steel serves as the basis for products with silver or gold plating.
Good spoons and forks should have a thickness of at least 2.5 mm (measured at the end of the handle). There shouldn't be any sharp corners, for example, between the tines of forks. Everything should be smooth and fluid. In addition, an expensive fork can be immediately recognized by the presence of grooves at the base of the teeth, so that food is washed out more easily.
Despite all the variety of forks currently manufactured, there are certain types, the purpose and method of use of which are defined:
Lemon fork - for arranging lemon slices. Has two sharp teeth.
Double-horned fork - for serving herring.
A fork for sprat with a wide base in the form of a spatula and five teeth, to prevent deformation of the fish, connected at the ends by a bridge. Designed for transferring canned fish.
Crab, crayfish, shrimp cutlery (knife, fork) is used when consuming crabs, crayfish and shrimp. The fork is long with two prongs at the end.
Fork for oysters, mussels and cold fish cocktails - one of the three prongs (left) is more powerful for easily separating the pulp of oysters and mussels from the shells.
Lobster needle - for eating lobster.
Chill fork - for hot fish appetizers. It has three teeth, shorter and wider than the dessert one.
