Santich/Original Mediterranean, 3. The Hierarchy of Food

Like clothing, food carried a powerful message; symbolic values were vested in ingredients, methods of preparation, garnishes and embellishments. Parallel to the social hierarchy was a hierarchy of foods, cooking methods, condiments and garnishes. What guests were given to eat and drink, how much of it and what kind, was as clear an indication of their exact place in the hierarchy as their distance from the host and his table. When Pope Jean XXII entertained visiting church dignitaries at Avignon, he offered them fresh pike, transported all the way down the Rhône from Lyons or further north – a voyage that doubled their value, both real and symbolic.