Research Catalog

Title

Chocolate : a cultural encyclopedia / Ross F. Collins.

Author

Collins, Ross F.

Publication

Santa Barbara, California : ABC-CLIO, [2022]

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

xxi, 422 pages : illustrations, portraits; 26 cm

Summary

• "Probably no food in history has become as enrobed into world culture as chocolate. Its mythical beginnings tell a tale of ancient empires and great kings. The mysterious Olmecs, the mighty Maya; both civilizations grew to tower over Central America, and then fall into ruin, long before the rest of the world knew they existed. The Aztecs had taken power by the time of Columbus. Early Spanish explorers were dumbfounded to discover an entire culture underpinned by an almond-shaped bean natives called xocolatl. The food was part of Aztec weddings, funerals, harvests and human sacrifice. It was a form of currency. It was a drink of the gods, and a drink of an emperor who, purportedly, relied on it for potency during visits to his mistresses. This was probably not literally true. And yet it was mythically true, in the sense that it became the first of a series of fables and tales, usually fascinating, sometimes lurid, often fanciful, that have for centuries surrounded the lore of chocolate"--
• "No food in the world can offer as storied a history as chocolate. Chocolate: A Cultural Encyclopedia focuses on cocoa's history from ancient Mesoamerican beginnings as a symbol of ritual, life, and death, to its omnipresence in Europe, North America, and the rest of the world. In 10 thematic chapters covering chocolate in society and culture, 80 shorter entries, recipes, and a comprehensive timeline, this new book takes a closer look at how chocolate has served as a medicine, an indulgence, a symbol of decadence, a door to romance, a tempting taboo, a means of survival, and a snack for children and adults alike.Why did popes and kings so fear their chocolate? Who invented milk chocolate, and why was its formula kept secret? Why did soldiers in World War II despise their chocolate rations? Who makes the most chocolate today? Find out the answers to these questions and more as this book tells you everything you wanted to know-and a lot you didn't even know existed-about the seed from the world's favorite fruit tree"--

Subjects

• Informational works
• Reference works
• Encyclopedias
• Chocolate > Social aspects > Encyclopedias
• Chocolate > Encyclopedias

Genre/Form

• Encyclopedias.
• Reference works.
• Informational works.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

Introduction -- Chocolate chronology -- Essays. Natural history of cacao ; Chocolate conquers the world ; Sweet history : chocolate and health ; Bitter history : slaving for chocolate ; The spirit of chocolate : myth and religion / Karl Bakkum ; Putting the sweet in popular culture : chocolate and the arts / Michael J. Stein ; Politics, exploration and military : cocoa for king and country ; Preparation : rituals, recipes and poisons ; Processing cacao ; Chocolate for profit : the business of cacao -- Chocolate-based recipes / Dotty Curry -- Chocolate entries : A to Z.

Call Number

TP640

ISBN

• 9781440876073
• 144087607X
• 9781440876080 (canceled/invalid)

LCCN

2021058133

OCLC

1290246459

Author

Collins, Ross F., author.

Title

Chocolate : a cultural encyclopedia / Ross F. Collins.

Publisher

Santa Barbara, California : ABC-CLIO, [2022]

Type of Content

text

still image

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Local Note

AUTH: NORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIV.

Other Form:

Online version: Collins, Ross F. Chocolate. Santa Barbara, California : ABC-CLIO, [2022] 9781440876080 (DLC) 2021058134

Research Call Number

*R-RMRR TP640 .C675 2022