Webb, Margaret

[CULINARY MANUSCRIPT] Household Recipe, Remedy, and Garden Book

England/London: c.1795-1850s. Hardcover. 170 pages. 21 x 17 cm. A richly detailed handwritten household manuscript offering a glimpse into domestic life across several generations. The volume appears to have been compiled by at least three distinct hands, reflecting contributions from various family members or household caretakers. It opens with an inventory of fruit trees and their sources, followed by an extensive list of grape varieties and their suppliers, including “St. Peter Grape from Lord Herford,” “Nice Grape from Lord Middleton,” and “White Muscat of Alexandria from Mr. Dew.”
The culinary section features an engaging range of recipes such as Walnut and Mushroom Catchup, Fish Sauce “to keep seven years,” Oxford Sausage, Green Pea Soup, Bride Cake, To Barrell Cherries, Mock Turtle, and numerous preserves—including Apricot, Damson, Barberry, and Gooseberry. Beverage recipes abound, among them Ginger Beer (in multiple variations), Cowslip Wine, Raisin Wine, Clary Wine, Meat Wine, Hopy Beer, White Elder Wine, and Apple Wine, with recommendations for purchasing wine on Skinner Street, London.
Remedies are directed toward ailments such as whooping cough, fever, shortness of breath, burns, consumption, bee stings, and cholera, with reference to a “Medicinal Warehouse, No. 6 Catherine Street, Strand, London.” Practical household notes include “A Receipt to Drive Away Rats” (using the Dog’s Tongue plant), “To Remove Grease Spots from Printed Books,” “Fumigation of a Sick Room,” “Making Milk White Paint,” and “Polish for Mahogany Tables.”
Rebound in the mid-19th century for preservation, in pebble-grained roan with a gilt-stamped spine, glazed and marbled endpapers. A well-preserved example of domestic manuscript tradition in England. Thick laid paper - no watermark. Mid 19th century pebble grained roan; gilt stamped spine, glazed, marbled endpapers. Very good. Item #4704

Sold