Food is culture

B.IN.G.  at the World Cookbook Awards in Beijing

The Fondation B.IN.G. Bibliothèque Internationale de Gastronomie

The Fondation B.IN.G. Bibliothèque Internationale de Gastronomie of Lugano (Switzerland) arose out of the enthusiasm of a group of scholars and of devotees of gastronomic culture in 1992, brought together through the initiative and drive of Orazio Bagnasco. The various collections gathered in the B.IN.G. form a library of about 4000 books, printed and in manuscripts, in Italian, Latin, French, German, English, Spanish, Portuguese, Swedish, produced in the period stretching from the XIV century to the end of the XIX century. There are some important documents of Russian, Japanese, Chinese and Dutch culture too. In B.IN.G. gastronomy is understood in a wide and detailed sense as to include texts on diet, medicine, agronomy, etiquette, history of foodstuffs, as also recipe books, books on the representation of festivals, banquets. All documents produce interesting perceptions of food in a broad cultural perspective. Food is intended as a new way to study the history of human civilization. Gastronomy is a rich history of ingredients, techniques, cultivations and social customs in the centuries and the culinary arts in general have finally been accepted as legitimate academic subjects. In this context the treasures in B.IN.G. show how food, once a practical necessity, has evolved into an indicator of social standing and religious and political identity. The Fondation B.IN.G. tries to transmit to the future the traditions of the past, the culinary heritage necessary to understand better the present day. The Fondation is obviously non-profit-making and its purpose is to guarantee the conservation, cataloguing and amplification of the bibliographical heritage, which through an attentive and serious policy of acquisition has gradually been formed over the years, and all this valuable material is made available to scholars. The library B.IN.G. covers the immense history of the table troughout the world, with a particular focus on the history of the Italian eating tradition, exploring ingredients and recipes within an economic and topographical context. The collection focuses on culinary developments in the late medieval, Renaissance and Baroque eras, touching on the spice trade, dietary rules, table etiquette and the first agrarian societies. It shows how Italy’s culinary identities emerged over the course of the centuries through an exchange of information and techniques among geographical regions and social classes. The B.IN.G. boasts of some of the most interesting manuscripts on the subject, such as a splendidy illustrated Tacuinum Sanitatis from the XV century, an exemplar still unknown to scholars; a Libreto de tutte le cosse che de magnano, also from the XV century, an interesting example of a presentation copy from its author, Giovanni Michele Savonarola, to the dedicatee, Borso d’Este; the Taiare de cortello by M. Chalesino, a XV century manuscript, the only manual in Italian of “carving knives” before the era of printed books; and various medieval recipe books such as that by the Anonimo Meridionale, a XIV-XV century manuscript, and the Registrum coquina by Johann de Bockenheim, cook to Pope Martino V, a XV century manuscript. Among the outstanding printed books is the unique XV century exemplar containing the Ordine de le imbandisone, a description of the marriage feast of Isabella of Aragon and Gian Galeazzo Sforza; numerous editions of Platina, among which the incunable of the first edition (1475), containing an interesting contemporary manuscript note which cites, for the one and only time, the patronymic Rubro Comensi of the celebrated cook Maestro Martino. B.IN.G. testifies the diversity of human cultures across the centuries. Exploring culinary evolution and eating habits in a cornucopia of cultures, this foundation offers a rich banquet for scholars. Culinary customs offer great insight into societies of the past and of the present, from agriculture to social life, from religious beliefs to our habits. Every act of our life is a cultural act connected to the food. Food is joy and pleasure. The language of food is a universal language, which permits to establish wonderful and boundless relationships. “Tell me what you eat, and I’ll tell you who you are,” wrote Brillat-Savarin in 1825, and it’s still valid today.

From “The Gourmand Yearbook 2007”