Secrets of Ancient Romans revealed by fast food find
Archaeologists analysing a trash pit in the ancient Spanish city of Pollentia (Mallorca) found evidence suggesting that commoners in the Roman Empire frequently consumed cheap fried songbirds at roadside fast-food shops.
The study, published in the International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, analysed animal bones from a cesspit dating between the first century BC and the first century AD.
Researchers found that these fast-food joints, known as popinae and tabernae, served fried small thrushes. More than 165 thrush bones were found in the pit.
The discovery challenges the previously held belief that songbirds were exclusively a luxury dish for the wealthy.
Evidence indicates that food shops followed a standardised approach to preparing the birds, removing the sternum to flatten them for rapid cooking in oil.
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