Power of Peasant Consumers - The Material Culture of Food in the Late Medieval Kingdom of Valencia

The long-held view of the peasantry as a passive social group has gradually been replaced by a positive narrative that stresses peasant agency in economic, social, and even political terms. Contributing to this shift, Luis Almenar Fernández explores the objects that peasants used to store, cook, and serve their food in late medieval Valencia. Drawing on a range of archival, visual, material, and literary evidence from c. 1280 to c. 1460, the book examines the materiality of food to shed light on the consumer behaviour of agriculturalists during pivotal economic, social, and material transformation. It builds on discussions about changes in living standards, consumption patterns, and material culture in pre-industrial European societies. The materiality of food improved significantly among Valencian peasants during this period. This phenomenon had widespread implications for the economy and underpinned the development of new industries, contributing to the economic growth of this prominent Mediterranean polity.

List of contents

Money and measures; Acknowledgements; Abbreviations; 1. Introduction; Part I. Material Culture: 2. Peasant homes, meals, and times; 3. Storage; 4. Cuisine and cooking techniques; 5. Eating and drinking; Part II. Consumption: 6. Exploring inventories quantitatively; 7. Specialisation and diversification; 8. The revolution in semidurable goods; 9. Regional traditions in the material culture of food; 10. Peasant and 'non-peasant' consumption: the role of occupation, place of residence, and gender; Part III. Standards of Living; 11. Peasant incomes; 12. Prices of food-related objects; 13. Expenditure on consumption; 14. Inequality and consumption; Part IV. The Logic of Peasant Consumer Behaviour: 15. Emulation and assimilation; 16. Conclusion.

About the author

Luis Almenar Fernández is Assistant Professor at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He studies consumption patterns, material culture, and living standards in late medieval Iberia. He is co-editor of the book Objetos Cotidianos en la Corona de Aragón durante la Baja Edad Media (2025).

Product details

• Authors: Luis (Universidad Complutense Almenar Fernandez, Luis (University of Valencia) Almenar Fernandez, Luis Almenar Fernández
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press ELT
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 31.12.2025
• EAN: 9781009602440
• ISBN: 978-1-0-0960244-0
• No. of pages: 376
• Series: Cambridge Studies in Medieval Life and Thought: Fourth Series
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History; European History, Spain, HISTORY / Europe / General, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS / Economic History, Anthropology, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / General, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Archaeology, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, Economic history, Medieval History, Archaeology, c 1000 CE to c 1500, Early 15th century c 1400 to c 1450, Early history: c 500 to c 1450/1500, 14th century, c 1300 to c 1399, European history: medieval period, middle ages, HISTORY / Europe / Medieval, Cultural studies: food and society, Valencian Community, HISTORY / Europe / Spain