Revisiting Quince: A Medieval Fruit with Modern Flavor

 

Revisiting Quince: History, Recipes, and Rediscovery

What it is, why it matters, and how to cook with it today—plus links to historical quince recipes!

I. Introduction

In 2014, we explored quince for the first time on this blog. The Kitchen Adventures - Working with Quince, was one of the first articles I published.  Now, with years of experimentation behind us and a growing archive of recipes, we're returning to this fragrant fruit to dig deeper into its history, flavor, and role in historical cuisine.

Quince is a fruit both ancient and enigmatic—celebrated in antiquity, prized in the medieval kitchen, and curiously underused today. Its transformation through cooking is nothing short of alchemy: from rock-hard and mouth-puckering to melting, fragrant, and complex. This article revives quince in all its golden glory—offering techniques, tips, and historical insight to make it relevant for your table again.

II. What Is Quince?

Quince (Cydonia oblonga) is a member of the Rosaceae family, which includes apples, pears, and roses. Though too astringent to eat raw, quince undergoes a remarkable transformation when cooked—its firm flesh softens, its pale color deepens into a rosy amber, and its aroma fills the kitchen with a delicate perfume. Often considered the forgotten cousin of the apple, quince is nuanced, elegant, and quietly captivating.

III. A Long History of Love

Quince has charmed cultures for centuries. Dioscorides praised it in the first century, and it appeared frequently in medieval and Renaissance manuscripts in various forms: poached in honey, preserved with vinegar and spices, or simmered into thick, rich pastes. Known to the Greeks as the "Cydonian apple," quince was later featured in English recipes as chardequynce or quynade—early iterations of modern fruit jellies and marmalades.

Quince in Classical Medicine and Lore

Quinces were praised by herbalists and physicians across antiquity and the Middle Ages. Dioscorides recommended placing peeled quinces in a jar filled with honey, where they would soften into a medicinal treat over the course of a year—this method, called melomeli, was said to settle the stomach.

The Greeks called them kythoni, and Roman authors like Galen categorized quinces as cold and dry in nature. In medieval herbals like Henry Lyte’s 1578 translation of A Nievve Herball, quinces were described in detail: they could "stop the laske," soothe dysentery, prevent headaches from "vapors," and even ensure wise children if eaten during pregnancy.

Dodoens noted two varieties—apple and pear quinces—with the pear-shaped being larger. He described the scent as so fragrant that once the downy skin was removed, they appeared “as yellow as gold.”

Preservation Through Time: From Melomeli to Marmalade

Long before the term “marmalade” came to mean citrus jam, preserved quince was the original treat. Various names and techniques survive in recipes from the 1st to 16th centuries:

• Melomeli: Quince aged in honey for a year, per Dioscorides (1st c.).
• Cidonitum: A Roman and Byzantine jelly with vinegar, honey, ginger, and pepper.
• Chardequynce: A late medieval spiced paste of quince, honey, and ginger—eventually giving way to early marmalades and membrillo.

How to Make Chardequynce (Medieval Quince Paste)

Chardequynce was once served alongside cheese, meats, or at the close of a feast. It's made from cooked quince purée, honey, and warming spices—sometimes including eringo root (sea holly), considered an aphrodisiac in humoral medicine.

Teaser recipe: Simmer peeled, quartered quince until soft. Mash, strain, and cook with honey until thick enough to hold a furrow when stirred. Add ground ginger and (optionally) eringo. Spread into pans to dry. For full instructions, see: Of Quince, Its Nature and Virtues.

📜 Printable Recipe: Chardequynce (Medieval Quince Paste)

Yield: 1 tray of sliced quince paste (stores indefinitely)

Ingredients:

• 1 lb quince – peeled, quartered, seeds removed
• 12 oz honey (or sugar)
• 2¼ tsp chopped ginger
• 1½ tbsp ground ginger
• ¼ lb eringo root powder (optional)

Instructions:

1. Place quince pieces in a pot with just enough water to cover. Simmer until soft.
2. Strain and mash or purée fruit. (Save cooking water, seeds, and peels for jelly.)
3. Return pulp to pot. Stir in honey and cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until thickened—about 45 minutes.
4. Optional: Stir off heat until the paste lightens in color.
5. Mix in chopped ginger, ground ginger, and optional eringo root powder.
6. Spread onto a parchment-lined tray or pan and allow to dry in a cool place for 3–4 weeks.
7. Slice and serve with cheese or as part of a final course.

Note: If you can't find eringo root, substitute with an additional teaspoon of fresh ginger or a few teaspoons of chopped candied angelica or fennel for a similar effect. Or simply omit—it will still taste delicious.

Historical Note: Based on 16th c. English and earlier Greek/Byzantine quince paste traditions. Traditionally stored in wooden boxes or wrapped in oiled paper.

Enhancing and Using Quince in Modern Cooking

Quince is a fragrant, complex fruit that transforms dramatically when cooked. Though it's traditionally used in jams and pastes, quince can shine in a wide variety of savory and sweet applications—when treated with the proper techniques.

Best Cooking Techniques to Enhance Quince Flavor

1. Poaching (Slow Simmering)
   Simmer peeled, sliced quince in water, sugar, and optional aromatics for 1–2 hours.
   Result: Tender, floral, honeyed slices of fruit with a silky texture.
2. Roasting
   Slice and roast quince with honey or butter at 375°F (190°C) for 45–60 minutes.
   Result: Caramelized, aromatic fruit perfect for savory pairings.
3. Braising
   Add to braised meat dishes during the final hour.
   Result: Quince soaks up savory juices and lends fragrance to the dish.
4. Pickling
   Briefly simmer in vinegar brine; chill before using.
   Result: Tart, firm quince for salads or cheese boards.

Modern Applications Beyond Sweets

• Cheese Boards: Pair membrillo with Manchego or blue cheese.
• Glazes & Sauces: Reduce quince poaching syrup for pork or duck.
• Salads & Slaws: Use pickled quince in bitter greens and mustard dressings.
• Grain Bowls: Mix roasted quince into farro, lentils, or barley with herbs.
• Tagines: Add quince to North African stews with lamb, saffron, and cinnamon.

Excellent Pairings to Showcase Quince's Unique Flavor

• Cheese: Manchego, Comté, Gorgonzola, Goat Cheese
• Meat: Duck, Pork, Lamb, Game Meats
• Spices: Cardamom, Cinnamon, Ginger, Star Anise, Saffron
• Fruits/Veg: Apples, Pears, Citrus, Beets, Carrots

Want to make your own?
You can download and print our free recipe card for Chardequynce—a spiced quince paste from the 16th century. Made with honey, ginger, and (optionally) eringo root, it keeps beautifully and pairs with cheese or roasted meats.

More Historic Quince Recipes:

• Quince-Infused Marzipan
• Apples Stewed with Quince and Pignoli Nuts
• Quynade (almond milk cheese flavored with quince)
• Quidinia (Quince Jelly)
• Of Quince: Its Nature and Virtues

Resources & Historical Notes

Primary Sources

• Dioscorides – De Materia Medica
• Harleian MS. 279
• Rembert Dodoens – A Nievve Herball (1578, trans. Henry Lyte)

Reference Texts

• Hieatt, C.B. – The Culinary Recipes of Medieval England
• Wilson, C. – The Book of Marmalade
• Austin, T. – Two Fifteenth-Century Cookery Books

Want More?

Explore more historical recipes and culinary lore under these tags:
Fruit | Confections and Dessert | Jellies and Gelatin

Gelo in bocconcini di piu colori piatti - Jelly in small bites, of many colors - Scappi

Gello Among the Roasts: A Sweet Surprise at 12th Night By Yonnie Travis, Culinary Historian and Historical Food Blogger at Give It Forth 

Yule log with a golden egg that when cracked open poured out a wealth of golden coins with gryphons on them.

As a culinary historian specializing in medieval and Renaissance foodways, I bring historical jelly dessert recipes from manuscripts to modern tables. At the 12th Night 2024 feast, one such showpiece made its dramatic return—a shimmering, layered jelly known in the kitchen as "gello." This dish paid tribute to a Renaissance feast jelly dish found in Scappi's Opera and Romoli's banquet menus. This post examines the 16th-century gelatin preparation and its cultural significance. It offers a modern version of Scappi's gelatin recipe for you to try at home.

Historical Context: Jelly as Prestige in Renaissance Banquets

To understand why jelly appeared mid-feast, we must look at the structure of Renaissance menus—particularly those outlined in Romoli's La Singolare Dottrina. His January banquet is a masterclass in culinary pacing: it opens with bread and sugared pastries, flows into savory pasta, braised vegetables, and roasted meats, and interlaces confections and jellies throughout. Each phase of the meal is carefully balanced—sweet beside salty, cold beside hot—often with overlapping sensory contrasts on the same plate.

Romoli organized his menus into over ten structured services, including antipasti, allesso (boiled meats), arrosto sottile (delicate roasts), arrosto grosso (larger roasts), torte, and frutte stufate (stewed fruits). Each course reflected a deliberate visual, humoral, and seasonal logic. Rather than isolating dishes by flavor profile, he arranged them to follow a rhythm of richness and relief. This approach created striking moments—such as serving jelly alongside roast game or poultry—not as a dessert but as a cooling, spiced counterpoint. English and French feasts of the same era also adopted this multi-layered service style.

The preparation of Renaissance jellies involved tools and techniques that differ significantly from modern convenience methods. Cooks relied on collagen extracted by slow-boiling the feet of calves, wethers, or lambs. This process took hours and required precise timing. They clarified the resulting broth with egg whites and filtered it repeatedly through spice bags made from muslin or linen. Specialized copper or ceramic pots helped regulate temperature, while ornate molds or even hollowed eggshells shaped the final presentation. This method demanded not just labor but culinary judgment, as no pre-measured gelatin powder ensured success.

In Renaissance cuisine, jelly wasn't an afterthought—it was an edible spectacle. Found amidst roast courses, molded jellies represented Renaissance edible art and embodied the culinary hierarchy of the time. They required rare ingredients (such as spices, wine, and sugar), gelatin-rich bones, and hours of labor-intensive clarification. These elaborate creations symbolized refinement and control over nature, appearing in both Italian and English feast menus as palate cleansers and visual centerpieces.

The growing accessibility of ingredients like sugar and spices during the 16th century helped elevate jelly dishes from medicinal curiosities to prestigious banquet fare. As European trade with Asia, the Middle East, and the New World expanded, elite kitchens gained increased access to cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and pepper—ingredients that enhanced the flavor, aroma, and perceived sophistication of jellies. Sugar, in particular, shifted from a rare pharmaceutical ingredient to a hallmark of wealth. Dishes like jelly allowed hosts to signal economic power and global reach through taste and spectacle.

Bartolomeo Scappi articulates this concept in his Opera (1570), where he presents detailed instructions for constructing layered jellies composed of alternating colors, spices, and almond milk dividers. Likewise, Domenico Romoli, in La Singolare Dottrina (1560), integrates jelly into the arrosto course by pairing it with roasted wild boar cheeks, thereby demonstrating the culinary rationale for employing sweet jellies to moderate the heat and richness of roasted meats.

The Arrosto Course on the 12th Night of 2024 - Areinterpretation of Romoli's January menu included:

• Carré di costolette di manzo – Spit-roasted rack of beef ribs (we substituted brisket)
• Cipolle brasate in quaresima – Braised whole onions, Lent-style
• Salsa di noci e aglio – Walnut and garlic sauce
• Salsa di mostardo amabile – Sweet mustard sauce
• Minestre di zucche Turchesche – Turkish squash
• Tortelletti d’herba alla Lombarda – Lombard-style herb tortellini
• Gelo in bocconcini di più colori – Jelly in small bites, of many colors (the centerpiece!)

Original Italian (Scappi, Opera, 1570)

Scappi’s Cap. CCXLI – “Per fare gelo in bocconi di più colori”

Per fare gelo in bocconi di più colori. Cap. CCXLI.

Piglia piedi di castrato, & di vitella, & se fora del mese d’Aprile, o di Maggio, in loco de quelli di castrato pigliar quelli d’agnello, nettandoli del pelo, & d’ungnie, & cavandone l’osso; lavisi in più acque, & mettanosi a bollire in un pignattone di rame con tanto vino bianco, & acqua che gli stia sopra; schiumi spesso, & facciasi bollire tanto, quanto sarà giusto, acciocché il decotto che se n’hà da formare faccia buona gelatina. Se vogliono accrescergli di bontà, & arte faccian bollire con detti piedi colli di castrato, o vitella, o d’agnello ben netti. Quando detto decotto fia cotto al giusto, cavinsi detti piedi, cavandone la midolla, & passisi per stamegna. Levandone ogni grasso, mettasi in una pignatta con tre ottavi di aceto forte ben chiaro, due libre di zucchero, sei albumi d’ova fresche battute. Facciasi bollire. Quando sarà prossimo a levarsi da fuoco, mettasi in una sacca di panno lino con pepe grosso, cannella, noce moscata, zenzevero, & altri aromati, se piace, & così colisi più volte, acciò sia ben chiaro. Quando detto gelo sarà colato, & schiarito, pongasi in vasi di vetro, o di terra, o in scorze d’ova, facendo li colori a parte. Se si vuole mettere un colore sopra l’altro, aspettisi che l’uno raffreddi, & rassodi prima di mettervi l’altro sopra. Fra uno, & l’altro colore si può mettere gelatina bianca fatta con latte di mandorle. Si può ancora fare con detti colori alcuni modi di frutti in forma, & piante, & animali in forme di cera, o stagno. Pongansi in luogo fresco, & si manterranno.

English Translation:

To make jelly in bites of many colors. Chapter CCXLI.

Take the feet of a wether and a calf; if it is not the month of April or May, substitute lamb’s feet for the wether’s. Clean them of hair and hooves, remove the bones, and wash in several waters. Boil them in a large copper pot with enough white wine and water to cover them. Skim frequently, and boil until the broth reduces to the appropriate level, forming a good jelly. For added flavor and refinement, you may boil clean necks of wether, calf, or lamb along with the feet.

When the broth is ready, remove the feet and extract the marrow. Strain the liquid through a cloth (stamegna), removing all the fat. Place it in a pot with three-quarters of strong clear vinegar, two pounds of sugar, and six beaten egg whites. Bring it to a boil.

When it is almost ready to remove from heat, pour it through a linen bag containing whole pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and any other desired aromatics. Strain it several times until very clear.

Once filtered and clarified, pour the jelly into glass or earthenware containers—or into eggshells. Make each color separately. If you want to stack one color atop another, allow the previous layer to cool and set before adding the next. Between colored layers, you may add white jelly made with almond milk.

🦚 Curious about the full feast?
Explore the complete menu from the Flaming Gryphon 12th Night Feast 2024 to see all the dishes and historical inspirations behind this event.

You may also shape colored jellies into forms of fruits, plants, or animals using wax or tin molds. Store in a cool place and they will keep well.

Early modern cooks employed this historical jelly recipe to layer color, spice, and visual complexity into a refined banquet offering. By gelatinizing richly seasoned broths, they transformed a functional preservation method into a performative culinary art. Within the framework of Renaissance banquet culture, such jellies signaled wealth, aesthetic discernment, and mastery of technique. Their cooling properties, often accentuated by ingredients like almond milk or vinegar, also reflected humoral principles—tempering the heat and dryness of roasted meats to restore bodily balance.

Scappi Gelatin Recipe Modern Version 

Prep Time: 20 minutes active, 4–6 hours chilling time

Yields: One 9" mold or several smaller servings

📥 Download the Recipe Card
Support historical cooking projects like this one and get a downloadable DOCX file with the original 1570 Italian, translation, and modern version.
👉 Available now on Ko-fi – pay what you wish, or $3 suggested.

Ingredients 

6 cups clear stock (vegetable for vegetarian) 

2 cups white wine (or lemon juice) 

Juice of 1 lemon (or vinegar) 

1/2 tsp ground mace 

1/2 fresh ginger root, sliced 

1 lb granulated sugar 

1 tbsp rosewater 

4 tbsp powdered gelatin (or agar for vegan)

Yellow Variation: Add a pinch of saffron

Red Variation: Use red wine instead of white; infuse with two whole nutmegs and two cinnamon sticks

Step-by-Step Instructions: How to Make Renaissance Jelly

Simmer base: Combine stock, wine, sugar, and spices in a pot. Simmer until flavors meld.

Dissolve the gelatin: Stir it in after removing the pan from the heat and continue stirring until it has fully dissolved.

Strain: Use cheesecloth or fine sieve for clarity.

Layer 1 – Red: Pour the mixture into the mold and chill until it has set completely. 

Layer 2 – White: Mix almond milk with gelatin and rose water; pour over the red layer and chill.

Layer 3 – Yellow: Infuse base with saffron; pour and chill.

Unmold: Dip in warm water briefly to release jelly.

While modern cooks lack access to veal feet and 16th-century spice routes, they can still evoke the elegance and complexity of Renaissance jellies. Infusing broths or white wine with whole spices like cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg replicates the warming and aromatic profiles found in Scappi's recipes. Clarifying with egg whites, a technique still used in consommé preparation, offers both historical fidelity and visual clarity. Almond milk layers provide a subtle nod to humoral theory, while soft floral notes, such as rosewater, enhance historical authenticity. These adaptations prioritize flavor harmony and visual drama—just as the originals did.

Vegetarian or Vegan Adaptation

To make a Renaissance banquet jelly recipe vegetarian or vegan, substitute clear vegetable stock for the meat broth. Use agar-agar (1 tsp per cup liquid); boil to activate. For the white layers, blend almond milk with agar and rose water. Agar creates a firmer set than gelatin; reduce the amount slightly for a softer texture that mimics historical gelatin.

FAQ: Medieval Jelly Food History

Was jelly served with meat in the Renaissance? Yes. Scappi and Romoli describe serving jelly in roast courses, where it balances hot, rich meats with cool, spiced elegance.

What made jelly a prestige dish? It required costly ingredients—such as sugar, wine, and exotic spices—as well as time, skill, and precise presentation. It signified wealth and artistry.

How long did 16th-century gelatin preparation take? Up to 24 hours. Boiling bones, reducing broth, clarifying, and then molding took a full day or more—often split among kitchen staff.

What is the easiest way to try a Scappi jelly today? Follow the modern adaptation above using stock, wine, gelatin (or agar), and layering in molds. It's a faithful tribute to Scappi's gelo.

Sources & References

Romoli, Domenico. La Singolare Dottrina. Venice, 1560. Google Books

Scappi, Bartolomeo. Opera dell'arte del cucinare. Venice, 1570.

Scully, Terence. The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570). University of Toronto Press, 2008.

May, Robert. The Accomplisht Cook. London, 1660.

To assist the writing process, I used these Grammarly AI prompts: Prompts created by Grammarly

- "Identify any gaps"

Kitchen Adventures – Apples (Quince) stewed with pine nuts, rosewater and sugar - Chiquart / Domenico ((Italian) Mele cotogne, stufate pignoli con acqua rosa, & zuccaro)

 

Per fare la pizza di molti strati, comunemente freddi pasta secca a strati- To make pizza of many layers, commonly called a cold dry layered pastry. - Scappi & Mele cotogne, stufate pignoli con acqua rosa, & zuccaro - Apples (Quince) stewed with pine nuts, rosewater and sugar - Chiquart / Domenico prepared to be served.



Researching medieval cuisine is like stepping into a time machine. By reviving these historic recipes, we unearth culinary traditions that continue to surprise and inspire us today. One dish that stands out is Mele Cotogne, Stufate Pignoli con Acqua Rosa e Zuccaro—a unique blend of stewed Quince with pine nuts, rosewater, and sugar. This dish is mentioned in many of the menus provided by M. Domenico, yet it seems to have slipped through the cracks without specific written instructions.

Naturally, I had to take on the challenge to recreate this intriguing sounding dish which was prepared for our Baronial 12th Night Celebration in 2024. As mentioned in previous posts, the menu for the event was drawn from M. Domenico's "Singular Doctrine", and more specifically his "Banquet of the Month of January. I cannot stress enough how much I enjoyed researching and then recreating dishes that woul dhave been enjoyed during this time.

The Singular Doctrine of M. Domenico is a 16th-century Italian culinary text that presents elaborate monthly menus, daily meal plans for morning and evening, a listing of common foods of the time, and instructions on the best ways to prepare them. However, while the text includes detailed menu listings, many of the actual recipes are absent. One such example is Mele Cotogne, Stufate Pignoli con Acqua Rosa, & Zuccaro, which appears in numerous menus but is never explicitly written out. The omission of these instructions suggests that certain preparations were considered basic knowledge among cooks of the period. This absence hints that stewed quince was a well-established culinary staple, so familiar that formal documentation of its preparation was deemed unnecessary.

To bring this dish back to life, I turned to a similar medieval recipe—Chiquart's Spiced Apples and Pears from On Cookery (1420). Chiquart was a 15th-century master cook who served at the court of Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy. He is best known for his work Du fait de cuisine (On Cookery), written in 1420, which provides one of the most detailed accounts of medieval European culinary practices. His text includes elaborate feast preparations, ingredient lists, and cooking techniques, offering insight into the refined and sometimes extravagant cuisine of noble households. His emphasis on spice blends, slow-cooked fruits, and carefully balanced flavors makes his work a valuable resource for understanding medieval gastronomy. His approach is an exemplary foundation for reviving Mele Cotogne, Stufate Pignoli con Acqua Rosa e Zuccaro. 

Recipe: Mele Cotogne, Stufate Pignoli con Acqua Rosa e Zuccaro Serves 4 to 8 

Ingredients

2 tbsp. butter

4 tart green apples / or quinces

4 tsp. sugar 

2 tsp. pine nuts

2 tsp. raisins

1/4 cup quince preserves 

1 tsp. Duke's Powder, or Apple or Pumpking Pie spices

Instructions:

1.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Butter a baking dish that is large enough to hold your apples (or quinces). Cut your quinces or apples in half, and remove the core.  The opening should be approximately 1 inch wide. 

2. Mix pine nuts with the spices.  Spoon sugar, pine nuts and raisins into each hole filling the apple or quince, and top with a bit more butter.  Pour water or wine into the bottom of the baking dish.  Sprinkle around any additional sugar, spices around the fruit.  If using apples, supplement with a generous helping of the quince preserves. 

3. Bake the fruit until the fruit is easily pierced by a knife approximately 45 minutes.  Sprinkle with rosewater. 

Please Note: This dish can be served warm or room temperature. If made ahead, it will need to be heated enough to melt the butter. Also note, pine nuts can be toasted before being mixed with the spices, but I chose not to do this. 

Results: 

I made this dish using apples because I was unable to locate quinces at the time.  You could also substitute pears, or a mix of apples and pears.  This dish is magical!  Fragrant of roses, apples, quince, the warm spices, sweet from the sugar, and crunchy from the pine nuts.  Using quince jelly when no quince are available enhances the apples natural tartness, while incorporating the period flavor that the original recipe calls for.  If you wish to, use a sweet Italian dessert wine instead of water to further enhance the dish.  

Sources: 

Friedman, David D., translator. Du fait de cuisine. 15th century. The David D. Friedman Medieval and Renaissance Cookbook Collection, www.daviddfriedman.com/Medieval/Cookbooks/Du_Fait_de_Cuisine/Du_fait_de_Cuisine.html. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

Romo, Domenico. La Singolare Dottrina Di M. Domenico Romano: Trattato di cucina del '500. 1st ed., 2002. Google Books, books.google.com/books/about/La_Singolare_Dottrina_Di_M_Domenico_Romo.html?hl=it&id=FGFWAAAAcAAJ. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

🦚 Curious about the full feast?
Explore the complete menu from the Flaming Gryphon 12th Night Feast 2024 to see all the dishes and historical inspirations behind this event.

Kitchen Adventures – Cix.Gelye de chare &Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430) - Cx. Gelye de Fysshe (Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430))

These two particular recipes from "Two fifteenth-century cookery-books : Harleian MS. 279 (ab 1430), & Harl. MS. 4016 (ab. 1450), with extracts from Ashmole MS. 1439, Laud MS. 553, & Douce MS. 55" by  Thomas Austin could be mistaken for modern dishes known as "aspics".  An aspic is gelatine made from meat stock that is molded and include pieces of meat, fish or eggs. All aspics are gelatine, but not all gelatines are aspics.  The primary difference being the sweetness of the dish; aspics are savory, and gelatines are sweet, with medieval and rennaissance aspics falling somewhere in the middle of the two making them the precursor's to the fancy modern day dishes we know today. 

The oldest evidence of the making of gelatine can be found in the Nahal Hemar Cave near Mt. Sedom in Israel.  During the excavation it was discovered that numerous cave paintings,  baskets and utinsels contained collagen that was derived from animal skins. It was used as a glue to bind pigments found in cave paintings and to provide a waterproof barrier for baskets, cloth and other containers. It is theorized that the glue was obtained through boiling of animal hides. 

Hide glue and gelatin we eat are "the same thing".  If you are interested in trying to make a similar glue you can find instructions on the Practical Primitive website here (I would not advise eating it).  If you would like to learn more about the scientific/technical aspects of hide glue click here. 

Important Disclaimer: Knox Gelatine, which is what I used to prepare the gelye de chare in the past is -not- derived from the animal hide but is made from bones and therefore is not vegetarian.  

The Roman historian Pliny writes about "fish-glue", a process that produced a thin, honey like substance that when mixed with other items could be used to remove wrinkles and plump the skin.  The instructions he gives bear a closer resemblence to the instructions to make Gelye of Fleysshe. 

Fish-glue effaces wrinkles and plumps out the skin; being boiled for the purpose in water some four hours, and then pounded and kneaded up till it attains a thin consistency, like that of honey.  -- The Natural History of Pliny, Volume 6 of 6, by Pliny the Elder

The earliest recipes I was able to locate for making gelye dishes come from the 1300's.  The first being for fish from Enseignements qui enseingnent a apareillier toutes manieres de viandes (1300's).

If you want to make fish jelly, break the back of the fish and cut it into pieces, that is to say: carp and tench, bream and turbot, and put to cook in good, strong wine; Then take cinnamon, ginger, long pepper, galingale, lavender and a little saffron; Then grind and put all together; And when you strain it of the fire, then in take out the fish in a bowl and pour thereon; and if you see that it is too thick, then sieve it and let it cool until the morning, and by then take it likewise like jelly.

The second from 1381 for a meat jelly from MS Douce 257

For to make mete gelee þat it be wel chariaunt, tak wyte wyn & a perty of water & safroun & gode spicis & flesch of piggys or of hennys, or fresch fisch, & boyle þam togedere; & after, wan yt ys boylyd & cold, | dres yt in dischis & serue yt forþe. 

.Cix. Gelye de chare.—Take caluys fete, & skalde hem in fayre water, an make hem alle þe whyte. Also take howhys of [leaf 20.] Vele, & ley hem on water to soke out þe blode; þen take hem vppe, an lay hem on a fayre lynen cloþe, & lat þe water rennyn out of hem [supplied by ed.] ; þan Skore*. [Scour. ] a potte, & putte þe Fete & þe Howhys þer-on; þan take Whyte Wyne þat wolle hold coloure, & cast þer-to a porcyon, an non oþer lycoure, þat þe Fleysshe be ouer-wewyd*. [See other Cookery, No. 174, wese. ] withalle, & sette it on þe fyre, & boyle it, & Skeme it clene; an whan it is tendyr & boylid y-now, take vppe þe Fleyshe in-to a fayre bolle, & saue þe lycoure wyl; & loke þat þow haue fayre sydys of Pyggys, & fayre smal Chykenys wyl & clene skladdyd & drawe, & lat þe leggys an þe fete on, an waysshe hem in fayre water, & caste hem in þe fyrste brothe, an sethe it a-ȝen ouer þe fyre, & skeme it clene; lat a man euermore kepe it, an blow of þe grauy. An in cas þe lycoure wast*. [Waste. ] a-way, caste more of þe same wyne þer-to, & put þin honde þer-on; & ȝif þin hond waxe clammy, it is a syne of godenesse, an let not þe Fleyshe be moche sothe,*. [boiled. ] þat it may bere kyttyng; þan take it vppe, & ley it on a fayre cloþe, & sette owt þe lycoure fro þe fyre, & put a few colys vnder-nethe þe vesselle þat þe lycoure is yn; þan take pouder of Pepir, a gode quantyte, & Safron, þat it haue a fayre Laumbere coloure, & a gode quantyte of Vynegre, & loke þat it be sauery of [supplied by ed.] Salt & of Vynegre, fayre of coloure of Safroun, & putte it on fayre lynen cloþe, & sette it vndernethe a fayre pewter dysshe, & lat it renne þorw þe cloþe so ofte tylle it renne clere: kytte fayre Rybbys of þe syde of þe Pygge, & lay ham on a dysshe, an pulle of þe lemys of þe Chykenys, eche fro oþer, & do a-way þe Skynne, & ley sum in a dysshe fayre y-chowchyd,*. [Y-couched; laid. ] & pore þin*. [Thine. ] gelye þer-on, & lay Almaundys þer-on, an Clowys, & paryd Gyngere, & serue forth.

109. Gely of Flesh - Take calves feet, and scald them in fair water, and make them all the white.  Also take hooves of veal, and lay them on water to soak out the blood; then take them up and lay them on a fair linen cloth, and let the water running out of them; then scour a pot and put the feet and hooves there-on; then take white wine that would hold color, and caste there-to a portion and none other liquor, that the flesh be over-washed withal, and set it on the fire and boil it and skim it clean; and when it is tender and boiled enough, take up the flesh into a fair bowl, and save the liquor well; and look that you have fair sides of pigs, and fair small chickens well and clean scalded and draw, and let the legs and the feet on, and wash them in fair water, and caste them in the first broth, and boil it again over the fire, and skim it clean; let a man evermore keep it, and blow off the gravy. And in case the liquor waist away, caste more of the same wine thereto, and put your hand there-on and if your hand wax clammy, it is a sign of goodness, and let no the flesh be much boiled that it may bear cutting; then take it up and lay it on a fair cloth and set out the liquor from the fire, and put a few cloths underneath the vessel that the liquor is in; then take good powder of pepper, a good quantity of saffron, that it have a fair amber color, and a good quantity of vinegar, and look that it be savory of salt and of vinegar, fair of color of saffron, & put it on fair linen cloth, & set it underneath a fair pewter dish, and let it run through the cloth so oft till it run clear: cut fair ribs of the side of the pig, and lay them on a dish, and pull of the limbs (?) of the chickens, each from the other, and do away the skin, and lay some in a dish fair y-couched (laid) and pour your gely thereon, and lay almonds, thereon and cloves and paired ginger, and serve forth.

.Cx. Gelye de Fysshe.—Take newe Pykys, an draw hem, and smyte hem to pecys, & sethe in þe same lycoure þat þou doste Gelye of Fleysshe; an whan þey ben y-now, take Perchys and Tenchys, & seþe; & Elys, an kutte hem in fayre pecys, and waysshe hem, & putte hem in þe same lycoure, & loke þine lycoure be styf y-now; & ȝif it wolle notte cacche,*. [stick; see other Cookery, No. 174. ] take Soundys of watteryd Stokkefysshe, or ellys Skynnys, or Plays, an caste þer-to, & sethe ouer þe fyre, & skeme it wyl; & when it ys y-now, let nowt þe Fysshe breke; þenne take þe lycoure fro þe fyre, & do as þou dedyst be*. [By, with. ] þat oþer Gelye, saue, pylle þe Fysshe, & ley þer-off in dysshis, þat is, perche & suche; and Flowre hem, & serue forthe.

110. Gely of Fish --Take new pike, and draw them, and smite them into pieces, and boil in the same liquor that you do gely of flesh; and when they been enough, take perch and tench, and cook, and eels, and cut them in fair pieces and wash them, and put them in the same liquor, and look your liquor be stiff enough, and if it would not catch (stick?), take sounds (swim bladder) of watery stockfish, or eel skins or plaice, and caste thereto, and cook, and cook over the fire and skim it well; and when it is enough, let not the flesh break; then take the liquor from the fire, and do as you did with the other gely, save pile the fish, and lay there-of in dishes that is, perch and such; and flower them and serve forth.

Kitchen Adventures – To make a Crystal Jelly and Other Jelly for Service of Several Colours, The Accomplisht Cook, Robert May

To make a Crystal Jelly.

Take three pair of calves feet, and scald off the hair very clean, knock off the claws, and take out the great bones & fat, & cast them into fair water, shift them three or four times in a day and a night, then boil them next morning in a glazed pipkin or clean pot, with six quarts of fair spring water, boil it and scum it clean, boil away three quarts or more; then strain it into a clean earthen pan or bason, & let it be cold: then prepare the dross from the bottom, and take the fat of the top clean, put it in a large pipkin of six quarts, and put into it two quarts of old clear white-wine, the juyce of four lemons, three blades of mace, and two races of ginger slic’t; then melt or dissolve it again into broth, and let it cool. Then have four pound of hard sugar fine beaten, and mix it with twelve whites of eggs in a great dish with your rouling pin, and put it into your pipkin to your jelly, stir it together with a grain of musk and ambergriese, put it in a fine linnen clout bound up, and a quarter of a pint of damask rose-water, set it a stewing on a soft charcoal fire, before it boils put in a little ising glass, and being boil’d up, take it, and let it cool a little, and run it.

Other Jelly for service of several colours. 

Take four pair of calves feet, a knuckle of veal, a good fleshie capon, and prepare these things as is said in the crystal jelly: boil them in three gallons of fair water, till six quarts be wasted, then strain it in an earthen pan, let it cool, and being cold pare the bottom, and take off the fat on the top also; then dissolve it again into broth, and divide it into 4 equal parts, put it into four several pipkins, as will contain five pints a piece each pipkin, put a little saffron into one of them, into another 203 cutchenele beaten with allum, into another turnsole, and the other his own natural white; also to every pipkin a quart of white-wine, and the juyce of two lemons. Then also to the white jelly one race of ginger pare’d and slic’t & three blades of large mace, to the red jelly 2 nutmegs, as much in quantity of cinamon as nutmegs, also as much ginger; to the turnsole put also the same quantity, with a few whole cloves; then to the amber or yellow color, the same spices and quantity.

Then have eighteen whites of eggs, & beat them with six pound of double refined sugar, beaten small and stirred together in a great tray or bason with a rouling pin divide it into four parts in the four pipkins & stir it to your jelly broth, spice, & wine, being well mixed together with a little musk & ambergriese. Then have new bags, wash them first in warm water, and then in cold, wring them dry, and being ready strung with packthread on sticks, hang them on a spit by the fire from any dust, and set new earthen pans under them being well seasoned with boiling liquor.

Then again set on your jelly on a fine charcoal fire, and let it stew softly the space of almost an hour, then make it boil up a little, and take it off, being somewhat cold run it through the bag twice or thrice, or but once if it be very clear; and into the bags of colors put in a sprig of rosemary, keep it for your use in those pans, dish it as you see good, or cast it into what mould you please; as for example these.

Interpreted Recipe

To make clear Jelly:

2 cups clear stock
1 cup white wine
1 cup water
Juice of ½ a lemon
½ tsp. ground mace
1-2 slices of fresh ginger
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. rose water
4 packets unflavored gelatin

To Make Yellow Jelly

Add a pinch of saffron to the above

To Make Red Jelly

Substitute red wine for white
Add 2 tsp. ground nutmegs and 1 tsp. ground cinnamon or 1 cinnamon sticks to the above

Note: 2 packets unflavored gelatin + 2 cups liquid will make about 20 -1 ounce servings

Bloom the gelatin in the water. Heat the stock, wine, lemon juice, spices and sugar until boiling and pour into a bowl, add the gelatin and stir until completely dissolved. Add the rosewater. Put into your mold or pan and allow setting.

Note: You may need to strain the gelatin into your pan to remove undissolved gelatin and spices.