Mead Primary Sources

Mead (sometimes: "meath") is a fermented, alcoholic beverage made primarily of water and honey.

There are many sub-types of mead with their own names:

Metheglin

a mead containing spices

Melomel

a mead containing fruit

Oxymel

a mead containing vinegar

among others, some of which are period names (metheglin, oxymel) and some are not (capsicumel).

Sources

Name	Date	Country	Language	English Translation	Description	Panels
De Re Rustica by Columella	~50 CE	Rome	Classical Latin	1745 translation, others exist.	Roman farm manual, contains mead recipes - De aqua mulsa facienda
Naturalis Historia by Pliny	79 CE	Rome	Classical Latin	1601 translation, [1855], others exist. this 20th century translation is more complete.	A survey of the natural world, contains references to mead.
Opus agriculturae (Palladius on husbondrie)	~400 CE	Rome	Classical Latin	Middle English version ~1420	Book on agriculture provides a recipe for mead, "De Idromelle." The digitized manuscript is OCR'd poorly, so you may need to go to the scanned edition.
Trossingen 58 Grave Find	580 CE	Germany	Archaeological, book in German		This grave find contained a bottle with pollen grains indicating a mixed fermented beverage including honey.	6th Century CE Hopped Mead
Aqrabadhin of al-Kindi	800-870 CE	Abbasid Caliphate	Arabic	Available	This medical formulary contains a recipe for a spiced pyment.
al-Kitab al-Ṭabīḫ of Abu Muhammad al-Muthaffar ibn Nasr ibn Sayyār al-Warrāq	900-1000 CE	Iraq	Arabic	available, in print	The earliest known Arabic cookbook, it has several mead recipes in it.
Geoponica	900-1000 CE	Byzantine Empire	Greek	available	A Byzantine farm manual, contains mead, cyser, pyment, and rhodomel recipes.
Random Notes from the Scholar's Cottage by Zhang Bangji	~1131 CE	China	Literary Chinese	Available	This mead recipe claims to be from the famous poet Su Shi. It uses Chinese yeast cakes instead of barm.	12th Century Chinese Mead
Tractatus de magnete et operationibus eius, folio 20r	1300-1400 CE	England	Text in Latin, Recipes in (middle) English	in English, transcription available	The earliest known English mead recipe.
Ein Buch von Guter Speise	~1350 CE	Germany	German	Available	This recipe book contains a mead recipe.
Le Ménagier de Paris	1393 CE	France	French	Available in print	This guide to a woman's proper behavior in marriage and running a household contains two recipes for bochet.
Palladius on Husbondrie	1420 CE		English		See Opus agriculturae.
Arnold's Chronicle	1503 CE	England	English	(In English)	This chronicle contains a recipe for a braggot called Braket.
The fyrst boke of the introduction of knowledge made by Andrew Borde, of physycke doctor. A compendyous regyment; or, A dyetary of helth made in Mountpyllier	1542 CE	France (author English)	English	(in English)	This discussion of domestic hygene and medicine contains a brief but descriptive mention of mead and metheglin on page 257.
Historia de Gentibus Septentrionalibus by Olaus Magnus	1555 CE	Rome	Latin	Available, in print	This history of Scandinavia includes several mead recipes.
Maison rustique, or The countrey farme	1564 CE	France	French	Period English Translation	A comprehensive text on running a country estate.
The Haven of Health by [Thomas Cogan]	1584, first edition	England	English	(In English)	This manual of health provides recipes for metheglin and braggot.
The Feminine Monarchie by Charles Butler	1609	England	English	(in English)	This handbook of beekeeping contains several mead recipes.
The Closet of Sir Kenelme Digbie Kt. Opened	1669 CE	England	English	(in English)	Post-period, but likely based on period techniques. Comprehensive, and reasonably detailed. Contains a truly disgusting number of mead recipes.	To Make White Mead

See Also

• Elska á Fjárfelli of Aethelmearc's list of recipes
• Another list of Elska's