Greek Myths XS: Caesar and his Salad

Did Caesar invent his salad? Sure! It was Caesar Cardini, early 20th century, who decided that romaine lettuce should be the main ingredient of this creation. Now, the real Roman lettuce was much bigger than the contemporary version, and came with some superstition. The English lettuce (“lactuca” in latin) has the same root as the French “lait” (milk), referring to the white liquid that’s exuded by the cut stems. So obviously, it should benefit reproduction, and stimulate lactation. In an obscure story, supreme goddess Hera would have gotten pregnant with daughter Hebe (goddess of youth) merely by eating a lettuce. Yet, the philosopher Plutarch saw acute lettuce danger and warned against eating the heart of the vegetable. For it was also known as “dead man’s food”, ever since Aphrodite had laid the body of her dead lover Adonis in a lettuce patch. All of this didn’t take away from the fact that the vegetable has quite a distinctive form, and was therefore also believed to enhance masculin performance.

Tod des Adonis, Christoph Schwarz, Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, Vienna, Austria

Young Girl, Statue, Antikensammlung Berlin, Berlin, Germany