About This Project

Mapping Elizabeth Dyke's Recipes

The early modern cook or domestic healer had access to far more ingredients than a modern person might assume. Just over the cusp of the modern era, the seventeenth century further entrenched globalization, the slave trade, and the spice trade. Rather than local trade or trade of excess product, products were grown or manufactured for the purpose of long distance trade. As a result, English people and other Europeans experienced a glut of fruits, spices, and foods from around the world, often produced for cheap prices because of exploitative or violent labor and trade practices. 

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Early modern recipe books are, therefore, an excellent source to explore the expansion of global trade and the impact it had on everyday individuals within European nations. One such woman, Elizabeth Dyke, was born during the seventeenth century and lived in the Sussex region of southeast England. Her recipe book contains culinary and medicinal recipes using ingredients both local and international. Through this website, we hope to emphasize the reciprocal influence of international trade and domestic practices in the early modern era.

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About Us

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Brianna Blackwell is a Master's student in English Literature at the University of Kansas. She is interested in archival work, digital humanities, and gender studies.

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Mallory Harrell is a Master's student in Museum Studies at the University of Kansas. Her interests are in history and archival work. 

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Kate Schroeder is a History student at the University of Kansas. She is interested in archival work and history.

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To learn more about Elizabeth Dyke and to read her manuscript, go to our Omeka site!