9 August 1661: John Ray encounters kelp-makers on the coast between Scarborough and Whitby
John Ray and William Derham. 1760. Select Remains of the Learned John Ray, With His Life. London: George Scott. Get it:
.Excerpt
We saw here all along the shores the people making of kelp, which they do by laying the alga and Fucus marinus on heaps, and, when it is dry, burning it; while it is burning, they stir it to and fro with an iron rake, and so it condenses and cakes together, in the manner we see kelp; whereas, should they not stir it, it would go to ashes, as other plants burned use to do; si fides autoribus [if you have faith in the authors].
To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.
Abbreviations:
- ER: East Riding
- GM: Greater Manchester
- NR: North Riding
- NY: North Yorkshire
- SY: South Yorkshire
- WR: West Riding
- WY: West Yorkshire
Comment
Comment
What is Fucus marinus?
Why does Ray – a keen observer – say that they try to avoid the result turning to ash? OED for kelp says “A collective term for large seaweeds (chiefly Fucaceæ and Laminariaceæ) which are burnt for the sake of the substances found in the ashes” and cites “1663 R. Boyle Exper. & Consid. Colours xlix. Ann. i In making our ordinary allom the workmen use the ashes of a sea-weed (vulgarly called kelp).”
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Original
We saw here all along the shores the people making of kelp, which they do by laying the alga and Fucus marinus on heaps, and, when it is dry, burning it; while it is burning, they stir it to and fro with an iron rake, and so it condenses and cakes together, in the manner we see kelp; whereas, should they not stir it, it would go to ashes, as other plants burned use to do; si fides autoribus [if you have faith in the authors].
92 words.
Tags
Tags are assigned inclusively on the basis of an entry’s original text and any comment. You may find this confusing if you only read an entry excerpt.
- Algae (1)
· - Kelp (1) ·
- Ray, John (1627-1705) (6), one of the earliest of the English parson-naturalists ·
- 📌Scarborough (19) ·
- Sodium carbonate (1) ·
- 📌Whitby (20), town, port and parish on the east coast of North Yorkshire/the North Riding at the mouth of the River Esk ·
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