A feast at Easter is a time-honoured tradition

Versions of simnels (high-quality bread), decorated eggs, pancakes and roast lamb can all be found in mediaeval European culture. Whether hot cross buns come from the same period is open to question.

- By Giles Gasper

Some argue that hot cross buns come from St Albans buns, apparently invented by the monk of St Albans, Thomas Rockcliffe, in the mid-14th century.

From around the seventh century, prayers in the north Italian monastery of Bobbio, founded by the Irish monk Columbanus, blessed lamb eaten for Easter lunch. Two centuries later, roast lamb at Easter had been adopted more widely by the papacy, the leaders of the Catholic Church.

Lamb for Easter feasts

Lamb was certainly a meat with specific links to the festival, but traces of other foodstuffs now associated with Easter and Lent can also be found in the period.

A good example is simnels - not the almond cake but a very high-quality wheat loaf, known across mediaeval Europe. Mediaeval bread came in many different forms and qualities. Simnels as white wheat bread were at the top of the pile.

Mediaeval society operated within a system of dietary regulation during Lent. Set by the church, it involved abstinence from meat on particular days, for example, Fridays and periods before major church festivals. Fish was therefore important for Lenten diets, for those that could afford it. Of especial importance was the range of dried sea fish that formed one of the mainstays of the northern European economy.