Curry Jar, c.1845-50
Curry was a common ingredient in Victorian cookery books — such as in Mrs Beeton's influential Book of Household Management (pictured below). This book was a popular wedding present in 19th century New Zealand, meaning most women would be familiar with her recipes. Just as Beeton's book was imported from Britain, this curry jar also hails from England.
Fyzool Kurreem brand curry paste was produced by the London company Crosse and Blackwell. In 1845 the company were producing Fyzool Kurreem's Currie and Mulligatawny pastes, as well as Abdool Fygo's chutney. Both the appropriation of Indian cuisine and fictional Indian names for 'authenticity', indicate the ways in diet and imperialism where closely associated. These imperialistic overtones can be found in Beeton's Book of Household Management, such as the opening words that would have greeted the eyes of many Victorian housewives:
"As with the commander of any army, or the leader of an enterprise, so it is with the mistress of a house."
This curry jar was found at a cottage on Barbadoes St, and was most likely a personal keepsake, as current research suggests this brand of curry paste is not believed to have been imported to New Zealand. This brand of curry seems to have only been produced by Crosse and Blackwell between approximately 1845 and 1850, while the site it was found at was occupied from 1865 onwards, suggesting that, at the earliest, the jar was kept for a period of at least 15 years before it was thrown out. It is the early date of this jar that makes us think it was likely kept as a keepsake, and given its unusual shape and bright blue colouring, may have been used as a small vase or something similar.
Therefore, it was likely a sentimental keepsake brought to New Zealand by a British expat. It represents the migration of people, ideas and cuisine throughout the British Empire — the pervasive flavour of English imperialism reaching the kitchen of countless Victorian women around the world.
Sources:
Drouard, Alain, and Derek J Oddy. The Food Industries of Europe in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. London & New York: Routledge, 2016.
'Household Notes.' Bush Advocate, Volume V, Issue 360, 30 August 1890, Page 7. https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/BA18900830.2.50
Wood, June A. Victorian New Zealanders. Wellington: A.H. & A. W. Reed, 1974.
Zlotnick, S. (1996). "Domesticating Imperialism: Curry and Cookbooks in Victorian England. Frontiers." A Journal of Women Studies, 16, no 2/3 (1996): 51-68. doi:10.2307/3346803
Image credit (Public Domain): Wellcome Collection