The Miracle of the Herrings

by Allan

I’ve been reading about the famous Miracle of the Herrings.  At Naples in 1319, witnesses to the life of Thomas Aquinas gave testimony, and two of them recount a curious story concerning some herrings.  Nicholas, Abbot of Fossanova, recalled that

when Thomas lay sick in the castle of Maenza and was urged to eat something, he answered, ‘I would eat fresh herrings, if I had some.’ Now it happened that a pedlar called just then with salted fish. He was asked to open his baskets, and one was found full of fresh herrings … But when the herrings were brought to Thomas, he would not eat them.

It doesn’t sound miraculous.  And frankly, the refusal to eat sounds made up: Thomas was a corpulent gourmand, why pass up a final earthly nibble?  But this was Maeza, in Lazio, on the Mediterranean coast, as one Peter of Montesangiovanni reminded those gathered at Naples:

Thomas said, ‘Do you think you could get me some fresh herrings?’ The socius replied, ‘Oh, yes, across the Alps, in France or England!’ But just then a fishmonger called Bordonario arrived at the castle [and] on opening the baskets, the man found one full of fresh herrings[, which] were unknown in Italy. And while the fishmonger was swearing that he had brought sardines, not herrings, brother Reginald ran off to tell Thomas, crying, ‘God has given you what you wanted – herrings!’

Yes, herrings in the South!  Of course, today Tesco’s works this same “miracle” every day, but it’s got to be impressive for 1274.  It must have been:

Asked how he knew that the fish were herrings, [Peter] said that he had seen salted herrings at the papal court at Viterbo, so that he knew herrings when he saw them. Besides, brother Reginald, who had eaten fresh herrings in the countries across the Alps, declared that these were herrings too.

I’m satisfied.  And unlike Nicholas’ dubious ending, Peter ends the way a food story should end: with a recipe.

Asked how they had been cooked, he answered that some were boiled and some fried.