Frog legs - nothing new, and not even French
The French gourmet dish of frogs' legs was served in Western Europe more than 5000 years ago, according to new archaeological evidence.
A site near Prague has revealed the remains of 893 frog bones, providing evidence that the Czechs ate frog legs as early as the Neolithic period.
Researchers unearthed bones in five pits at the fort, ruling out many explanations for their presence such as hibernation, natural trap or predator kills. Most of the bones turned out to be hind legs, the meatiest part of a frog and the one usually eaten.
How Czechs ate the frogs is unclear. Archaeologists speculate that the legs were skinned before they were eaten. Whether the frogs were considered a delicacy is also unclear.
According to a French specialist on frogs in history, the discovery confirms that frogs were part of the human diet since Neolithic times.
"Everything seems to confirm that frog consumption was merely an opportunistic choice at that time," he says.
Wed 27-Jun-07 | Posted in: Food, Drink & Smoke, History
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