The Vital Nature Of Kitchens In The Home

By Matthew Kerridge

Though, we may not think of them as often as we might if we were aware of their history, kitchens and their importance in the home can certainly make for some interesting historical study. These vital and completely ubiquitous rooms in the modern-day home have existed in various iterations throughout human history, even down to the basic campfire over which early human tribes cooked their food.

Those looking at the improvement in technologies in the home over the millennia say that kitchens tended to develop in sophistication as the cook stoves or ranges that were used in them also developed in sophistication. Along with improvement in stoves, kitchens also owe much of their development to plumbing improvements. They were still mostly basic in function until the'th century, though.

It was in the'th and'th centuries that the problem of food only being able to be cooked over an open fire was look at and solutions developed. When the stove was also improved so that food could be heated more efficiently, the basic layout and design of the kitchen was finally able to be changed. Until improvements in plumbing occurred, water also had to be brought in from the outside via buckets.

Even though we look at kitchens today as almost an afterthought when thinking about where they came from, history reveals that even the ancient Greeks had areas in their homes that they considered to be kitchens. Wealthy Greeks of the day actually had a separate room where food was prepared. They were usually located next to a water closet or bathroom so that both could share a common fire.

The Romans, who were extremely efficient at taking designs and improving them, actually came up with the idea of large kitchens for common Romans, many of whom didn't have kitchens in their own homes. Wealthier Romans, of course, had kitchens that were often highly equipped and occupied a separate room in a typical Roman villa. Kitchens then kept fires burning all day to cook food.

It was in pioneer colonial America that a kitchen area soon came to be looked at as a vital part of the home. Usually, it was located next to a fireplace that was constructed near a corner of a cabin that was used not only to heat the living area but also the food. It was only later in American history that the kitchen came to be placed into a separate room.

In the West, the rise of the kitchen can be directly attributed to the Industrial Revolution. This exciting era of invention and innovation impacted stoves and ranges in a positive way such that these new and modernized home appliances could actually be located in the home itself, often in a separate room that was equipped with running water and other conveniences.

In the modern day that we live in, there seems to be a limitless variation in the ways and methods that kitchens can be built. Nowadays, they range in size from very small and equipped with a basic stove, refrigerator and sink all the way up to rooms in the home that often are larger than the total living area of a colonial American cabin or home itself. - 33383

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