Chap. 82 (56.) — Who Invented Preserves for Sea-Snails
Fulvius Lupinus2827 first formed preserves for sea-snails,2828 in the territory of Tarquinii, shortly before the civil war between Cæsar and Pompeius Magnus. He also carefully distinguished them by their several species, separating them from one another. The white ones were those that are produced in the district of Reate;2829 those of Illyria were remarkable for the largeness of their size; while those from Africa were the most prolific; those, however, from the Promontory of the Sun2830 were the most esteemed of all. For the purpose, also, of fattening them, he invented a mixture of boiled wine,2831 spelt-meal, and other substances; so that fattened periwinkles even became quite an object of gastronomy; and the art of breeding them was brought to such a pitch of perfection, that the shell of a single animal would hold as much as eighty quadrantes.2832 This we learn from M. Varro.