Abstract
The characteristics of Roman cooks vary more than is generally stated in the historiography. The caterer of the macellum preceded the cook of great aristocratic houses, but they also coexisted at some point. Under the Roman Empire, both chefs of restaurants (popina) and cooksfor theImperial House were prominent figures. They were disregarded owing to their social (slavish origin) and moral (linked to luxury) backgrounds but at the same time they played a key role in promoting aristocratic and imperial distinction. Consequently, the cooks argued that their activity was an ars that required talent, and drew on theoretical knowledge taught in schools, as opposed to the aristocrats who considered it a basic domestic chore (ministerium).
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