Menus as historical sources

Ephemera is a complicated term used to describe ordinary objects that obsess collectors. Ephemera is a subset of “collectibles” that are a few notches below “antiques” in age, value, and desirability. These objects, originally created to be useful or popular only for a short time (some were disposables) have risen in value over the years like postage stamps, bus tickets, cellphone cards, Coca-Cola bottles, and even Barbie dolls.

My collecting journey began with Filipiniana books. As a college student on allowance, I could only dream of owning items I only saw in museums and antique exhibitions, but I bought the best that I could afford. While hunting for bargain-priced books, I stumbled upon printed or manuscript material that were simply given as “tawad” to sweeten a purchase. These covered a wide range from 19th-century notarial documents in Tagalog or Kapampangan to blank office forms used by the Malolos Republic. There was a lot of Philippine presidential campaign material, that included posters, pins, caps, and even the 1953 “Mambo Magsaysay” 45 rpm record and 1986 Cory Aquino dolls. Posters and flyers for movies and beauty soaps were common but the prized ones were from the 1974 Miss Universe Pageant in Manila, the 1975 Ali-Frazier “Thrilla in Manila,” and the 1966 Beatles in Manila concert. In time, I collected a stash of paper and others relevant to my research or simply interesting by themselves. My family referred to me as a “mambubulok” or scavenger, my collection to them was junk, but to the right persons, each item would be a treasure.

Over the weekend, prompted by online sources that stated that the Malolos Constitution was promulgated on Jan. 21, 1899, I rummaged through my pile for a printed copy of that Constitution. It is quite small, the size of a novena, quite apt since the Malolos Congress met in Barasoain Church. However, a detail on the cover caught my eye: “Consitucion Politica de la Republica Filipina Promulgada el dia 22 de Enero de 1899. Edicion Oficial. Islas Filipinas. Imp. Bajo la Direccion del Sr. F. Fajarado. Barasoain (Bulacan) 1899.” Was the date on this official version of the Malolos Constitution a typographical error? When was the Malolos Constitution promulgated—on Jan. 21 or 22? I leave the resolution of this question to the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

Another ephemera fished out was a palm-sized menu, a replica of the menus used for lunch and dinner on Sept. 29, 1898, when the Malolos Congress ratified the declaration of Philippine Independence made on June 12, 1898, in Kawit, Cavite. Like the original menus from 1898, this one from 1924 was in the form of a Philippine flag, but what differed were the contents and date. The 1898 menu was French, the 1924 one was Spanish. Red and blue fields of the flag open to reveal text that reads “Por la Restauracion de la Republica Filipina (For the restoration of the [First] Philippine Republic).” Then, when you lift the white triangle, the text in the middle of the card is the menu or the order of food that was served in Malolos on Jan. 23, 1924.

The mains were: caldo de gallina (chicken soup), fiambres mixtos (mixed cold cuts), filete lapu-lapu a la romano (filet of grouper fried in a batter of egg and flour), pavo asado (roast turkey), jamon en dulce (ham in sweet sauce, probably caramelized pineapple juice), ensalada rusa (Russian salad); for dessert: gelatina de frutas (fruit gelatin is a fancy word for gulaman), glace Bulakeña (Bulacan ice cream); wines were sauterne (a white sweet French wine) and champagne. Unlike the 1898 Malolos menu that concluded with coffee or tea, the 1924 menu finished off with tabacos y cigarillos.

Host of this banquet was the “Comandante Departmental de Malolos, Bulacan” whose identity I have yet to uncover. I presume from the menu that this was a lunch rather than dinner held in honor of the dignitaries who attended the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Republica Constitucional Filipina. I presume the Fajardo Press in Manila, is the same or traces its origins to the Fajardo Press that was the official printer of the Malolos Republic.

Malolos seems to have a long tradition of fancy banquets as documented by surviving printed menus, some now preserved in the Lopez Museum and Library. My attention was drawn to these by Dr. Khursten Santos who has worked on them. There is a menu for a banquet held on Sept. 4, 1927, to celebrate the 77th birthday of Marcelo H. del Pilar that served atis ice cream for dessert. An undated menu for the Kapisanan ng Damas de Maria Clara of Malolos Bulacan had a Filipino spread named after characters from “Noli Me Tangere”: “Sinigang ni Andeng, lechon ni Ibarra, nilagang manok ni Maria Clara, inihao na bangos ni Padre Salvi, halabos na hipon ni Dr de Espadaña, alimango ni Doña Victorina, talaba ni Filosofo Tasio, achara ni Sisa, matamis na dalagang bukid and sorbetes ng Kapisanan.” Surely, there is a hidden joke or story here waiting to be unraveled.Historians are scavengers, too, using disposables from the past as primary sources for Philippine history.

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