Throwing tomatoes dates from the first half of the 19th century in Italy. In 1838 a Roman poet named Guiseppe Belli joked at the end of a poem "God save us from the tomatoes!" (translation) I don't know of any other examples unfortunately, but this absolutely fits with crowd behavior at the time. Throwing things at performers (including nice things like love poems and flowers) was acceptable behavior at theater performances in Italy and some other places in Europe at the time.
Prior to start of the 19th century tomatoes had a very minor role in Italian culinary culture, they were primarily an ornamental garden plant consumed by a few people in a limited condiment fashion, mostly by the upper class, and influenced heavily by Spanish cuisine. So they were essentially too rare to throw. By the 1800s tomatoes had entered the middle and low classes as a food staple along with other vegetables. They were cheap as well, a report on the state of food access for the poor in Naples by Napoleon's government in the 1800s gives the price of tomatoes at 3 soldi for 2 pounds. Vegetables ranged in price from 2-8 soldi per 2 pounds, putting tomatoes on the cheap side. (A family size pizza in Napoli, for comparison, was 2 soldi, and also a key food of the poor.) They also go “squish” unlike say a cabbage, making them the stage bomb of choice.
From Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy, 2010.
Holmes02 on January 11st, 2018 at 14:17 UTC »
He must’ve just found out the tomato is actually a fruit and doesn’t belong here, much like the guy on stage.
J4CKR4BB1TSL1MS on January 11st, 2018 at 14:21 UTC »
Throwing tomatoes dates from the first half of the 19th century in Italy. In 1838 a Roman poet named Guiseppe Belli joked at the end of a poem "God save us from the tomatoes!" (translation) I don't know of any other examples unfortunately, but this absolutely fits with crowd behavior at the time. Throwing things at performers (including nice things like love poems and flowers) was acceptable behavior at theater performances in Italy and some other places in Europe at the time.
Prior to start of the 19th century tomatoes had a very minor role in Italian culinary culture, they were primarily an ornamental garden plant consumed by a few people in a limited condiment fashion, mostly by the upper class, and influenced heavily by Spanish cuisine. So they were essentially too rare to throw. By the 1800s tomatoes had entered the middle and low classes as a food staple along with other vegetables. They were cheap as well, a report on the state of food access for the poor in Naples by Napoleon's government in the 1800s gives the price of tomatoes at 3 soldi for 2 pounds. Vegetables ranged in price from 2-8 soldi per 2 pounds, putting tomatoes on the cheap side. (A family size pizza in Napoli, for comparison, was 2 soldi, and also a key food of the poor.) They also go “squish” unlike say a cabbage, making them the stage bomb of choice.
From Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy, 2010.
mrsuns10 on January 11st, 2018 at 14:27 UTC »
Why are you booing me? I'm right