Object: Cheese

Cheese was the essential way to store milk for longer term use.   In many Dutch households, the women made cheese, and passed recipes on to their daughters.    The origins of the world famous Gouda Cheese come from these smaller farm cheese making traditions, and the fancy 'wax' coating we see today did not begin to show up until the 19th century.   The town of Gouda controlled the trade in cheeses so eventually the name of the town became the name of the cheese we know today.   In the 17th century, these cheeses had a 'rind' that was created by special molds also developed in each household or farm rather than a wax coating.