Especially luxurious feasts were held in Roman times. An illustrative example of such a feast of Trimalchio, Petronius described. In this description, a lot of ridiculous and exaggerated, but nevertheless it gives a clear idea of luxury and drinking habits of Roman society. Trimalchio, Coming from a humble family, was able to amass great wealth, but still retains the old crudity and vulgarity habits. Petronius describes the following incident that occurred during the feast. When the guests had already started for a snack, the slaves brought to the canteen owner, and he sat down, contrary to all rules of decency, the best place. His head was strangely wrapped in a purple blanket, her neck wrapped in many scarves. Under his chin was tied cloth, decorated with purple stripes and a precious fringe, and his hands were studded rings and beautiful bracelets. On the stand for a snack was an ass of Corinthian bronze, from the sides of which hung two baskets of white and black olives. On the back of the ass were two silver bowls on the edges of which was marked the name Trimalchio and the weight of silver. They lay fried garden dormice in honey with poppy seeds. On the silver grill were strung kind of sausage, and a gridiron lay Syrian plums with hot coals in the form of pomegranate seeds. Then, on a tray brought a basket, in which sat a wooden hen with protruding, like a hen, wings. The sounds of music was approached by two slaves, and were removed from the nest peacock eggs and give them to guests. Trimalchio, noticing this, said: "Friends, I had to put the chicken on peacock eggs and I fear that they were already hatched. Nevertheless, let's try, can they still consume. Next Petronius wrote: "We got everyone on the spoon, weighing not less than half a pound of silver, and began to break eggs, made of thick dough. I was almost throwing up their portion, because it seemed to me that the egg already have chicken. However, hearing how an old pal said: "There must be something tasty, I began to examine the shells and found a fat snipe in the yolk and pepper. When it all tasted and Trimalchio, and when at his command in the second just began to submit mulsum, suddenly there was a musical alarm and a choir singing the slaves began to rapidly clean the dishes. In the rush to the floor accidentally dropped a silver plate, which raised the office. Seeing this, Trimalchio ordered to punish the servant slap in the face and once again throw a plate. soon entered the dining room and valet swept this dish, along with other litter. Then there were two Ethiopian slave with a small long-haired furs and began to pour our wine at hand, as the water no one filed. Immediately thereafter, made of glass amphorae, carefully filled with gypsum, bearing the inscription above "Falernian opimianskoe a century." After a short interval, during which a silver machine in the form of a human skeleton piruyuschim reminded of the brevity of life, so they drank harder, came the actual dinner. He began with a series of unusually decorated dishes. The round tray were painted signs of the zodiac, and on each of them was the case the sign of the food, for example: over the sign of Taurus - a piece of beef, of cancer - a circle of cancers, we must Lion - African figs, over Sagittarius - rabbit, etc. In the middle lay a piece of green turf, and on it - honeycomb. Egyptian servant carried the bread on a silver platter while loudly singing a shrill voice. Guests at the invitation of Trimalchio had already been prepared to take up these simple, in his view, food, when suddenly, dancing to the sounds of music, jumped four slave, took off the top of the tray. Under it on the other tray was poultry, pork and udder rabbit with wings like Pegasus. In the corners stood four figures of Mars, and from them the fish swimming in the "evrite, oozed seasoned pepper fish sauce ... At this point, brought the board, on which lay a huge wild boar with his hat on his head. In his two canine teeth were hanging baskets woven from palm leaves, one of which was filled with dates, and another - Theban nuts. To cut the boar, was not the former forshneyder, and a tall, bearded man, wearing a hunter. Hunting knife he notched side by a wild boar, and from there flew thrushes, which the Fowlers were caught previously prepared grids ... When the tables wiped out the sounds of music, led to the dining room decorated with three bands, and bells boar, one of which is the feast called the two-year, another - the three-year, and the third - an old man. Then Trimalchio asked: "Which one you want to immediately see the roast on the table?" And without waiting for an answer and ordered the cook to slaughter the eldest of them ... Then the cook took it live in a hot kitchen, and a little later on the table was served a wild boar, but it is much more than before. When piruyuschie were surprised so quickly, saying that even a cock can not cook in such a short time, Trimalchio, looking at the boar, said: "What is it?" He was not gutted! " Then the cook took the knife, cut a frightened look of his belly, and out spilled many sausages and black diamond ... Suddenly, cracked ceiling and a dining room trembled to the general dismay unsuspecting guests. Through the hole razdvinuvshegosya ceiling down a huge ring, hung with golden brooms and alabaster jar of perfume, of which everyone could take home as they want.