Although the school year in Polish Saturday schools has come to an end, my private lessons are still ongoing. For instance, my younger students recently learned about the legend of Toruń gingerbread. It is characteristic of Polish culture that each Polish city has its own set of legends. These legends usually aim to explain the origin of certain local artifacts. Often, legends fill in the gaps left by historians, who frequently lack the documents to explain certain things. This is also the case with the legends of Toruń. Toruń is known worldwide for its gingerbread. It is not surprising, then, that there are many legends associated with this Toruń delicacy. Some of these legends try to explain the origin of the distinctive, oldest shape of gingerbread, which comes in the form of six connected medallions called "Katarzynki."
Katarzynki were baked at a specific time, on November 25, St. Catherine's Day, and could be purchased at the market in front of St. Catherine's Church in Toruń. No one knows who invented this shape, so the legend of Toruń gingerbread primarily aims to explain its origin. Although there are many versions of this legend, they all revolve around a character named Kasia, who either baked this unusual shape herself or had them baked in her honor by a lovesick apprentice.
Here's another interesting fact: many people wonder, why did Toruń become the city of gingerbread? As we know, spices and honey are essential ingredients in gingerbread, so no wonder that the city's location on an important water trade route played significant role. Ships from Gdańsk carrying spices would arrive here, allowing Toruń's gingerbread makers to stock up on spices. Additionally, beekeeping developed significantly around the city, as evidenced by the establishment of Honey Collectors Street (Ulica Zbieraczy Miodu), which once was located in the suburbs of Toruń.
Today, the tradition of baking is continued by the Toruń factory "Kopernik" SA, which dates back to the 18th century and the famous and excellent Toruń gingerbread family, Weese.
Because gingerbread was a luxury item, it was often used to welcome distinguished guests, such as Polish kings. Among those gifted with gingerbread was John Paul II. Reportedly, Frederic Chopin was also fond of them.
Besides learning many interesting facts, my younger students completed a series of tasks aimed at identifying elements of the legend, such as distinguishing between fantastic and historical elements.
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