THE GRAPES OF NEW YORK 



CHAPTER I 

 THE OLD WORLD GRAPE 



A single species of the grape is cultivated in the Old World. This is 

 Vitis vinifcra, the grape of ancient and modern agriculture, the vine of the 

 allegories of sacred record and of the myths, fables and poetry of the Old 

 World countries. It is the vine which Adam and Eve cared for: — 

 " * * * they led the vine 

 To wed his elm; * * *." Milton. 

 It is the vine which Noah planted after the deluge; the vine of Judah 

 and Israel, and of the promised land. Dionysus of the Greeks, Bacchus of 

 the Romans, found the grape and devoted his life to spreading it; for which 

 he was raised to the rank of a deity — god of vines and vintages. The 

 history of this grape is as old as that of mankind. It has followed civilized 

 man from place to place throughout the world and is one of the chief culti- 

 vated plants of temperate climates. This fruit of sacred and profane 

 literature has so impressed itself upon the human mind that when we think 

 or speak of the grape, or vine, it is the Old World species, the vine of 

 antiquity, that presents itself. 



The history of the Old World grape goes back to prehistoric times. 

 Seeds of the grape are found in the remains of the Swiss lake dwellings of 

 the Bronze Period and entombed with the mummies of Egypt. Its printed 

 history is as old as that of man and is interwritten with it. According to 

 the botanists, the probable habitat of Vitis vinifcra is the region about the 

 Caspian Sea.' From here it was carried eastward into Asia and westward 

 into Europe and Africa. It is probable that the Phoenicians, the earliest 

 navigators, tradesmen and colonizers on the Mediterranean, carried it to 

 the countries bordering on this sea. Grape culture was developed in this 



' De CandoUe, Alphonse. Origin of Cultivated Plants: 191. i88a. 



