The best olives are
those that grow wild; but the quantity of them is very
inconsiderable. Olives begin to ripen and drop in the beginning
of November: but some remain on the trees till February, and even
till April, and these are counted the most valuable. When the
olives are gathered, they must be manufactured immediately,
before they fade and grow wrinkled, otherwise they will produce
bad oil. They are first of all ground into a paste by a mill-stone
set edge-ways in a circular stone-trough, the wheel being
turned by water.
This paste is put into trails or circular cases made of grass
woven, having a round hole at top and bottom; when filled they
resemble in shape our Cheshire cheeses. A number of these placed
one upon another, are put in a press, and being squeezed, the oil
with all its impurities, runs into a receptacle below fixed in
the ground. From hence it is laded into a wooden vat, half filled
with water. The sordes or dirt falls to the bottom; the oil swims
a-top; and being skimmed off, is barrelled up in small oblong
casks. What remains in the vat, is thrown into a large stone
cistern with water, and after being often stirred, and standing
twelve or fourteen days, yields a coarser oil used for lamps and
manufactures. After these processes, they extract an oil still
more coarse and fetid from the refuse of the whole.
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