How many cloves in a gammon of Christmas bacon?

[radshop]

In Chapter 31 of Sir Walter Scott's novel, Ivanhoe, heroic Locksley states, “I am most willing to take on me the direction of the archery; and ye shall hang me up on my own Trysting-tree, an the defenders be permitted to show themselves over the walls without being stuck with as many shafts as there are cloves in a gammon of bacon at Christmas.”
I'm struggling to parse the obscure syntax, along with the unfamiliar bacon recipe, including the significance of Christmas. Am I the only one who obsesses over these things? What's a gammon? How many cloves does a gammon have at Christmas? How many cloves when it's not Christmas? Is Locksley just pulling the wool over our eyes, or is he actually saying something? I gotta know!!!

[Jerod Broussard]

Great. Now we need a 19th century English novel translation section.

[radshop]

It's a Yes for me!

[STEbbq]

Great question. This link says 3.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gammon_with_treacle_81407

[radshop]

I love this site! Thank you.

[STEbbq]

It looks pretty tasty to me so I say cook it!

[MBMorgan]

https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-cook-and-prepare-gammon-and-ham

[radshop]

I got my work cut out for me, but I'm committed now! Plenty of time until Christmas to plan for this.

[Donw]

I found you an original recipes to get you started:

“To bake a Gammon of Bacon. Take a Gammon of Bacon, water it sixe dayes and perboyle him halfe enough and laye him in presse then take the sworde of hum and stuffe him with cloues, and season him with pepper, and saffron. And close vp in a standing pye, bake him and so serue him.”

[radshop]

Thanks!

[acorgihouse]

You guys have the gammon figured out. The only reason I would think cloves are there is that they were often used (in those times) to mask the smell/taste of not really fresh meat.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

I lived in the UK a total of about 5 years...

In every restaurant I went to in the UK that offered gammon, it was just a ham steak with the single hollow bone.

Really the only 4 types of pork I saw at stores or eateries was sausage, bacon, chops, or the gammon steaks. You could get an unsliced gammon joint at a farm shoppe but I honestly don't recall if they were raw or cured. The only pork we had for Christmas was traditional ham because our British friends loved it so we would get a couple from base and feast together. Looks like I missed out on a whole gammon with cloves

[SheilaAnn]

I had to consult. I did not see a reference to gammon in one of my Larousse copies. But I did see it referenced in Meat, The Ultimate Companion