A Walk Down Memory Lane: 5 Incredible Vintage Wedding Cakes
Typical wedding cakes are more than just confectionery treats after a fancy dinner these days. They are marked works of art that solidify themes and wow taste buds. Today wedding cakes aren't just plain white tiered desserts; they're tailored to match the wedding's theme, like cakes shaped like wine bottles if it's a vineyard wedding or something as abstract as a fish because the couple met on a dating site. There is a new level of appreciation for personalization when it comes to wedding cakes, and unique cakes that buck the norm are de rigueur. But when it comes to wedding cakes, it may be true that innovation was always in style.
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Wedding cakes have an interesting history, dating back as far as ancient Rome, where marriages were solidified by the groom smashing barley cake over his bride's head. And an early British recipe for "Bride's Pye" included ingredients like lamb testicles and oysters. But as sugar became more plentiful in England in the 16th century, the tradition graduated to using very refined sugar to create pure white icing to symbolize not only the bride's purity but the families' affluence as well.
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Overtime, the décor and artistry have become more intricate, and wedding cake trends, just like the fashions of the day, have come and gone. But when you take a look at wedding cakes of years passed, you can see that grandeur was never out of style.
1947
In a time when war coupons could barely buy you a loaf of bread, this cake would have seemed just as glamorous as any of the other confections on this list. Lieutenant Robert Antony (Tony) Evelyn Cansdale and his new bride, Lena Cohn, cut their wedding cake with his ceremonial sword in Haifa, Palestine, after he met her while on tour.
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1951
These wedding cakes are twice as nice. Though we doubt a modern bride would be as quick to share her big day, it is nice to see that both of these beautiful brides got their own gorgeous cake.
1952
Though the cake may be smallish, you can tell it didn't faze Sergeant G. C. McCaughey (of the Britcom Laundry Unit) and his bride Fumiko Isumizawa on their wedding day. After all, the piece is a small beauty with intricate details and an interesting accent of what appears to be pine needles
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1952
Even in the '50s, couples were serving cake with their own sense of style. At the wedding of Beryl Olwen Smith and Harry Evans, a three-tiered cake was served with small horseshoe and leaf embellishments and a miniature vase as a topper.
1963 (Pictured at Top of Page)
England's Princess Alexandra's wedding cake, made by Andrew Davidson, was for all intents and purposes a truly regal cake. It towered over guests, and every layer is embellished with fine detail to honor a royal family.
Click Here to see More Vintage Wedding Cakes, including one from 1901!
-Lauren Gordon, The Daily Meal
