In the neverending quest to find the true origins of North Carolina barbecue, I submit this image from the North Carolina Collection’s new online exhibit of hand-colored Theodore De Bry engravings:
I know what the purists will say: that’s grilling, not barbecue, and it has to be pork to count. Nonetheless, I hold firm that this is the first image of North Carolina barbecue ever to be published. Now if only we knew what kind of sauce they used.