Egyptians may have been brewing beer 5,000 years ago

Israeli archaeologists have discovered fragments of small ceramic vessels used by ancient Egyptians in beer production about 5,000 years ago.

A fragment from a jar excavated in Tel Aviv. Photo: AFP

The team discovered the remains of a brewery at a construction site in Tel Aviv, Israel, which dates back some 5,000 years and belonged to an ancient Egyptian settlement.

"We found 17 small niches in the excavation area. They were used to store agricultural products during the Early Bronze Age (3500-3000 BC). Among the hundreds of pottery fragments characteristic of the local culture, some were fragments of large ceramic pots made in the traditional Egyptian way and used to prepare beer," the Telegraph quoted Diego Barkan, director of archaeological excavations at the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), as saying yesterday.

The discovery also provides the first evidence that Egyptians were present in the area of ​​present-day Tel Aviv. Previously, experts only knew that they were present in the Negev or the southern coastal plain.

Beer was an important part of the Egyptian diet, scientists say. Pyramids builders also received beer in their daily rations, and beer jars were buried with the dead.

In 1990, an archaeological team explored the Egyptian royal beer factory. Here, they found traces of 10 production chambers and beer residue.

According to VnExpress