Ancient Egyptian beer vessels found in Israel

Further evidence of ancient brewing has been discovered at an archaeological site in Israel with the unearthing of fragments of ancient Egyptian beer vessels.

A fragment of the basin. Photo courtesy: Israel Antiquities Authority

Thought to be more than 5,000 years old, the pottery fragments were dug up in Tel Aviv and show that the ancient Egyptian’s occupation of modern Israel extended further north than previously thought.

Formerly, Egyptian settlement in the Early Bronze Age (3500 – 3000 BC) was thought to have been largely confined to the southern Negev region and around the Mediterranean coastline.

“Among the hundreds of pieces of pottery typical of the local culture, we found several large fragments of ceramic basins made in the Egyptian tradition, and used for making beer,” said Diego Barkan, director of the excavation for the Israel Antiquities Authority.

The “beer” would have been a simple mixture of barley and water left to ferment in the sun. Beer was an integral part of ancient Egyptian life, last year a Japanese team uncovered the tomb of a brewer in Egypt.

The find is just the latest in a string of ancient artifacts and sites that have been found in the eastern Mediterranean in recent years and shed fresh light on ancient brewing and winemaking practices and consumption of beer and wine.

Also found last year was an “industrial” winery in Israel and a cup thought to have been used by Athenian statesman Pericles in a suburb of the city.