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Abydos beer factory: Ancient large-scale brewery discovered in Egypt (2021)
- hrpnk 3y agoTwo good articles on recreation of ancient brews: https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/zymurgy/pharaoh-ale-brewing-a-replica-of-an-ancient-egyptian-beer/ https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/zymurgy/pharaoh-ale-b... – recreation of Egyptian Beer with dates and honey https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pwp/tofi/medieval_english_ale.html https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~pwp/tofi/medieval_english_ale.html – brewing of medieval ales without hops, incl. details on production process & tasting notes
- Loveaway 3y ago[flagged]
- JohnFen 3y ago> it's a bit incompatible with the notion of gravity and the way we think events did unfold. It's not that incompatible. I don't think we know for certain how those blocks were handled, but there are several very plausible ideas that have some supporting evidence. > Keep your mind open that is all. Indeed! But that goes both ways. Stay open to the possibility that the explanation is something pretty mundane (if impressive).
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 3y ago"It pays to keep an open mind, but not so open your brains fall out."
- newZWhoDis 3y agoDaniel Jackson was a fan of smooth brews
- smashed 3y ago> The brewery "may have been built in this place specifically to supply the royal rituals that were taking place inside the funeral facilities of the kings of Egypt" Or may be people were just thirsty and the beverage was both nutritious and safe to drink? Why would everything in ancient times be about rituals?
- Vecr 3y agoIt's a common joke that if an archeologist does not know what an item is, they call it a "ritual object".
- dmix 3y agoidk about ancient egypt but I've read some articles about one of the main house duties of women in the middle ages was brewing beer for the family. They'd have a vat in the house for the purpose and it wasn't always just a single-family home just like today. Today we assume a lot of centralization (the brewery 'factory') but IRL it was very local.
- FreshStart 3y agoRituals is archeology speak for "no idea why they did that and refusing to guess".. It's basically the null of cultural explanations.. Artifacts are surprisingly information poor out of context. It's remains and layered structures like old outhouses were the ancient lifestyles are discovered.
- DoreenMichele 3y agoIn ancient Egypt, beer was so essential it was treated principally as a type of food – it was consumed daily and in great quantities at religious festivals and celebrations. Beer was an essential for labourers, like those who built the pyramids of Giza, who were provided with a daily ration of 1⅓ gallons (over 10 pints). Yet it still had divine status, with several gods and goddesses associated with beer. Hathor, the goddess of love, dance and beauty, was also known as 'The Lady of Drunkenness'. https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/sip-history-ancient-egyptian-beer#:~:text=The%20Culture https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/sip-history-ancient-egypt... My recollection: When they recreated ancient Egyptian beer as best they could, they remarked that it wasn't bitter like modern beer.
- Scaevolus 3y agoBeer is mostly bitter because modern recipes use hops, which don't grow natively in Egypt. They could use other bittering agents, but their beer was closer to lightly fermented wheat porridge than the modern clear and bubbly beverage!
- tremon 3y agoMakes sense: a porridge is also more likely to be considered a type of food than a clear beverage.
- dendrite9 3y agoDid you listen to the recent Experimental Brewing podcast with Dr. Travis Rupp, the Beer Archaeologist? https://www.experimentalbrew.com/2023/07/11/brew-files-145-ancient-brewing/ https://www.experimentalbrew.com/2023/07/11/brew-files-145-a... The point that many current breweries have a smaller capacity than the uncovered one is interesting since there are so many more people today than in the time of Pharoahs.
- JoeAltmaier 3y agoSince beer was a safe drink while water sources were often polluted, this could also be viewed as an early water treatment plant.