Egyptian archaeologists have unearthed a 5,000-year-old beer factory that is said to be the world’s oldest brewery to date.
A joint Egyptian-American team discovered the site in the ancient burial site of Abydos, located 11km west of the Nile.
Abydos is one of Egypt’s oldest cities and is currently home to large-scale temples and cemeteries rich in Egyptian history.
The beer factory contains 8 large areas spanning 65 feet each, with numerous units containing around 40 pots which were used to heat water and grain to make beer.
Archaeologists have discovered what may be the world's oldest brewery, built for ancient Egyptian kings: https://t.co/JeoEfP3JeL pic.twitter.com/e8Q1Y5GOB9
— Artnet (@artnet) February 22, 2021
According to the Supreme Council of Antiquities, this beer factory dates back to the period of King Narmer of the Early Dynastic Period, making this site “the oldest high-production brewery in the world.”
King Narmer founded the First Dynasty of Egypt in 3100BC, unifying what was once a divided country.
A lot of work is still to be done on this site, however, with many treasures still lying in wait.
It “may have been built in this place specifically to supply the royal rituals that were taking place inside the funeral facilities of the kinds of Egypt,” quoted an Egyptian tourism minister in the words of Mathew Adams, head of the mission.
Archaeologists believe this to have been a large-scale production site producing around 5,000 gallons of beer at a time.
Egypt has unearthed the ‘world’s oldest’ mass-production brewery, believed to be more than 5,000 years old 👉 https://t.co/yT4PwtSaNN pic.twitter.com/RNbp4p8Q06
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) February 15, 2021
This discovery has come at an opportune time however, gaining interest in the country during a global pandemic.
With the outbreak of the Coronavirus back in March 2019, Egypt has suffered great losses in revenue due to an exponential drop in national and international tourism.
Tourist numbers plummeted from 13.1 million in 2019 to 3.5 million in 2020, leaving the country in dire straits.
Having experienced a severe loss in revenue in recent months, the Egyptian tourism industry is keen to promote this discovery in order to encourage a rush in tourism to its country once again.
Madeleine Raine
Featured image courtesy of Mo Gabrail via Unsplash. This image has in no way been altered. Image license is available here.