Image: Eric H. Cline, George Washington University
In November of 2013, a team from George Washington University was conducting an archaeological excavation in Israel when they unearthed a 3,700-year-old wine cellar. The excavation site, in the ruins of a Canaanite palace in northern Israel, is close to modern wineries.
The team found 40 3-foot-tall jars in what was possibly a storage area. Each jar held wine once enjoyed by the Canaaanites. The scientists were able to collect the substance left in the bottom of the jars and analyze it, which helped them understand what kind of wine the ancient peoples of the area consumed.
The contents of the wine residue included tree resins, honey, mint, juniper berries, cinnamon and cedar. Age analysis of the find led researchers to believe that the craft of winemaking was developed in that region prior to spreading to the Mediterranean and Egypt.
Read about more recent and fascinating archaeological discoveries that lent insight into the past in this article at Listverse.