Archaeologists unearth ancient bread that survived underground for 5k years
7 comments
·June 15, 2025teew
Anecdote from an archaeologist friend of mine: When she was a grad students she worked on a Pfahlbauer site (prehistoric dwellings from ~6000–1000 BCE) where lumps of organic material had been found in the 90s. After cursory analysis the lumps were presented as 'prehistoric bread' as there was evidence of different types of grain and even oats present. In the 2010s they created a likely recipe for 'ancient Pfahlbauer bread', curated an exhibition about experiemental archaeology, and partnered with local bakeries to sell breads based on the ancient recipe. Gaining a bit of media attention, they wanted to find out more about their samples. A closer round of analysis determined the lumps to likely be pieces of horse manure...
speerer
I love that they explain it is "preservative-free" - given the context of a 5,000 year preservation.
EndsOfnversion
They found the dwarf bread! Still looks and tastes like the day it was made.
riffraff
Obviously my first thought as well. For the uninitiated, dwarf bread[0] is Discworld's version of elf bread from lord of the rings.
It never goes stale, as it's already concrete-like when it's fresh.
It's also the source of my favorite pun in Pratchett's vast wordplay production: the scone of stone, where dwarves royalty is coronated.
King-Aaron
It's like that Burger Kind v McDonalds ad campaign to see who's bread moulds faster.
everyone
My first thought is the baker buried the bread out of shame for burning it, maybe they didnt want their parents to find out they just ruined some bread.
Original source (AFP which Fox mentions and phys.org reprints): https://phys.org/news/2025-05-ancient-bread-turkey-recreates... (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44151339)
The interesting part of the story is they've baked a replica (May 2025).. not discovered it (Sept 2024)