Were there agricultural methods used to make alcohol? How do archeologists explore the evidence of agriculture?

[River Sea]

Were there agricultural methods used to make alcohol? How do archeologists explore the evidence of agriculture?

What were the various reasons alcohol was used for, and were there any medical reasons for using it as medicine? If so, how did archeology find evidence of this?

I'm exploring areas of knowledge through agricultural evidence or the lack of evidence, yet how do others know about it?

 

[The Hammer]

Were there agricultural methods used to make alcohol? How do archeologists explore the evidence of agriculture?

In some places yes, and in others no. The evidence of agriculture is types of soil and rock disturbances, changes in plant morphology, displacement or bolstering of particular animal species etc.

"100,000 years ago (theoretically): At some point, Paleolithic humans or their ancestors recognized that leaving fruit in the bottom of a container for an extended period of time leads naturally to alcohol-infused juices."

How Long Have Humans Been Consuming Alcohol?

A timeline of the history of alcohol, when it was first developed and how it expanded into an important social element of modern culture.

www.thoughtco.com

What were the various reasons alcohol was used for, and were there any medical reasons for using it as medicine? If so, how did archeology find evidence of this?

Long term food storage, recreational and ritualistic usage. Even medicinally. We figure these things out through textual sources and indirect context clues, such as chemical residues in containers.

I'm exploring areas of knowledge through agricultural evidence or the lack of evidence, yet how do others know about it?

Through archaeology.

 

[The Hammer]

"The first clear evidence for activities that can be recognized as farming is commonly identified by scholars as at about 12,000 years ago, at about the same time as global temperatures began to rise at the end of the Pleistocene (the 'Ice Ages') and the transition to the modern climatic era, the Holocene."

Approaches to the Origins of Agriculture

Abstract. Humans have occupied our planet for several million years, but for almost all of that period they have lived as foragers, by various combinations

academic.oup.com

 

[rocala]

"The ability to metabolize alcohol likely predates humanity with primates eating fermenting fruit.

The oldest verifiable brewery has been found in a prehistoric burial site in a cave near Haifa, Israel. Researchers have found residue of 13,000-year-old beer that they think might have been used for ritual feasts to honour the dead. The traces of a wheat-and-barley-based alcohol were found in stone mortars carved into the cave floor. Some have proposed that alcoholic drinks predated agriculture, and it was the desire for alcoholic drinks that lead to agriculture and civilization."
Wikipedia History of alcoholic drinks - Wikipedia

I would imagine that various individuals and communities at different times on both sides of the agricultural revolution made discoveries. Overall though I would expect it to be a result of agriculture.

For there to be a surplus, safe from other creatures and in a container sounds very much like the beginnings of civilization to me.

 

[Quintessence]

Ants also do agriculture. And animal husbandry. Way, way before humans did. It is very cool:

"When humans began farming some 12,000 years ago, they altered the future of our species forever.​

​

...​

​

But humans were late to the game. By the time our ancestors had launched their world-changing Neolithic Revolution, ants had already been farming fungi in South American rainforests for 60 million years. These wee agricultural wizards used sophisticated techniques that rival our own—including domesticating crops that today are unknown in nature and are also unable to survive without their cultivators.​

​

...​

​

Today, about 240 species of attine ants—the leafcutters among them—are known to farm fungus in the Americas and the Caribbean."​

How Ants Became the World’s Best Fungus Farmers

Ancient climate change may have spurred a revolution in ant agriculture, Smithsonian researchers find

www.smithsonianmag.com

​

 

[The Hammer]

Ants also do agriculture. And animal husbandry. Way, way before humans did. It is very cool:

"When humans began farming some 12,000 years ago, they altered the future of our species forever.​

​

...​

​

But humans were late to the game. By the time our ancestors had launched their world-changing Neolithic Revolution, ants had already been farming fungi in South American rainforests for 60 million years. These wee agricultural wizards used sophisticated techniques that rival our own—including domesticating crops that today are unknown in nature and are also unable to survive without their cultivators.​

​

...​

​

Today, about 240 species of attine ants—the leafcutters among them—are known to farm fungus in the Americas and the Caribbean."​

How Ants Became the World’s Best Fungus Farmers

Ancient climate change may have spurred a revolution in ant agriculture, Smithsonian researchers find

www.smithsonianmag.com

​

Yes, you are right they absolutely do!

 

[Jimmy]

Ants also do agriculture. And animal husbandry. Way, way before humans did. It is very cool:

"When humans began farming some 12,000 years ago, they altered the future of our species forever.​

​

...​

​

But humans were late to the game. By the time our ancestors had launched their world-changing Neolithic Revolution, ants had already been farming fungi in South American rainforests for 60 million years. These wee agricultural wizards used sophisticated techniques that rival our own—including domesticating crops that today are unknown in nature and are also unable to survive without their cultivators.​

​

...​

​

Today, about 240 species of attine ants—the leafcutters among them—are known to farm fungus in the Americas and the Caribbean."​

How Ants Became the World’s Best Fungus Farmers

Ancient climate change may have spurred a revolution in ant agriculture, Smithsonian researchers find

www.smithsonianmag.com

​

Did we make lucky charms 12,000 years ago? Haha

 

[Quintessence]

Did we make lucky charms 12,000 years ago? Haha

I'm not sure that's even food. . .

 

[Jimmy]

I'm not sure that's even food. . .

It’s a treat

 

[Heyo]

In some places yes, and in others no. The evidence of agriculture is types of soil and rock disturbances, changes in plant morphology, displacement or bolstering of particular animal species etc.

Add to that the finding of tools like hoes and (later) ploughs.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Did we make lucky charms 12,000 years ago? Haha

Lucky charms have a history of older than 12,000 years. Even H. neanderthalensis were wearing necklaces of beads and nails. Some of these must have been charms for safety and good hunting.

Reconstruction of white-tailed eagle talon jewellery, 130,000-year-old from Krapina, Croatia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthal#Personal_adornment

 

[Heyo]

Lucky charms have a historyof older than 12,000 years. Even H. neanderthalensis were wearing necklaces of beads and nails. Some of these must have been charms for safety and good hunting.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neanderthal#Personal_adornment

Interesting, but I think you missed the point.

Lucky Charms - Wikipedia

 

[rocala]

Interesting, but I think you missed the point.

Yes he did and I, for one, am grateful. Aupmanyav's post was a lot more interesting than pathetic comments about breakfast cereal.

 

[Aupmanyav]

Interesting, but I think you missed the point.

Lucky Charms - Wikipedia

Ah, I do not think they have arrived in India. Of course, Oats is the new 'Fad', not that people were not using it before.
No problem. Government of India is promoting what were known as coarse grains.
10 Millets To Include In Your Diet - Rediff.com Get Ahead

 

[Heyo]

Ah, I do not think they have arrived in India.

Nor did they here. I had to look them up on DuckDuckGo. It was from the conversation that I deduced they didn't talk about amulets.

 

[wellwisher]

Were there agricultural methods used to make alcohol? How do archeologists explore the evidence of agriculture?

What were the various reasons alcohol was used for, and were there any medical reasons for using it as medicine? If so, how did archeology find evidence of this?

I'm exploring areas of knowledge through agricultural evidence or the lack of evidence, yet how do others know about it?

Alcohol production can and does happen, naturally. All you need is the sugars and acids within many fruits and some yeast cells that can be found in the soil from previous years of fruit drop. Today the yeast themself are refined, since they not only make the alcohol but help to create the complexity of the flavors and smells, of wine.

Growing up, one of my uncles had some mulberry trees. that made berry like fruit, that look like raspberries or blackberries but on a very thin stem. These berries were very delicate and once mature would self ferment on the tree. The birds would come at the right time, and eat the berries until they were singing and flying drunk. My guess is the first human alcohol consumption was from a natural source; late season gatherers. They eventually saw the cause and effect and started to scale it. Grapevines typically have plenty of yeast in the growing soil and if grapes falls to the ground and then are thrown back into the pile for storage, the process can begin.

There are yeast that can make ethyl alcohol and there are yeast that can make acetic acid or vinegar. Both are good preservation methods that can outlast the fresh fruit juices, and even get better with age. If you bought fresh juice without any preservatives and let sit beyond its expiration date it will self ferment. However, the proper acid level is important to the yeast and if not correct, it will also spoil.

All fruits have organic acids like citric acid and malic acid, which help the yeast and help avoid side bacterial reactions that can go septic. Grapes and Plums are perfect that way. Other fruits can work but often need some sugar and acid adjustment a make clean 12% alcohol. Sherry and Port Yeast are special in that they can reach 20% alcohol. After that humans had to wait for the invention of distillation by the Alchemists; spirits of wine. Although, in colder climates frozen wine or beer will separate the water as ice and leave a pocket of stronger alcohol.

 

[River Sea]

In some places yes, and in others no. The evidence of agriculture is types of soil and rock disturbances, changes in plant morphology, displacement or bolstering of particular animal species etc.

"100,000 years ago (theoretically): At some point, Paleolithic humans or their ancestors recognized that leaving fruit in the bottom of a container for an extended period of time leads naturally to alcohol-infused juices."

How Long Have Humans Been Consuming Alcohol?

A timeline of the history of alcohol, when it was first developed and how it expanded into an important social element of modern culture.

www.thoughtco.com

Long term food storage, recreational and ritualistic usage. Even medicinally. We figure these things out through textual sources and indirect context clues, such as chemical residues in containers.

Through archaeology.

@Hammer

You wrote, ""100,000 years ago (theoretically): At some point, Paleolithic humans or their ancestors recognized that leaving fruit in the bottom of a container for an extended period of time leads naturally to alcohol-infused juices.""

From website you shared

25,000 BCE: The Venus of Laussel, found in a French Upper Paleolithic cave, is a carved representation of a woman holding what looks like a cornucopia or a bison horn core. Some scholars have interpreted it as a drinking horn.

Found at YouTube more about Drinking horn.

How I scrape, sand, repair, and polish cattle horns. These can be used for decoration, as drinking horns, cut up into knife scales, tips for string nocks on archery bows, etc. Lots of uses if you get creative!

I want to add my thoughts: he did explain that he prefers to use older tools because they are quieter and he can mediate. Yet I notice he did use some modern tools.

Polishing Cattle Horns

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

Were there agricultural methods used to make alcohol?

Nature makes alcohol on its own. Elephants, apes and other animals have been getting plastered on fermenting marula fruit since before humans arrived on the scene.

 

[The Hammer]

Nature makes alcohol on its own. Elephants, apes and other animals have been getting plastered on fermenting marula fruit since before humans arrived on the scene.

Drunk squirrel:

 

[River Sea]

Nature makes alcohol on its own. Elephants, apes and other animals have been getting plastered on fermenting marula fruit since before humans arrived on the scene.

Growing up, one of my uncles had some mulberry trees. that made berry like fruit, that look like raspberries or blackberries but on a very thin stem. These berries were very delicate and once mature would self ferment on the tree. The birds would come at the right time, and eat the berries until they were singing and flying drunk.

Wow, that's amazing, @wellwisher that from your uncle's mulberry trees, birds eat the fermented berries until singing and flying drunk, what do these birds look like when flying drunk?

And seeing from @Evangelicalhumanist video - animals getting drunk from eating ripening fruits from Marula trees and they stumble as they walk. I have never seen this before when animals get drunk in nature.

Very interesting.