Saffron. Exotic, expensive, ancient. Have you ever considered the origin of this delightfully complex spice with its rich color and flavor? Today we’re bringing you a spectacular springtime recipe for Lemon Buttermilk Pie with Saffron, along with a brief history of the brilliant golden spice it features.
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Category Archives: Science and Technology
Bon Appetit Wednesday! Lemon Buttermilk Pie with Ancient Saffron
Happy Arbor Day! Trees Glorious Trees
Trees have always been awe-inspiring, even to our earliest ancestors. Trees can hold a poetic beauty as they sway in the breeze, musical tones fluttering from their leaves, colors riotously changing with the season. They are hallmarks of our holidays. They are the chroniclers of time, capturing in a ringed litany the ebb and wane of the world in which they are rooted. Trees protect, offer food, preserve the soil and provide resources. Indeed, one of their earliest representations illustrates the importance of trees to cultures through the ages: Continue reading
Posted in Art, Biology, Blog, Culture, Holidays, Public Life, Religion, Science and Technology
Tagged ancient history, ancient trees, AntiquityNOW, Arbor Day, Don Ramon Vacas Roxo, J. Sterling Norton
Yakety-Yak, How We Do Talk Back: The Hydraulic Telegraph of Aeneas – Long-distance Communication of Antiquity
Through the ages humans have sought to communicate with each other. On a primal level, language developed out of necessity: “Sabre-toothed tiger…run!” or “Fire…ow!” served obvious purposes and were intended to preserve the species. Memorializing their lives was a common force driving early cultures, and communication took many forms. Lacking any type of writing, people relied on memory, oral histories, art, monuments and other elements to document who they were. The ability to communicate and record contemporary times became more important as societies evolved and grew. The passing centuries brought the realization that in communicating with others, there were limitations to perfecting a memory, drawing pictures and shouting to the next village (hoarseness being a little known driver of human innovation). As a result, the 3rd – 4th centuries BCE found the Phoenicians creating an alphabet and the Sumerians devising cuneiform writing (pictographs on clay tablets). The Egyptians were also hard at work recording their life and times through hieroglyphics. Here’s a look at some other advances we take for granted today that are courtesy of our ever-chattering ancestors[1]: Continue reading
Strata: Portraits of Humanity, Episode 5, “Archaeology in 12 Minutes” and “Photographing the Invisible”
Episode 5 of the new documentary series Strata: Portraits of Humanity, produced by AntiquityNOW’s partner, Archaeological Legacy Institute, is a two-part episode 1) illustrating the history of archaeology and 2) demonstrating one of the technologies used today to recover the amazing artistry of our ancestors. Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Art, Blog, Computer Technology, Culture, Education, Public Life, Science and Technology, Strata Curricula
Tagged ancient history, AntiquityNOW, Archaeological Legacy Institute, archaeology and photography, archaeology curricula, free lesson plan, Strata Portraits of Humanity, The Archaeology Channel
Newly Discovered Cheese Isn’t Just Aged, It’s Ancient!
Image credit: Wang da Gang
A recent discovery has uncovered new, hard – or in this case, semi-soft – evidence of the history behind one of our very favorite foods. Whether the scent is described as floral or nutty or even malodorous to the nose, the smooth taste of cheese is nonetheless an enduring delight to the palate. It is believed that cheese has been enjoyed by humans since before recorded history. There are several theories as to its exact origin, but all of these theories are speculation based on evidence of cheese production, not of any cheese itself. Well, now we have some ancient cheese of our very own to study. Continue reading
The Ancient Roots of Modern Hygiene Part 2
In Part 1 of our ancient hygiene post we discussed the psychology behind our need for hygiene, our long history of soap-making and even ancient cosmetics. Now, continue on this journey with us to discover more ancient efforts to fight the “yuck.” Continue reading
The Ancient Roots of Modern Hygiene Part 1
If you’re worried that modern society makes us all vain, have no fear. Truth is, we’ve been primping, prepping and peacocking for centuries.
Case in point: one particularly fussy Iron Age man found preserved in a peat bog. After all of that time underground, his hairstyle endured thanks to an early form of hair gel made from plant oil and pine resin.[1] And our ancient ancestors cooked up more than hair gel. Since we can breeze into a store for a selection of health and beauty products, you’ll be impressed by what the ancients tenaciously concocted with their limited resources. Continue reading
Bon Appetit Wednesday! Ancient Magical Kefir
Image courtesy of Yuriybrisk on Wikimedia Commons.
We’ve written before about the benefits of looking to our past for nutritious foods. Many ancient cultures thrived in part because of the healthy, natural staples in their diets such as amaranth and quinoa in Mesoamerica, the adzuki bean in Japan and seaweed in Asia and the British Isles. Today, we’re bringing you a recipe for a delicious smoothie that features an ancient ingredient called kefir. It’s the perfect nutrient-packed start to your morning. Continue reading
Tattoos and the Body as Canvas: Erasing the Past With Modern Tattoos
We’ve written before about tattoos in our post Tattoos and the Body as Canvas. How from ancient times people have etched into flesh the story of their lives. From designs that heighten beauty, signify status, show affiliation or even scourge a social outcast, tattoos have always been about designations. Indeed, our body as canvas is at once both intimate and public. For some, tattoos depict their innermost beings for the world to see. For others, particularly when used to announce a person’s outlier status in society, tattoos are meant to be felt as a visceral destruction of self. Continue reading
Posted in Beauty, Blog, Crime, Culture, Healing Arts, Human Rights, Public Life, War and Violence
Tagged ancient art, ancient history, ancient tattoos, AntiquityNOW, Basma Hameed, scar removal, tattoos over scars
Ancient Egyptian Blue: How the World’s First Synthetic Pigment Is Producing Tomorrow’s Brave—and Colorful–New World
Have you ever noticed that the AntiquityNOW website has splashes of a particular set of vibrant colors? Perhaps you’ve even found the Our Colors section on our site that reveals the ancient history behind our beauteous array. One color, specifically the deep blue, is particularly intriguing with its 4,500-year-old past, its surprising relevance for today’s scientific inquiry and its future promise for such fields as medicine and communications technology. Continue reading
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