Ancient chickpeas, bread remains found during excavations

KONYA

Archaeologists have unearthed 4,000-year-old chickpeas at Tavşanlı Höyük in the western province of Kütahya and discovered 8,600-year-old bread remains at Çatalhöyük in the central province of Konya.

“We unearthed 4,000-year-old chickpeas in Kütahya Tavşanlı Höyük, 8,600-year-old bread remains in Konya Çatalhöyük, and thousands-of-years-old bread remains in Eskişehir Küllüoba and Karaman Topraktepe,” Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy announced.

“These findings reveal Anatolia’s production traditions, belief systems, and food culture as a whole. Just as Türkiye stands out today in gastronomy, thousands of years ago, Anatolia was also a center of abundance and cultural richness,” he added.

According to the ministry, chickpea remains — the raw material of roasted chickpeas — were found during this year’s excavation season at Tavşanlı Höyük. Dated to the Middle Bronze Age, the samples were found alongside wheat grains, clay vessels and a silver hair ring. Microscopic analysis by excavation team member Doğa Karakaya confirmed that the remains belong to Anatolia’s early agricultural culture.

In 2022, 4,200-year-old hazelnut remains were also found at the same site. Analyses showed they belonged to a local shrub hazelnut species (Corylus).

The discoveries in Tavşanlı reveal the deep roots of Anatolia’s agricultural traditions, while ancient bread remains found in different regions show how these practices were reflected in dining and rituals.

At Çatalhöyük, archaeologists found an 8,600-year-old fermented bread; at Küllüoba Höyük in Eskişehir, a 5,000-year-old ritual bread; and at Topraktepe (Eirenepolis) in Karaman, 1,300-year-old decorated barley breads.

Analysis of the Küllüoba bread identified emmer wheat and lentils, and showed it had been baked at around 140 degrees. A piece of the bread had been broken off, then burned as part of a fertility ritual and buried near a doorway at the back of a house, indicating how closely intertwined agricultural and belief practices were at the time.

Foods such as bread, chickpeas and hazelnuts reflect not only dietary habits but also agricultural production, social rituals and spiritual life.