Ancient feces suggest beer and blue cheese consumption 2,700 years ago

[guy]

 

There have been previous threads about the importance of salt and salt mining in the ancient world:

A recent study looking at fecal samples found in an Iron Age Hallstatt salt mine give some interesting insights. 
 

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“Researchers who've studied ancient fecal samples (or paleofeces) from these mines have uncovered some surprising evidence: the presence of two fungal species used in the production of blue cheese and beer.”

Hallstatt is a town in Austria known for its Iron Age salt mines and salt production.

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“In the new study, Maixner, Kowarik, and their colleagues added in-depth microscopic, metagenomic, and proteomic analyses -- to explore the microbes, DNA, and proteins that were present in those poop samples.

These comprehensive studies allowed them to reconstruct the diet of the people who once lived there. They also could get information about the ancient microbes that inhabited their guts. Gut microbes are collectively known as the gut microbiome and are now recognized to have an important role in human health.“

 

 

This analysis of the fecal samples found the two fungal species used for fermentation. These species could be used for beer and blue cheese production.
 

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“ When the researchers extended their microbial survey to include fungi, that's when they got their biggest surprise: an abundance in one of their Iron Age samples of Penicillium roqueforti and Saccharomyces cerevisiae DNA.“

Fermented foods require microorganisms to be produced or preserved. These include beer, cheese, yogurt, sauerkraut, kefir, miso, kimchi, nattō, among others. 
The fungus Penicillium roqueforti, for example, gives blue cheese its distinct blue-green veined appearance and taste:

 

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211013114028.htm

Summary: Modern analysis, including DNA and microbial studies, is shedding light on ancient life. These findings in the article are the result of analysis of ancient fecal samples.

Edited February 2 by guy