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Wine in Ancient Egypt: sources of evidence

wine seeds from the settlements of Tell Ibrahim Awad and Tell el-Fara'in (Buto)
seeds do not necessarily indicate wine production
Naqada culture
an object depicted on seals has been interpreted as a wine press
.
First Dynasty
the word irp - 'wine' appears
.
Second Dynasty
large storage jars for a liquid, most likely wine, have been found in several early tombs.
UC 16083
it is not certain that the jars contained wine
First and Second Dynasty
offering lists mention different varieties of wine (click on the image for more information)
part of offering list
mainly Old and Middle Kingdom
scenes of wine production are well-known from several private tombs
.
Old, Middle and New Kingdom
the many handwritten labels on wine jars found at Amarna, Malqata and other sites provide a rich source of information
.
New Kingdom (about 1550-1069 BC)
there is extensive textual evidence from different sources, including papyri and ostraca written in Greek and Coptic
UC 62835
Ptolemaic, Roman and Byzantine Egypt

Murray/Boulton/Heron 2000


 

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