Morning session - part 1 11:15-12:45
From Organic to Ceramic Remains: The Biomolecular Signature of an Ancient Ferment
Tziona Ben-Gedalya (1,2) Cynthianne Spiteri (3,4) Herodium Expedition (5)
Eastern R&D Center, Ariel, Israel (1) - Department of Molecular Biology& Adelson School of Medicine, Ariel University, Israel (2) - Eberhard Karls University Tübingen, Germany (3) - ArchaeoBiomics, Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Italy. (4) - Herodium Expedition, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel (5)
Located on the margins of the Judean desert along the Dead Sea rift, within an earthquake prone region, the site of Herodium combines well-defined archaeological evidence of an early Roman period winery, the Judean desert climate, and contexts sealed by ancient episodes of collapse attributed to earthquakes. Together, these features position the Herodium winery as an exceptional case study, providing the opportunity to systematically study well preserved organic remains of ancient winemaking.
We conducted a micro-excavation of the fermentation vessels and collected samples and controls for a wide interdisciplinary study to contextualize our findings. We here focus on the organic residue results.
Preservation of ancient wine signatures was explored in different substrates and archaeological artefacts including ceramic fermentation vessels, their coatings , ancient grape pomace remains and sediment controls.
Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry, we observed well-preserved residues demonstrating evidence of wine and pine tar/resin, the latter probably used as a sealant as thick remnants were found adhering to the inner surfaces of the ceramic containers. The residues we identify complement the evidence obtained from a suite of scientific analyses.
This study provides insights regarding the interpretation of wine in archaeological findings, enhances understanding of wine making traditions in the Mediterranean basin and informs on a culinary aspect of the vibrant Roman influenced glocalization processes in Judea at the end of the first century BCE.
