By Tim Lambert Early Chocolate Chocolate is made from the fruit of the cocoa tree, which is native to Central America. It grows large, round fruits containing seeds or beans, which are used to make chocolate. However, for centuries, people drank chocolate rather than ate it. People in Central America drank chocolate as early as… Continue reading ,A History of Chocolate
Category: Daily Life in the Past
A Brief History of Bread
By Tim Lambert Ancient Bread For thousands of years, until the end of the 19th century, bread was ‘the staff of life’ in Western Asia and most of Europe. Indeed, the word bread was sometimes a synonym for food. In Prehistoric Times, people ate flatbread. It’s believed that the Egyptians discovered leavened bread. The staple… Continue reading A Brief History of Bread
A Brief History of Cats
By Tim Lambert Early Cats Cats were first domesticated about 8,000 BC, when humans in the Middle East started farming. They stored grain, which naturally attracted rodents. Cats began hanging around the grain stores to hunt. Humans appreciated cats hunting rodents and gave them food and shelter. Cats were useful animals. Cats were highly esteemed… Continue reading A Brief History of Cats
A Brief History of Coffee
By Tim Lambert The Discovery of Coffee The Ethiopians invented coffee. The coffee plant is native to Ethiopia. According to legend, coffee was discovered by an Ethiopian goatherd called Kaldi around the year 800. He noticed that goats that ate certain beans became very lively. So coffee was found. Later, people added hot water to… Continue reading A Brief History of Coffee
A Brief History of Contraceptives
By Tim Lambert Life was hard for women before artificial contraception. Not only did they usually have large numbers of children, but those children were also born close together. Reliable contraception was one of the great inventions of the 20th century. Of course, people have always attempted to prevent pregnancy. In Ancient Egypt, women made… Continue reading A Brief History of Contraceptives
A Brief History of Dentistry
By Tim Lambert Early Dentistry In Sumer (now Iraq) in 2000 BC, people believed that tooth decay was caused by worms. This strange belief carried on in the West until the 18th century. The Etruscans, an ancient civilization that existed in Italy after 800 BC, were excellent dentists. They made false teeth from human or… Continue reading A Brief History of Dentistry
A Brief History of Donkeys
By Tim Lambert The Domestication of Donkeys It’s believed that donkeys were domesticated in East Africa approximately 4,000 BC. They quickly spread to Egypt and Iraq. Donkeys were very useful beasts of burden. They were used to pull carts. They were also ridden. Donkeys are mentioned several times in the Bible. Jesus rode a donkey… Continue reading A Brief History of Donkeys
A Brief History of Easter
By Tim Lambert Early Easter Nobody is sure where the name Easter came from. The Anglo-Saxon name for April was Eostermunath. But we don’t know why April was called that. According to a Saxon scholar called Bede the month was named after a goddess called Eostre. But no other writer ever mentioned such a goddess… Continue reading A Brief History of Easter
A Brief History of Female Hygiene Products
By Tim Lambert Ancient Female Hygiene Products Some archaeologists think the Ancient Egyptians made tampons from the papyrus plant, but that is debated. In the Old Testament, a menstruating woman was regarded as ‘unclean’ for 7 days. (Leviticus 15:19-30). The Bible also mentions a menstrual cloth (Isaiah 30:22). In the Ancient World, menstrual cloths were… Continue reading A Brief History of Female Hygiene Products
A Brief History of Gold
By Tim Lambert Ancient Gold Human beings have always prized gold. The rich have always used it for jewelry and eating and drinking vessels. Since Ancient Times, gold has also been used in dentistry. The earliest evidence of gold comes from 3,600 BC. By about 600 BC, people were making gold coins. Our chemical symbol… Continue reading A Brief History of Gold