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The history of honey is rich in tradition. This ancient substance has been used for food, drinks, medicine, gifts for the gods, barter, cosmetics, cooking, food preservation, cosmetics, art, etc. It has been used in religion, art, mythology, legends and literature as well as studied by scientists.
The oldest written reference to the use of honey is thought to be Egyptian, of about 5500BC. At that time Lower Egypt was called Bee Land while Upper Egypt was Reed Land. By the 5th dynasty (c.2600BC) apiculture was well established and is shown in several reliefs in the temple of the Sun at Abusir. The use of honey was taken to India by its Aryan invaders and became associated with religious rites. Honey is also mentioned on ancient Sumerian clay tablets, possibly even older than the Egyptian reference. Later Babylonian tablets give recipes for "electuaries" medicines based on honey. An electuary mentioned in the 1st century AD by the Roman writer Pliny the Elder included powdered bees. It was said to be a cure for dropsy and bladder stones.
Honey in first aid. In Ancient Egypt honey was the most popular medicament of all, it is mentioned some 500 times in the 900 remedies that are known. Honey was also a common ingredient of medieval medicines, for it was often the only substance available to make some of the more nauseating ingredients palatable. But in early cures and remedies, for instance those described in medieval leech books, honey seems to be cited for frequently for external than for internal use. Many properties have been attributed to honey which have no foundation in fact, as a cure for serious disorders such as consumption and the plague. Nevertheless, honey is used today in hospitals proprietary and dispensed medicines.
A Book of Honey, Eva Crane (Charles Scribner:New York) 1980 (p. 96-99)
A Book of Honey, Eva Crane (Charles Scribner:New York) 1980 (p. 96-99)
There is a trivia quiz on the Internet that asks Which food does not go bad? The answer provided is honey. In fact, we have evidence of several foods that can last hundred of years (and still be edible) as long as they are properly treated and stored. Some of most ancient are honey and dried,salted,frozen meats. Notes on the longevity of honey:
In 1800 some archaelogists working in Egypt found a large jar of honey. They opened it and found that it tasted perfect even though it was thousands of years old.
Sue Shepard (Simon & Schuster:New York) 2000 (p. 11)
Sue Shepard (Simon & Schuster:New York) 2000 (p. 11)
The shelf life of honey is sometimes quoted commerically as 2 1/2 years, but honey does not go bad as many foods do, it is still wholesome after decades. The oldest honey I have seen is in the Agricultural museum at Dokki in Egypt, where two honey pots from New Kingdom tombs (c. 1400BC) still have their contents in them. It is important to store honey under suitable conditions. If honey is not kept sealed it can deteriorate through fermentation, if it is stored at high temperatures...honey can deteriorate through abnormal chemical reactions.
A Book of Honey, Eva Crane (Scribner's:New York) 1980 (p. 41-2)
A Book of Honey, Eva Crane (Scribner's:New York) 1980 (p. 41-2)
Honey bees were not native to the Americas. Aztec and Mayan cultures of South and Central America kcpt colonies of native, stingless bees for their honey and wax, mainly for use as a medicine. We do not know precisely when the first colonies of honey bees were brought to North America. Ships crossing the Atlantic in the winter carried bee colonies to Virginia before 1622 and to Massachusetts prior to 1638. The honey bee did very well in the forest clearings of early colonial America, using the abundant nectar and pollen available from the trees and shrubs native to the eastern U.S. As European settlers spread across the U.S., they took bee hives with them. Bees were recorded in Florida by 1763 and west of the Mississippi by 1800. Russian settlers carried bees to Alaska in 1809 and to California by 1830. The Spanish may have brought them from Mexico into the southwest before that date.
By http://ag.udel.edu/enwc, University of Delaware
Coconut Honey Bananas
Copyright 2011 Christine's Pantry. All rights reserved.
Ingredients:
4 bananas, peeled and cut in halve lengthwise
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons coconut
cool whip, optional
Directions:
Peel bananas and cut in halve lengthwise. Drizzle honey over bananas. Sprinkle with coconut. Add dollop of cool whip. Serve immediately. Enjoy!
