3,000-Year-Old Honey-Barley Bread Recreated in Ancient Hasankeyf

Researchers in Türkiye’s historic district of Hasankeyf have successfully recreated a 3,000-year-old honey-barley bread, using instructions preserved in cuneiform tablets from ancient Mesopotamia. The experimental culinary project, conducted by faculty members at Batman University’s Hasankeyf Vocational School, brings one of the world’s earliest documented bread recipes back to life.

The academic team—İlker Aksoy, Hüseyin Gül, Erşad Tan, Seren Kavas, and Esra Yıldırım—identified references to barley bread in 3rd Dynasty of Ur ration tablets, Old Babylonian baker records, and ritual food lists describing temple offerings. Their comparative analysis showed that similar bread was also produced across Ancient Rome and Classical Greece, emphasizing its widespread cultural significance.

From Cuneiform Tablets to a Working Culinary Formula

Project lead İlker Aksoy explained that barley bread appears frequently in early administrative tablets documenting daily provisions for laborers:

• “One barley bread for each female worker; two for each male worker…”
• “For the temple banquet: 12 large barley loaves, 6 loaves sweetened with honey…”

Their research also identified barley breads listed as ritual offerings and even priced items in economic documents from the Hammurabi period.

Using these texts, the team reassembled the recipe and produced a test batch using barley flour, honey, water, and sea salt—ingredients consistent with Bronze and Iron Age food traditions across Mesopotamia. Following multiple trials, they achieved a dough texture suitable for baking on hot stones, just as ancient bakers would have done.

The reconstructed recipe uses:

• 2 cups barley flour
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

“Touching the Food Heritage of a 12,000-Year Landscape”

Aksoy described the process as an emotional and intellectual journey:

“Understanding what people ate in this region over thousands of years—through scarcity, prosperity, and cultural change—gives us a deeper connection to the human story of Mesopotamia. Bringing an ancient bread back to life was profoundly meaningful.”

Cultural Heritage Meets Gastronomy Tourism

Batman University Rector Prof. Dr. İdris Demir emphasized that reintroducing the bread could contribute to both cultural heritage promotion and regional gastronomy tourism:

“This is not only a scientific achievement; it is a cultural revival. We plan to present this ancient bread at festivals and special events, showcasing a culinary tradition that once belonged to the peoples of Mesopotamia.”

Cover Photo: Freshly baked replicas of the 3,000-year-old barley loaves, made with barley flour, honey, warm water, and sea salt as described in ancient texts. Credit: AA