The remains of a biblical-era honey farm were discovered in Israel.
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem announced this week that its archeologists had uncovered an apiary, or man-made beehive colony, dating from the 10th to early ninth century BCE.
The discovery was made during a summer dig at the site of the ancient Israelite community of Tel Rehov in the Beit She’an valley. It is believed to be the earliest evidence of honey being harvested by humans in the Middle East.
The find consisted of three ties of hives with access points for bees and for removing honey. Experts who visited the site estimated that the apiary might have produced as much as half a ton of honey a year.
Israel was dubbed the “Land of Milk and Honey” in the Bible, though some sages suggest the honey referred to was the sap of dates.
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