Eight charred loaves of bread, approximately 5,000 years old, have been discovered on Seyitomer Hill in Kütahya Province, western Turkey. The find has been dated to the Early Bronze Age and survived thanks to a fire that turned the bread into charcoal, thereby limiting its decomposition. Remains of wheat and lentils were also found next to it.
In 2025, archaeologists discovered a stove and the remains of a shelf along the wall in one of the rooms. The eight loaves of bread were lying between the shelf’s legs, together with the grains and legumes.
“During the excavations, we discovered eight charred loaves of bread between the legs of the shelf in the area where the stove was located,” said excavation director Sevgi Gürdal, who is also the director of the Kütahya Museum. According to her, bread and agricultural products were probably stored on the shelf in sacks or bags, and when the fire broke out, the structure collapsed and its contents became mixed together.
The bread’s composition is still unknown
The presence of wheat and lentils around the find indicates that the room was used not only to prepare food but also to store provisions. However, the laboratory analyses are not yet public. Therefore, it is not known exactly how the bread was baked, what shape it had or what ingredients were used.
Seyitomer Hill is located approximately 25 kilometers northwest of central Kütahya. The settlement dates back to the third millennium BC, and excavations have revealed layers from the Early and Middle Bronze Ages, as well as from the Achaemenid, Hellenistic and Roman periods.
Excavations have been ongoing since 1989
Rescue archaeological studies began in 1989 because of a lignite deposit beneath the hill, which is located in the area of a thermal power plant. Over the years, various museum directorates and Kütahya’s Dumlupınar University have taken part in the work.
Archaeologists have handed over more than 17,000 artifacts to the Kütahya Museum Directorate. The eight loaves of bread, along with the wheat and lentils found next to them, are now on display at the Archaeological and Mining Museum in Kütahya.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg, hurriyetdailynews.com