Wine-making goes back more than 6,000 years in Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - Wine's time with humankind goes back more than 6,000 years in Armenia.

Discovered in the Areni-1 cave near the Iranian border, a team led by UCLA archaeologist Hans Barnard, details of the ancient wine press find appear in an upcoming Journal of Archaeological Science. The study reports discovery of a wine vat, wine-stained pots and grape remains, as well as a drinking bowl, located near a cemetery inside the cave.

"We believe the wine was made there for ritual activity," says UCLA's Gregory Areshian, co-director of the excavation site. "But the people living outside the cave in the region likely made wine all the time," he says, based on the evidence of the expertise needed to craft the wine vats and pots.

Archaeologists have found evidence of wine-making throughout the ancient world, but the 4,000 BC carbon dating at the site appears the oldest yet for confirmed wine vessels, Areshian adds. The team found chemical evidence of a grape-coloring compound, along with the preserved grape remains. Fermented wine and beer's production is widely thought to have spurred the spread of agriculture and trade in prehistoric times.

A layer of ancient sheep dung above the wine press site preserved much of the grape material from decay. The same team reported discovery of an ancient leather shoe at the site last year.

"It is a wonderful site," Areshian says. "The preservation is very good, and we hope to find more."

The work was supported by the National Geographic Society, National Science Foundation and private foundations, usatoday.com reported.