It’s known as one of Scotland’s most popular dishes, and now a new study has found porridge was eaten by Neolithic people more than 5,500 years ago.
Researchers have found evidence that grain was used as early as 3600 BC. in well-preserved pots found in the Outer Hebrides.
The team performed a chemical analysis of ancient pottery found in waters around small artificial islands called crannogs.
Grains were cooked in pots and mixed with dairy products and occasionally meat, probably to make early forms of porridge, gruel, and stew, they found.
Today, porridge is the most common type of porridge eaten by Britons, although the ancient Scots ate a wheat porridge, analysis suggests.
The research team found traces of wheat in the pots, but no oats or barley.
Large pottery shard and reconstruction of a fluted baggy jug from Loch Langabhat in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland
Today, porridge is the most common type of porridge eaten by the British, although the ancient Scots ate a wheat porridge (pictured).
The research was carried out by Dr. Simon Hamman and Dr. Lucy Cramp at Bristol University’s Department of Anthropology and Archaeology.
“We show that grain-specific markers can survive in cooking pots for millennia, revealing the consumption of certain grain species (wheat) that are virtually absent in the archaeobotanical record for this region, and shedding light on the culinary traditions of early farming communities,” they say in their paper.
“Wheat, for example, may have been cooked in soups or porridges, resulting in minor incidental charring of the grain but presentation in lipid residues.”
For their study, the team analyzed pottery recovered from four small man-made islands called crannogs that date back to the Neolithic period in the Outer Hebrides.
They selected 59 potsherds from a range of pottery including traditional Hebridean ribbed and non-ribbed baggy jars, as well as ‘unstan’ – flat bowls with a groove pattern – and shouldered bowls.
Gas chromatography and high-resolution mass spectrometry were then used to analyze organic residues from these ceramic remains.
The researchers discovered molecular biomarkers for wheat and other foods cooked in the vessels, such as animal fats, that are indicative of milk and meat.
Neolithic communities in the region may have existed between 3600 and 3300 BC. ate wheat as they show.
For their study, the team analyzed pottery recovered from four small man-made islands called crannogs that date back to the Neolithic period in the Outer Hebrides
The photograph shows an ‘unstan’ type of shell – flat shells with grooved patterns – recovered from the Loch Arnish lake bed
Pictured is a sizeable shard of Early Neolithic pottery as found in Loch Bhogastail
“This research gives us a glimpse into the culinary traditions of the early farmers living on the north-western edge of Europe, about whose way of life little is known,” said study author Dr. Lucy Cramp from Bristol University.
“It gives us our first glimpse of the types of practices that have been associated with these enigmatic island sites.”
Ancient people may have eaten this porridge on these ancient crannogs before they landed on the bottom of the sea.
Overall, the analysis showed processing of wheat – but not barley – at all four Crannog sites, which was in some ways unprecedented.
‘This is in stark contrast to other data on grain grains found in the wider region of Scotland during the Neolithic period,’ the authors say.
‘[These]with only a few Early Neolithic exceptions, show a remarkable dominance of barley over wheat, particularly in this Atlantic region.
“Our data are therefore in apparent contrast to the archaeobotanical record, which indicates that very little wheat was consumed in Atlantic Scotland throughout the Neolithic period.”
However, the team adds that their findings “do not preclude processing barley alongside wheat in these pots.”
Pictured is an aerial view of the Crannog of Loch Bhorgastail and its causeway (a raised road or driveway)
Researchers also discovered that people visiting these crannogs used smaller pots to cook cereal with milk and larger pots for meat dishes.
The team “observed a strong association between the presence of dairy products and vessels with smaller mouths,” likely because smaller mouths on the vessels made it easier to pour milk.
In addition, many of the pots analyzed were intact and decorated, which may indicate that they had a ceremonial purpose.
Curiously, the function of the crannogs themselves is not fully understood either, with some being far too small to be permanently cast.
Crannog sites in the Outer Hebrides are currently the focus of a research project led by some of the papers’ authors that could unlock their mysteries.
The new findings were published today in the journal Nature Communications.
Britain began the transition from ‘hunter-gatherers’ to agriculture and settlement around 7,000 years ago as part of the ‘Neolithic Revolution’.
The Neolithic Revolution was the world’s first recorded agricultural revolution.
It began in Britain between about 5000 B.C.
The period saw the widespread transition of many different human cultures from nomadic hunting and gathering practices to practices of farming and building small settlements.
The most famous prehistoric structure in Europe, possibly the world, Stonehenge was built by Neolithic people and later expanded during the early Bronze Age
The revolution was responsible for transforming small bands of travelers into sedentary communities that built villages and towns.
Some cultures used irrigation and made forest clearings to improve their farming techniques.
Others stored food for times of famine, and agriculture eventually led to different roles and divisions of labor in societies and commercial economies.
In Britain, the period was triggered by a major migration or popular movement from across the English Channel.
During the Neolithic Revolution, people in Britain moved from groups of nomadic hunter-gatherers to sedentary communities. Some of the earliest monuments in Britain are Neolithic structures including Silbury Hill in Wiltshire (pictured)
Today, prehistoric monuments in Britain range from the time of the Neolithic farmers to the Roman invasion of AD 43.
Many of these are maintained by English Heritage and range from standing stones to massive stone circles and from burial mounds to hill forts.
The most famous prehistoric structure in Europe, possibly the world, Stonehenge was built by Neolithic people and later completed during the Bronze Age.
Neolithic structures were typically used for ceremonies, religious festivals, and as centers for trade and social gatherings.
