image: This is a g globular jar fitted with a funnel-steamer in the Baoji Museum in Shaanxi province, China. view more
Credit: Image courtesy of Li Liu.
A study finds evidence of alcohol production techniques in Neolithic pottery from China. Previous studies have found that the diversity of specialized pottery containers in China increased between around 7,000 and 9,000 years ago and that Chinese people developed an early form of alcohol. However, the link between the two findings has not been explored. Li Liu and colleagues analyzed food residues adhering to the interior surfaces of Neolithic pottery vessels dating to between 7,000 and 8,000 years ago. The authors found traces of starch, phytoliths, and fungi, suggesting that the pottery contained alcoholic beverages. According to the authors, a series of developments led to the proliferation of alcohol production in Neolithic China. The first advance was the spread of cereal domestication, including millets and rice, which were likely the primary ingredients of fermented beverages. The second advance was the development of globular pottery jars as storage containers, and the third advance was the development of two distinct methods for alcohol production. One of the methods used cereal malts as a fermentation starter, and another method used moldy grains and herbs as starters. Additional plants that may have been used as ingredients include Triticeae grasses, Job's tears, snake gourd root, ginger, yam, and lily. The resulting product was likely a low-alcohol beverage. According to the authors, the results extend and deepen the history of alcohol production in Neolithic China.
Article #19-02668: "The origins of specialized pottery and diverse alcohol fermentation techniques in Early Neolithic China," by Li Liu et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Li Liu, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA; tel: 650-644-7244, 650-575-9883; e-mail: liliu@stanford.edu
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences