The village of Tel Tsaf, Israel: an overview of Area C with courtyard buildings, comprising rectangular and rounded rooms and rounded silos.Image credit: Y. Garfinkel
Posted on 06/19/2022 11:50:40 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Archeologists excavating at the Chalcolithic site of Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel, have discovered one of the earliest examples of fruit tree cultivation worldwide, demonstrating that olive (Olea europaea) and common fig (Ficus carica) horticulture was practiced as early as 7,000 years ago.
Today, the olive is considered the most prominent and probably the economically most important fruit tree of the Mediterranean Basin.
Cultivation caused its distribution to expand into areas otherwise beyond its natural habitats...
The charcoal assemblage of Tel Tsaf provides the earliest evidence of olive cultivation outside its natural distribution.
It also offers evidence for early cultivation of common fig, both dated to 7,000 years before present...
The researchers hypothesize that established horticulture contributed to more elaborate social contracts and institutions since olive oil, table olives, and dry figs were highly suitable for long-distance trade and taxation.
(Excerpt) Read more at sciencedaily.com ...
The village of Tel Tsaf, Israel: an overview of Area C with courtyard buildings, comprising rectangular and rounded rooms and rounded silos.Image credit: Y. Garfinkel
Pimentos, martini’s, and fig newtons came later.
How did the first person figure out how to eat an olive? Were there even pimentos yet? Gin?
A book I once read said that fig trees date back to the earliest days of the garment industry.
I wonder when they decided that using virgins to press the olives made the best oil? And did they prefer male or female virgins?
Easy to dry and carry, full of sugars and, unlike plants, trees do not require a great deal of care to cultivate.
You can also make some really good wine out of them.
The other links take you to an article on e-coli.
Interesting, but not nearly as tasty as figs.
Native Americans early on learned to isolate and treat the soil for oaks and other trees. Long growing cycle, but they didn’t have commercials every 12 minutes, either.
Ah, yes, Hotel Tsaf. I stayed there once.
If I recall correctly, Room 612 was comfy and had a nice corner window, but the troglodytes next door in Silo 568 partied all night, banging sticks and stones. I’d recommend Room 70, but it’s next to the kitchen, hotter than hell and reeked of olive oil, which you might as well order by the glass because the vintage of the wine is always yesterday. Worst of all, there was no wifi, no room service, no hot water (except in Room 70), and no valet.
“A book I once read said that fig trees date back to the earliest days of the garment industry.”
On my chart, I have you leading for funniest post of the day.
“A book I once read said that fig trees date back to the earliest days of the garment industry.”
True but in the earliest days fig tailors charged far too much for custom fittings.
But it wasn’t long before they were replaced by leather britches.
They saw birds eating them, most likely.
I wonder when they decided that using virgins to press the olives made the best oil? And did they prefer male or female virgins?
= = =
Coming soon - -
“Virgin” no longer allowed as an Olive Oil descriptor.
Use “Experienced or Worn out”
Pimentos, martini’s, and fig newtons came later.
The reason for olives being cultivated was that they were needed for martini (shaken not stirred....)
A lot of the New World cultivation was tree and fish based.
Fish farms and really big orchards. Chestnuts were a big part of the diet in the eastern part of North America. And with good reason. They are delicious.
What? They recycled it after using as an engine lubricant?
Well, I was contrasting “worn out” as opposed to “virgin”.
But at today’s oil prices, 10W-30 virgin motor oil is many dollars per quart.
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