The history of bread dates back 30,000 years in Europe.
The first bread ever made was probably a version of grain paste, created from roasted and ground cereal grains mixed with water. It may have originated accidentally during cooking or been deliberately developed through experimentation with whole grain flour and water.
Most likely, it was unleavened.
During this period, cereals were one of many food sources, as the diet of Europeans was primarily based on animal-derived foods. Cereals and bread became staple foods during the Neolithic era, around 10,000 years ago, when wheat and barley were among the first cultivated plants.
The cultivation of these grains spread from Southwest Asia to Europe, North Africa, and the Indian subcontinent, enabling humans to transition from being hunters and gatherers to farmers.
The emergence of leavened bread likely dates back to prehistoric times, but the earliest documented evidence comes from ancient Egypt. In antiquity, the concept of a standalone oven that could be preheated and had a door for access seems to have been a Greek innovation.
In ancient Greece, bread was mainly made from barley. Solon had decreed that wheat bread could only be baked on festive days. By the 5th century BCE, one could buy bread in Athens from a bakery, while in Rome, Greek bakers appeared in the 2nd century BCE when Asia Minor came under Roman rule. The importance of bread in the diet is reflected in the term used for the rest of the meal: opsón, meaning the accompaniment to bread, whatever that may have been.
During the Middle Ages in Europe, bread was not only a staple food but also part of tableware. Specifically, a piece of stale bread was used as an absorbent plate, which could be eaten at the end of the meal, given to the poor, or fed to dogs. It wasn’t until the 15th century that wooden plates began replacing it.
For many generations, white bread was preferred by the wealthy, while the poor ate dark (whole grain) bread. However, in most Western societies, this trend reversed in the late 20th century, as whole grain bread became favored for its high nutritional value, whereas white bread became associated with a lack of dietary awareness.
In modern times, the industrialization of bread-making was a decisive step in shaping the contemporary world. Otto Frederick Rohwedder is considered the father of sliced bread (1912), as he successfully invented a machine in 1928 that both sliced and packaged bread.
Another significant change occurred in 1961 with the development of the Chorleywood method, which used intense mechanical dough processing to drastically reduce fermentation time and the production time of a loaf—albeit at the expense of flavor and nutritional value. This process is now widely used in large-scale bread manufacturing worldwide.
In Greece
Greek sailors and merchants brought Egyptian flour to Greece, where bread-making began to flourish. White bread was particularly popular, and there was intense competition between cities to produce the best bread. Athens prided itself on Thearios, its most renowned baker, whose name appears in the writings of many ancient authors.
Bakeries emerged in the 2nd century CE. Among the many types of bread produced in ancient Greece were zymites, made from flour, water, and leaven; azyme, made from flour and water; and semidalitis, made from finely ground flour derived from high-quality wheat.
Ancient texts reveal that Greeks offered theiagones loaves to the gods. In the temple of Demeter at Eleusis, during the festival of the Thesmophoria, a large loaf was offered to the goddess, from which the festival was named Megalartia.
At the German Bread Museum in Ulm, some of the most remarkable exhibits are four Greek figurines from the 5th century BCE, originating from Boeotia, depicting female figures. The figurines illustrate the process of grinding wheat in a mortar, kneading dough, baking bread, and presenting the loaves for sale and consumption.
It is worth noting that ancient Greeks traditionally added sea salt to bread for flavor.
In Religion
In the New Testament, Jesus Christ performed the miracle of feeding five thousand people with five loaves and two fish. He also likened himself to bread, telling his disciples that whoever eats it will have eternal life.
At the Last Supper, Jesus blessed bread, broke it into pieces, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” He then blessed the wine, gave the cup to his disciples, and said, “Drink from it, all of you; this is my blood.” In the prayer He taught, there is a request for “our daily bread.”
In the church, the Eucharist cannot be performed without bread. The bread used must be well-kneaded and bear the seal of the cross with the inscription IC XC NIKA (Jesus Christ Conquers).
A portion of the bread is used by the priest for the preparation of Holy Communion (in remembrance of the Last Supper), while the rest is cut into small pieces, known as antidoron, and distributed to the faithful at the end of the Divine Liturgy.
People’s reverence for bread, never allowing it to be wasted, reflects its significance both for sustenance and in religious life.
Source: cretablog.gr
