An international archaeological mission has uncovered the remnants of an ancient restaurant and tavern in southern Iraq, one which dates back nearly 5,000 years.
The restaurant was discovered in late January by a University of Pennsylvania-led team.
In cooperation with researchers from the University of Pisa, they discovered a large tavern dating back to 2700 B.C. in the city of Lagash, which they estimate was more than two square miles in size that was not far from the town of Nasaria.
With an open-air dining area and a partial kitchen, researchers found the ancient pub was complete with a rudimentary refrigeration system, an oven, hundreds of roughly made clay bowls, and the fossilized remains of an overcooked fish.
"We certainly know beer was on tap," University of Pennsylvania anthropology professor Holly Pittman told KYW Newsradio.
The team of archaeologists used cutting-edge technology like remote sensing — a process of scanning the earth using satellites and high-flying aircraft — and drone imagery, along with excavation.
Rather than digging straight down vertically in one spot, the team used a phased excavation approach — digging horizontally, layer by layer, until they uncovered the tavern only 19 inches beneath the surface.
Pittman said that along with the ability to serve a variety of beers, researchers found shelves filled with bowls of food ready to serve and seating areas. She likened it to an ancient restaurant with surprisingly advanced refrigeration technology.
"A public eatery that has a cooling device that would keep liquids cool, if not cold," she said. "Shelves and shelves loaded with food. A huge oven, sort of like a huge pizza oven that would have prepared food."
Researchers were also able to reconstruct the ancient neighborhoods, and they found it was much like modern cities around the world, with houses, streets and alleys.
Pittman said what makes this research unique is that they focused on regular people of the era, rather than the ultra-rich, and what they found proves a connection between past and present.
"Many of the ways they lived was the way we live now," said Pittman. "They lived in houses and had neighborhoods. They have occupations and they go out to dinner."
Pittman and colleagues will present the findings from the city of Lagash to visitors of the Penn Museum this summer. The team goes back to the city of Lagash to continue their research next fall.
Lagash (now known as Al-Hiba) was one of the oldest and largest cities in southern Mesopotamia during the third millennium (3,000-2,001 BCE), the museum said. It encompassed nearly two square miles. Surrounded by marshes, it was a major population and production center — an industrial hub with access to fertile land that focused on agriculture, together with marsh-related resources, like fishing, reeds, birds and netting.
Since 2019, the archaeologists have found two houses, roads, alleyways, countless pottery pieces, and seven ceramic kilns that remained intact for thousands of years. The team is currently studying what role craft production played in the ancient city's enormous economic success. They hope to continue to explore ceramic production in another area and see if the production practices in various sectors differentiate from one another.
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