Ingredienti, tecniche e contesti della panificazione nel Vicino Oriente Antico

In this paper we briefly touch issues related to the manipulation of cereals aimed at the production of dough products and specifically bread. We draw upon archaeological and textual data coming from the Ancient Near East, spanning from 20000 BP to historical period, and compare these with ethnographical information mostly regarding bread molds and baking facilities. We start with the earliest traces of flour production, then move to baking techniques and analyze their change in time throughout the millennia, but also list possible ingredients of bread and the role it had in the Ancient Near Eastern diet.