Beeswax has been used for 10,000 years
by FRANÇOIS SAVATIER
Traces of beeswax found on pottery sherds suggest that beekeeping was already mastered at the beginning of the Neolithic period.
Archaeological and chemical evidence shows that beeswax has been used by humans since the early Neolithic period. Researchers identified a distinctive chemical signature of beeswax in more than 80 pottery fragments from sites across Europe and the Mediterranean region.
The oldest traces date back to the 7th millennium BCE in Anatolia (modern-day Turkey), notably at the sites of Çayönü Tepesi and Çatal Höyük. Additional findings from the Balkans and Central Europe indicate that beeswax use spread widely alongside Neolithic farming cultures.
Beeswax was likely used to store honey, waterproof vessels, or for other domestic and technical purposes. Honey itself is rarely detectable archaeologically, as its sugar components do not survive long-term burial, unlike wax.
Overall, the evidence suggests that Neolithic populations went beyond simple honey hunting and had developed regular practices for exploiting bee products. These findings point to very early forms of beekeeping or managed use of wild bee colonies more than 10,000 years ago.
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