The earliest evidence for beekeeping
Where and when did beekeeping begin and how did the practice of managing bees in artificial containers emerge from honey hunting practices? In this essay we examine the earliest evidence!
Last month we took a dive into the earliest history of honey hunting activity undertaken by humans. The evidence is piecemeal but paints a picture of early humans making as much use of honey any time that they could get hold of it. Our most extensive evidence of honey hunting practice is, however, from ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia, which also directs us to the earliest evidence for people attempting to manage honeybees in hives of their own making.
When, precisely did this transfer occur? When did stealing honey and beeswax from wild colonies or partially managed colonies change to working with managed hives? This is the subject of today’s Honeybee Histories essay.
There is no doubt that the earliest honey gathering exercises were ones where the honey was stolen from wild colonies of bees either found accidentally or cultivated in forests or on cliff-faces known to contain bees. At some point humans realised that they could create artificial homes for bees, which would make it easier for them to manage colonies nearer to home.