Hellenistic Mediterranean wine culture

The whole Mediterranean world enjoys the drinking culture, and the fact now is the same as in ancient times: wine is always a good business. The Hellenistic period between Alexander the Great and Cleopatra VII (about 335-30 BC) witnessed the expansion of trade relations in growing regions, which brought distant regions into direct or indirect contact with each other. Goods from northwest Europe, the Middle East, * *, India and Central Asia reach the Mediterranean Sea through long-distance trade routes. For the first time in history, it even reached the Mediterranean from China, laying the foundation for the Silk Road. From luxury goods to food, in the rapidly developing consumer society, products are exchanged. Think of precious stones, gold and silver, herbs and spices, perfumes and oils, silk and flax, elephants and slaves, wheat, cereals such as two grains of wheat and rice, olive oil and fish sauce, parchment and papyrus, beer and wine.

From simple pottery cups to exquisite glasses, people are consuming wine. Natural and exquisite trade in gold, silver and wine is booming. Different regions also have their own characteristics, from cheap Egyptian wines to delicious Italian Farenia wines to excellent Iranian highland Camagna wines.

A brief history of wine

Grape cultivation, that is, grape cultivation and wine brewing, can be traced back to a long time before the Greek era, about 8000 years ago, in the mountains of Caucasus and Zagros (in today's Georgia and Iran, respectively). This method was also used in the Balkans and the Levant in the Neolithic Age (about the middle of the 5th century BC). Of course, classical Greece is famous for its exquisite wine consumption culture. This is not a place to discuss the importance of wine in ancient Greek religion, Greek medicine, culture and society-let alone a seminar. It should be remembered here that Greek colonization spread wine culture to the northern Mediterranean and the Black Sea coast, and thus shared it with Etruscan civilization, Romans, Celts and Skettians.

CIO's high-quality red wine enjoys a high reputation and is exported to Greece, Italy and Egypt at high prices.

Greeks always drink wine diluted with water, because their wine is squeezed from thick syrup. Greek culture even considers it barbaric to drink undiluted wine. All kinds of wines are produced in mainland Greece, mainly sweet and aromatic, but there are also some dry varieties. A popular Greek wine, exported to the Black Sea in large quantities, is a variety of Mende on Chalcidice. This Mendian white wine has different types (mild, dry and honey) and is considered to have therapeutic and laxative functions. On this island, different kinds of wine are still produced. For example, in Coase, a widely exported variety is mixed with salty seawater; It reaches as far as * * and India by sea. The CIO enjoys a high reputation for high-quality red wine. From the classical period to the Roman Empire (about 5th century BC-2nd century AD), it was exported to Greece, Italy and Egypt at high prices.

During the Greek colonial rule over the northern Mediterranean and the Black Sea, Phoenicians settled in the southern and western Mediterranean, so they finally shared their wine culture with Libyans, Iberians and Italians. High-quality white wines from Phoenicia Center (Lebanon) were traded from Biblus (now Gibler) to Cyprus, Crete, Sicily and Sardinia, as well as the coast of North Africa and Iberian Peninsula. This type of wine is impregnated with pine or pistachio resin, because these ingredients will better bring out the soft taste of the drink. During the Hellenistic period, this variety was considered to be comparable in quality to the best muscat wine in Lesbos. Phoenician wine grapes are also grown in Sicily and Thrace. The Carthaginians exported Pasom from Bagradas Valley (Tunisia) to Sicily, Sardinia, Balearic Islands and Spanish Punic colonies. Carthage wine made from raisins is very popular in Italy, although it was brewed by Roman military rivals.

In the Nile Delta and the Egyptian Oasis, the cultivation and consumption of wine can be traced back at least to the ancient Egyptian kingdom (the end of the 3rd century BC). The Royal Vineyard mainly produces red wine. However, in the famous tomb of Tutankhamun, the remains of white wine in jars were also found, which may come from imported wine. Egyptian wine can be flavored with pistachio resin, fresh grapes and figs, sage, mint and coriander. The Greeks introduced new grape varieties in Egypt; Wine is also imported directly from the Aegean Sea. Hellenistic Egyptian wines-made from grapes or pomegranates or dates or palm trees-have different varieties and tastes, from cheap to expensive, from sour to sweet. Even wine vinegar is regarded as a cheap substitute by the poor. However, among the rural population, beer was still a more popular daily drink until the late ancient times-since ancient times.

In Israel, Jewish wine has been cherished since at least the Old Testament. Talmud mentioned 70 different wines from Palestine, such as Salon and Carmel. Most of them are red, although some are white. They are produced in different ways, such as mixing wine with water and balsam (aluntit), or mixing it with honey and black pepper (anomilin), or smoking grapes (meusham) before pressing the wine. Kefar-Signa region (south of Galilee) provided wine for the sacrifices of the temple in Jerusalem. During the Hellenistic period, Jewish wine was considered the best. They are not only traded in ear bottles (like most other wines), but also traded in goat skins, and exported to North Africa, Europe and the Black Sea from the ports of Ashkelon, Joppa and Dole. In the early days of ordinary times, with the spread of Christianity, red wine became a necessary sacrament to commemorate the last supper of Jesus.

From luxury goods to daily necessities

In the late Hellenistic period, people discovered glass blowing, which was an invention that made glassware cheaper than pottery.

As mentioned above, wine can be drunk not only from elegant precious metal vessels, but also from glass or pottery, and even from wooden cups. Due to the prevalence of modern glass, it is hard to imagine that glass products (whether timely or obsidian) belonged to the highest luxury before the Roman Empire. The origin of glass manufacturing itself can be traced back to Mesopotamia, Syria and Egypt in the 2nd century BC. It seems to have stopped at the end of the Bronze Age, but it resumed in Syria and Cyprus in the early period of 1000 BC. At the same time, in Hellenistic Syria, high-quality wines were exported from Laodicea Port (now Latakia) to * * * and India via the Red Sea. It was during the Ptolemy dynasty in Alexandria that experiments led to new production technologies, which made it possible to produce glass on a large scale. Because in the Hellenistic period, it was the first time that glass could be formed with molds. Subsequently, in the late Hellenistic period (about 1 century BC), the glass blowing technology was discovered in the Near East-this invention triggered a complete revolution in glass production, because it made glassware cheaper than pottery.

Although readers may be more familiar with the wine culture of classical Greece and Rome, there is also a rich wine consumption culture in the Persian Empire of Achaemenid (550-330 BC). Rhython, a horn usually decorated with the head or front of an animal, is used for drinking, pouring or inflating wine (circulating air through liquid), which is a striking expression. Camagna (about modern Kerman province) in Iranian highlands is famous for its wine quality. Strappo (15.2. 14) told us that Kamanian grape varieties, which are flourishing because of fertile soil, are famous for their large grape grains and clusters. After a disastrous journey through the Gedrosia desert, one third of his troops may be killed. Alexander the Great held a Dionysian victory in this area, and held a cocktail party to commemorate Dionysus for seven days and seven nights. There is no reason to believe that there are reports that modern French wines are called Shiraz, Shiraz and Shiraz, which has nothing to do with Persian wines in Shiraz. )

In the Gandhara area in the northwest of ancient India, in the Kabul Valley area before the river (formerly known as Coffez) flowed into the Indus River, the Macedonian army thought earlier that it had even discovered the birthplace of Dionysus, the god of wine, because grapes were abundant in the mountains. In this area, before Buddhism was introduced from India, wine was really drunk during popular religious festivals. Gandhara wine may have added spices during the fermentation process and be drunk without dilution within a few days after pressing (so the yeast is still active); Therefore, it is a sweet and tender wine with milky white. Although Buddhist monks are forbidden to drink alcoholic beverages, the tradition of wine festival continues. Rattan leaves also became the popular theme of Gandhara art later.

Archaeologists can at least rebuild some overseas trade networks from ceramic utensils discovered by underwater excavation. For example, Rhode Island's ear bottles belong to a specific type, so their large-scale spread in the Greek world proves the extensive trade of the island. Rhode Island local wines transported in these ceramic containers are very popular. Like Coase's varieties, Rhodia wines are mixed with seawater or salt, although to a lesser extent. Although the quality of this salty wine is not particularly high, its low price makes it very popular as an export commodity.

A Nereid and an ocean centaur.

In the scene of the silver wine bottle, we saw an almost naked woman in the rough sea, with her legs to the right, riding on the back of the sea centaur. She is one of the 50 beautiful daughters of Nereid, nereus and his wife Doris (herself the daughter of oceanus and Tethys). Her body is only covered with curtains on her knees and tied with a belt. She raised her hands, holding a wavy cloth, bulging like a sail, giving people a feeling of strong wind. This so-called velificatio is well known in Roman art, such as the Ara Pacis relief built by Emperor Augustus (reigned in 27 BC-A.D. 14).

Centaur is a creature in Greek and Roman mythology. Its upper body is horned, its front legs are like horses, and its tail is like a huge fish. He looked back at Nereid on his tail; He holds a mirror in his right hand; He is holding a wreath in his left hand. Draw a shell under his leg and a dolphin and a fish under his tail. On the far left side of the debris, you can see the tail of another marine creature, which may be a mirror image of the second marine partner. You can see his hand near the garland. Maybe we can further explain this scene? Perhaps assis and Galatia known in Ovid's Metamorphosis (13.733-897) are depicted here.

This mythical scene is reproduced on the relief of the neck of a silver wine bottle decorated with gold foil. Using this metalworking technology, a deep relief is imprinted on the back (from the inside out). Later, as in this case, the details can be stamped from the front. Maritime themes are common on Roman silverware tableware-that's why this special relief scene is put forward. At the banquet, all kinds of fish were served, and the wine was fluttering. This hip flask may come from the southern Spanish province of Betica, Rome, where wine, olive oil and fish sauce are traded overseas. In fact, Ceretanum is a fortified white wine, produced in Ceret (now Jerez de la Frontera) in Bitika, exported to southern France, Italy and Germany, and regarded as the pioneer of modern sherry.

The most acclaimed and expensive Roman wine is of course Farinia white wine, with an alcohol content as high as 15%. This "first-class garden", because it is an ancient Xie Su, grows on the hillside of Fallenus Mountain on the border between Latim and Campania. Faust cornelius Sura (86-46 BC), the son of dictator Sura (Kloc-0/38-78 BC), had a vineyard halfway up the mountain. Grapes were harvested after the first frost. Due to the ripening process of pottery double-ear bottle from 15 to 20 years, the wine is amber to dark brown. The harvest of the consul Lucius Opimi (12 1) was so famous that Julius Caesar threw it out at a banquet in memory of his Spanish (60 BC). Like the Greeks, the Romans always drank diluted wine.

More can be said about Greek wine consumption, trade and drinking containers. For example, Tasmanians brewed a highly valuable and popular wine from rose leaves, or Ephesians mixed unfermented and cooked grape juice in their Misojit wine, or Cyrene salt wine was considered to be helpful for digestion, although its quality was poor. It can be said that the types of wines are surprising, and they are widely traded, which shows the extensiveness of their culture. In the Hellenistic era, as before and after, wine is not only a commodity that can be widely traded, but also a wine vessel is not just a luxury for the rich-wine is a way of life.

An early version of this article was first published in AncientWorldMagazine.com.

Starting from 20 17, the items displayed in the Pearson Museum in Allard were exhibited in the Greek gallery "From Alexandria to Cleopatra". Both authors of this article participated in the exhibition in the art gallery.