Veget Hist Archaeobot DOI 10.1007/s00334-011-0303-5

REVIEW

Flax production: evidence from the early Iron Age site of Tel Beth-Shean, and from written sources

Mordechai E. Kislev • Orit Simchoni • Yoel Melamed • Lior Maroz

Received: 7 February 2010 / Accepted: 20 May 2011 Springer-Verlag 2011

Abstract For thousands of years, flax was a winter crop Introduction of major importance in the ancient Levant, second only to and . It was cultivated from the beginning of Flax cultivation the early Neolithic period through to Roman times and it is still grown there today. Flax (linseed) contain high Linum usitatissimum (flax) is an annual herbaceous plant concentrations of two essential polyunsaturated fatty grown today for fibres as well as for oil, which is extracted acids—linoleic acid (x-6) and a-linolenic acid (x-3), from the seeds. The young plants are particularly sensitive which cannot be produced by the human body. Their oxi- to weeds because their germination is relatively slow. The dation occurs rapidly in the air. So, long term storage of stalk is thin and upright, 50–120 cm high, with several linseed needed airtight containers, and tightly stoppered flowers carried on long pedicels on the top (Agnew 1980). bottles could be used to keep its oil as a remedy. However, Flax for fibres, which is sown densely, produces a single were flax seeds consumed as a , oil or medicament in unbranched stem. In contrast, flax for oil has stalks with two ancient periods? How commonly were flax seeds eaten? to three lower branches, which are extremely branched at From archaeobotanical finds of flax seed, it is difficult to the top. Each capsule contains up to 10 seeds, which are determine whether the flax was cultivated for fibres alone oblong, flat and shiny. The seeds each weigh 3–5 mg in the or for its seeds that can be cold-pressed to release the fibre varieties and 5–15 mg in flax grown for oil. The world valuable oil. We have therefore studied ancient written average seed yield in fibre varieties is about 40 kg per documents describing various uses of flax seeds, including dunam (0.1 ha). Some 12–14 kg is required for planting a their consumption as a food supplement and uses in med- dunam of fibre-variety flax and two-thirds of that amount for ical applications. We conclude that until recently flax was the oil varieties (Marani 1972; Fouilloux 1989). It appears grown primarily for textile fibres, and only smaller quan- that twice as many flax seeds were sown per unit area in the tities of flax seeds were consumed. So, the flax seed finds Roman period than today, as mentioned in Columella from the early Iron Age site of Tel Beth-Shean also rep- 2.10.17 (Ash 1941), Pliny 19.2 (Rackham 1971), Kilaim 2:2 resent seed consumption or oil extraction. (Neusner 1988) and Kilaim 27:4 (Guggenheimer 1999). This ancient practice might represent farmers’ attempts to Keywords Linseed oil Á DHA Á EPA Á x-3 Á Israel Á cope with weeds that hinder flax sprouts during germina- Iron Age tion. So, as the seed yields were considerably greater than what would be required for sowing in the following year, the remaining edible seeds could be consumed. Flax for seeds was traditionally grown in the 20th cen- Communicated by S. Karg. tury in central Anatolia, and the harvesting was done with sickles. As the capsules have a mucilaginous coating and & M. E. Kislev ( ) Á O. Simchoni Á Y. Melamed Á L. Maroz stick together, only the tops of the plants with the capsules Faculty of Life , Bar-Ilan University, 52900 Ramat-Gan, Israel were harvested. The harvested capsules were piled up, and e-mail: [email protected] at the end of the harvest carried to the threshing floor where 123 Veget Hist Archaeobot they were processed with a threshing sledge and then skin (Ertug˘ 2000). Processed industrially by distillation, sieved. But if flax was cultivated for fibre, then there was linseed oil is inedible. However, cold-pressed oil and the no need to wait until the seeds ripened, and it was uprooted seeds themselves are used now as nutritional supplements while the plant was still green. Some sources indicate that and in medicine and, as we will show, they were so used in flax can be used for both purposes after the seeds have the past. ripened, when it is also uprooted by hand (Ertug˘ 2000). Flax seeds contain high concentrations of essential To maintain fertility of the land, it has been established polyunsaturated fatty acids, which cannot be produced by that a flax farmer should properly wait at least 5–6 years the human body and must be obtained from the diet. These before replanting, as the crop significantly depletes field include a-linolenic acid (x-3) as well as linoleic acid nutrients and perhaps increases the danger of infestation by (x-6), the names derived from the Latin word for flax, Fusarium lini, the agent causing flax wilt (Marani 1972). linum. While a-linolenic acid is generally quite rare in During the 20th century, Israeli farmers grew flax for oil, other seeds, they can contain significant amounts of linoleic but this was halted for economic reasons, partially because acid. In the human body, a-linolenic acid is the chemical of the land depletion problem. This depletion was also precursor for making the longer-chain x-3 fatty acids, recognized in antiquity, as the Mishnah from the Roman eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid period records: ‘‘One who leases a field from his friend for (DHA). DHA serves as a major component of membrane a few years—one should not plant flax because the soil phospholipids in retinal photoreceptors, cerebral grey cannot replenish its strength, but if one leased the field for matter, testes and sperm. While only small amounts of EPA 7 years one may plant flax in the first year because the soil are present in the human body, it is nevertheless important can replenish its strength’’ (Baba Metzia 9:9, Neusner for preventing coronary heart disease, arrhythmias and 1988). In fact, particular installations at Tel Abu Shusha thromboses. Both acids reduce blood cholesterol levels and (Geva), Jezreel valley, Israel, from the late Roman period, provide fluidity to cell membranes. Deficiency in EPA and were suggested to have been used for the production of flax DHA may delay growth in children, and their extreme and fibres and linseed oil (Safrai and Linn 1988). prolonged insufficiency can be fatal. A lack of them may Additional evidence for the prevalence of flax cultiva- also impair immune system operation, cardiovascular tion is provided from the same century by 750 seeds found health, motor function and vision. For adults, the recom- at Deir ’Alla, Jordan, 35 km south of Tel Beth-Shean. mended daily consumption of these two essential fatty Large amounts (30,000) of flax seeds were also recovered acids is a few grams, with a x-6/x-3 ratio of 5/1 to 10/1 in later levels dated to the 7th–5th c. B.C. (van Zeist and (Institute of Medicine of the National Academies 2005, Heeres 1973). pp. 427–455; Arterburn et al. 2006; Simopoulos 1991; Siddiqui et al. 2004; Vaisey-Genser and Morris 2003). Linseed oil extraction The archaeological site Flax was grown from the beginning of the early Neolithic to the Roman period (van Zeist 2000; Zohary and Hopf Beth-Shean served as an Egyptian imperial administrative 2000, pp. 126ff), primarily for textile fibres, but it was also and military base after the rule of Ramesses III (Panitz- used to produce seeds and oil for dietary, medical and other Cohen and Mazar 2009, pp. 1, 95, 139, 147, 577, photo applications (Lucas and Harris 1962, pp. 142ff; Nicholson 4.68, 4.69, 10.14; Kislev et al. 2009; Shamir 2009). Tel and Shaw 2000, pp. 269ff). Today, however, flax is grown Beth-Shean is located at the junction of two important more for its oil than for fibres. Linseed oil is in great roads, the east–west road from the Jezreel valley to Gilead, demand due to its rapid drying, which is important for the and the road running the length of the Jordan valley. The paint industry. The seeds contain about 40% oil on a dry site was occupied almost continuously from the late Neo- weight basis which is 73% rich in polyunsaturated lipids lithic to early Arabic periods (Stern 1993). (Vaisey-Genser and Morris 2003). Traditional production of linseed oil was practised in central Anatolia as follows: the seeds were first roasted in an oven, then ground with a Materials and methods millstone and the flour-like product was mixed with water to prepare dough. This dough was packed into special A subsample has been studied from a bin at Tel Beth-Shean baskets which were stacked under heavy wooden beams containing three quite similar compartments which were and pressed by turning a large wooden screw. The baskets full of charred Linum usitatissimum seeds and with a total stayed under pressure for about 24 h, during which the oil recovered volume of at least 0.69 m3. The content of only drained from them. The oil was used for cooking, lamp oil one of the three compartments (Locus 28817) had been and to protect water buffalo against insects and cracked sent to us for investigation. The two smaller flax seed 123 Veget Hist Archaeobot samples (with a few thousand each) were partly retrieved by flotation. The total number of seeds was estimated by weighing the whole samples and dividing by the average weight of 100 complete seeds from six samples. Because it is difficult to determine from archaeobotan- ical finds of flax seeds whether they were cultivated for fibres alone, or if they were also cold-pressed to release their oil, ancient written documents describing various uses of flax seeds, including their consumption as a nutritional supplement and uses in medical applications were explored too. We have used the following primary sources: the Jewish Mishnah (Neusner 1988), Tosefta (Neusner 1977), Babylonian (Epstein 1935), Jerusalem Talmud Fig. 2 Lump of charred flax seeds from the same locus. Their (Guggenheimer 1999) and Midrash Tanhuma (Berman consolidation into lumps was apparently due to the outburst of hot oil 1996), as well as the classic literature by Columella On during carbonization. Photos by O. Simchoni and trees (Ash 1941), Dioscorides De materia medica (Osbaldeston and Wood 2000), Galen On the flax seeds were pure, apparently stored after processing; properties of foodstuffs (Powell 2003), Pliny Natural his- there were no flax capsule remains, weeds or accompany- tory (Rackham 1971) and Varro On agriculture (Hooper ing crop remains. and Ash 1967). Written ancient documentary evidence for flax seed and its products Results Some early Sumerian and Akkadian texts mention sˇe-gisˇ-ı` Plant remains and sˇamasˇsˇamme¯ respectively, an ‘‘oil plant’’, etymologi- cally related to ‘‘sesame’’, together with evidence of ses- Over a million charred flax seeds were found at Tel Beth- ame occurring in the archaeological record (Bedigian Shean, Israel, Area S, level VI (S-3), in three caches as well 2004). On the other hand, some scholars hold that these as caches of wheat and barley grains, dated to Iron Age IA, words refer to flax, so there is no agreement whether the 12th c. B.C., the late 20th dynasty in Egypt. One flax seed words refer to flax or to another oil plant (Postgate 1985; cache and a piece of linen cloth were found in building SG. Waetzoldt 1985). Even if part of the texts refers to flax, the The other two were recovered in building SK, of which the following sentences might be of interest here: the Assyri- largest one was found in a bin (Figs. 1, 2). ans of Mesopotamia apparently used linseed and linseed oil The largest flax sample consisted of more than half a as a poultice, as well as in treatments via the various body million seeds in a rather good state of preservation. The openings. These include its use as a demulcent and aph- rodisiac, in honey for coughs, and for inflammation of mucous membranes. The oil was introduced into the vagina, rectum and bladder for catarrh, while the seeds were used as an astringent and in fumigation. Linseed tea was drunk for catarrh, diarrhoea and urinary problems (Thompson 1949, p. 113). Flax crops are shown in some Egyptian tomb scenes, where the density of the upright plants suggests that they were grown either for fibres or for both fibres and seeds. Cold-pressed linseed oil is still used in Egypt in its tradi- tional horse bean dish. However, because of its tendency to become rancid, the oil was probably seldom used in cos- metic preparations (Nicholson and Shaw 2000, pp. 396ff). Some authors are of the opinion that an inedible form of the oil was apparently used as a lubricant by the ancient Egyptians for dragging stones from quarries, placing stat- Fig. 1 Charred seeds of Linum usitatissimum (flax) from Tel Beth- Shean, Locus 28817. The seeds are smooth, oblong and flattened. In ues in position or moving a burial sledge. Water and oil or many of them one half is broken or missing grease were poured in front of the sledge to ease its 123 Veget Hist Archaeobot movement. It is quite likely that the Egyptians were aware subject of dispute between] Tannaim. For it has been of linseed oil’s preservative properties. The oil was used in taught: [In the case when] one has sold to the manufacture of wooden furniture, ship building, etc. It another and [the buyer] sowed them and they did not was also employed as an ingredient in tanning and used to grow, [if they are] garden seeds which are not eaten, finish and preserve a wide variety of leather goods he is responsible; [if they are] linseed, he is not (Pengilly 2003). responsible. R. Jose said: he must refund to him the Domestic uses for flax oil fulfilled a variety of human price of the seed. They replied unto him: Many buy it needs beyond nutrition. From hieroglyphic records, it can for other purposes. Now who are the Tannaim be seen that the Egyptians anointed themselves with oil [between whom the question of the majority princi- before leaving home, and it was customary that guests were ple, as has been said, is in dispute]? If it is assumed attended to by servants who anointed each person with oil that they are R. Jose, and ‘those who replied to him’; as a principal token of welcome. Oil or mucilage gum was [surely] both, [it may be retorted], follow the majority a likely ingredient of preparations with which Egyptian principle; one follows the majority of men, the others, women to styled their hair. Cleansing oils were used also to the majority of the seed. heal and protect the skin from the sun and from biting It can be concluded from this source that: insects (Pengilly 2003). A bandage for finger or toe nails was made of ochre, linseed, an unidentified part of the (1) Since some people buy linseed for purposes other sycamore fig, honey and oil or fat. A poultice of flax seeds than sowing, the seller can claim to have sold them does indeed relieve pain and heals skin wounds and sup- for any of these uses. purations (Manniche 1999, p. 116). Although flax seeds are (2) Most linseed is sold for sowing; for every person who frequently found in archaeological sites in Egypt (Vartavan buys a large quantity of linseed for sowing, there are and Asensi Amoro´s 1997, pp. 158ff), there is no certainty ten times as many people who buy it in smaller from the hieroglyphs that linseed was used in ancient quantities for food, medicinal, or other purposes Egyptian medicines before the Graeco-Roman period (Epstein 1935, pp. 385f). (Germer 1985, pp. 100ff). (3) Furthermore, the following section in the Israeli In the Graeco-Roman world flax was grown primarily rabbinic Midrash Tanhuma (Roman period) (Berman for the production of linen and its seeds were certainly a 1996) is better explained by flax seeds that were useful by-product. Linseed could act as a famine food or as intended for eating as a nutritional supplement: a regular dietary supplement. Pliny (19.2) states that the peasants of north Italy often ate a porridge made of ground linseed (Rackham 1971). Galen (1.32) adds that linseed Our sages, of blessed memory, said that Cain and was eaten most frequently by peasants who after roasting Abel were 40 years old when Cain brought of the them mixed them with honey (Gallant 1985; Powell 2003). fruit of the ground (Genesis 4: 3). What did he bring Traditional uses of linseed oil were also described by as his offering? He brought only the leftovers of his Dioscorides, a Greek physician who wrote his De Materia meal. However, the rabbis maintained that Cain Medica in the first century A.D., which served for centuries brought flax seed, while Abel brought firstlings of his as the most important source for medical prescriptions flock and of the fat thereof (Genesis 4: 4). That is why throughout the Roman Empire. According to Dioscorides, it is ordained that wool and flax must not be mixed, as flax seeds were used mainly for dispersing and softening it is said: Thou shalt not wear mingled stuff, wool and internal and external inflammations (Osbaldeston and linen together (Deuteronomy 22: 11). The Holy One, Wood 2000, pp. 245ff). blessed be He, declared: it is not fitting that a sinner’s The Babylonian Talmud indicates that flax seeds were offering and the sacrifice of a virtuous man should be mostly used for sowing, and that smaller amounts were coupled. Hence it is forbidden to combine them in consumed (2nd century A.D.) (Baba Bathra 93a–b, Epstein one garment. (This is one rationalization of the 1935): law of shatnez, prohibiting the wearing of garments composed of both wool and linen) (Genesis 9, Ber- Come and hear! ‘[if] anyone has sold fruit to man 1996). another… and [the buyer] sowed them and they did not grow, even [if they were] linseed, he is not responsible. Does not ‘even’ imply, ‘even linseed Discussion most of which is bought for sowing purposes’? And [does not this show that] even in such a case one is Linseed was the major traditional plant source in the Near not guided by the majority principle! This is [a East of high concentrations of x-3, a-linolenic acid. Other

123 Veget Hist Archaeobot oils of the Roman period, such as sesame, wal- Such containers are described in detail in the rabbinical nut, colocynth and canola (rapeseed) (Shabbat 2, 2, literature: ‘‘These vessels afford protection [against the Neusner 1988), have concentrations of about 10% or less entry of uncleanness from a corpse under the same roof] than that of linseed oil. Other species that are relatively rich with a tightly stopped-up cover; vessels [made] of dung, in a-linolenic acid, such as Glycine max (soy) and Can- vessels of stone, vessels of earth [not fired], vessels of nabis sativa (hemp) reaching 8 and 20% in cold pressed oil, [fired] clay, and vessels of alum crystal… With what do as compared to 55% in linseed oil, had not yet been they stop up? With lime and with gypsum, with pitch and established in the Near East. In addition, high percentages with wax, with plaster and with excrements, with crude of DHA and lower amounts of EPA, both derivatives of clay and with potter’s clay and with any thing that is used a-linolenic acid, are found in animal organs, including the for plaster. They do not stop up either with tin, or with lead, brains and testes of terrestrial mammals. Some tribal peo- because it is a covering, but it is not tightly stopped-up.’’ ple valued these organs without knowing the reason for (Kelim 10: 1–2, Neusner 1988; see also, Tosefta, Kelim, their health attributes. They consumed these soon Baba Qamma, 7 16, Neusner 1977). after the hunt, either fresh or partially roasted, thereby Apparently, there were also bottles with tightly stop- preventing spoilage and chemical oxidation of these pered lids that could be used to keep flax oil as a remedy. unsaturated fatty acids. This oxidation occurs rapidly in air, Stored cereals were also protected in Roman time from which upon heating increases dramatically with the number spoilage. Available to us are quotations from the classical of double bonds. Linolenic acid, with three double bonds, literature and archaeological evidence for the storage of is very sensitive and is oxidized 125 times faster than its cereals and methods of protecting the grain against storage parallel saturated fatty acid, and 25 times faster than lin- pests. One of the main principles of storage was hermetic oleic acid with two double bonds. When polyunsaturated sealing to keep out air (Varro, I, LVII, Hooper and Ash fatty acids react with air, they do not produce saturated 1967). acids, but inedible, toxic materials. Linseed oil that is Were ancient flax seeds found in archaeological exca- extracted by heat is inedible because at 90C the reactivity vations used for producing oil for ointments, for eating of the unsaturated acids to oxygen increases by more than (seeds or oil) or just for sowing for fibres? To clarify this one hundred times (J. Shoham, Faculty of Life Sciences, question, one must realize that the seed yields were con- Bar-Ilan University, personal communication, July 2009; siderably greater than what would be required for sowing Vaisey-Genser and Morris 2003). Because of this sensi- in the following year. Determining the possible uses of this tivity, we can assume that in the past, flax seeds were excess flax seed requires finding archaeological evidence stored in their natural state and were ground or cold-pres- of oil vessels, drawings, or inscriptions associated with the sed for oil shortly before consumption, as is customary seeds or historic literature sources describing seed con- today in traditional Near Eastern households (Pengilly sumption or oil production. This problem also exists for 2003; Vaisey-Genser and Morris 2003). other crops that can be grown for various purposes, such as Flax ripens in the summer and the seeds are preserved grapes and . Were grapes and olives in all historic naturally in the cool of winter. However, it is likely that by and prehistoric sites intended mostly for wine and oil, or spring the oily acid content of the seeds would be somewhat were they were also harvested either for eating fresh, oxidized. If we assume that the ancients were familiar with preparing raisins or for curing olives? When comparing the the repulsive odour of spoiled linseed oil, it is likely that the archaeological finds of oil-containing plants, it appears that seeds were more actively traded than the oil. This might the most common plant was the , followed by flax and explain the high frequency of flax seed finds in archaeo- walnut, which are all comparatively easily preserved in the logical sites. Because light and heat accelerate oxidation, archaeobotanical record. To understand the difficulty of contemporary flax seed oil for dietary consumption is pro- finding possible alternative uses of such plants, it must be duced by cold pressing and sold in sealed opaque bottles remembered that the remains of wine and oil are less with an inert atmosphere, and must be refrigerated once commonly found than are grape pips or olive stones. To opened. Ground flax seed, which is also consumed as a date, despite many recorded samples of flax cloth and nutritional supplement, must similarly be dispensed in pro- fibres, there have been no reports of remains of linseed oil. tective capsules or small sealed bottles. Despite protection afforded to unsaturated fatty acids by seed tissue itself, long time storage of flax seeds should be in airtight containers. Conclusions This type of vessel is mentioned in the Bible: And every open vessel, which has no covering bound Flax seeds are found quite frequently in archaeological upon it, is unclean (Numbers 19: 15). excavations throughout the Near East, in most cases in

123 Veget Hist Archaeobot small quantities. Generally, it is difficult to determine from , Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the finds whether the seeds were intended merely for pp 764–771 Lucas A, Harris JR (1962) Ancient Egyptian materials and industries, sowing, or if they were also consumed and used for oil 4th edn. Arnold, production. However, historical documents provide evi- Manniche L (1999) An ancient Egyptian herbal. British Museum dence that most of the yield was kept for the next year’s Press, London sowing, and smaller quantities of flax seed and its oil were Marani A (1972) Flax. In: Halperin H (ed) The encyclopedia of agriculture, vol 2. Encyclopedia of Agriculture Press, Tel Aviv, consumed and used as a nutritional supplement, medicinal pp 174–176 (in Hebrew) remedies and other uses. When flax seeds or their products Neusner J (1977) The Tosefta (translated from Hebrew). Ktav are stored they need to be protected against oxidation. This Publishing House, New York can be done by tightly stopping-up the cover of the vessels Neusner J (1988) Mishnah (translated from Hebrew). Yale, New Haven Nicholson PT, Shaw I (2000) Ancient Egyptian materials and in which they are kept. Such closed vessels were found at technology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Tel Beth-Shean (Panitz-Cohen and Mazar 2009, pp. 254ff). Osbaldeston TA, Wood RPA (2000) Dioscorides, De materia medica We suggest that part of the flax seeds was either intended (translated edition). Ibidis, Johannesburg as a food component or for extracting medicinal oil. Panitz-Cohen N, Mazar A (2009) Excavations at Tel Beth-Shean 1989–1996, vol 3, the 13th–11th centuries BCE (Areas S and N). Israel Exploration Society and Institute of Archaeology, Hebrew Acknowledgment We would like to thank Amihai Mazar, Institute University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem of Archaeology, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, for enabling us to Pengilly NL (2003) Traditional food and medicinal uses of flaxseed. study and publish the archaeobotanical material from Tel Beth-Shean In: Muir AD, Westcott ND (eds) Flax: the genus Linum. Taylor discussed in this article. and Francis, Boca Raton, pp 252–267 Postgate JN (1985) The ‘‘oil plant’’ in Assyria. Bull Sumer Agric 2:145–152 Powell O (2003) Galen, on the properties of foodstuffs (translated References edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Rackham H (1971) Pliny, natural history, vol 5 (translated edition). Agnew ADQ (1980) Linaceae. In: Townsend CC, Guest E (eds) Flora The Loeb Classical Library, Heinemann/Harvard University of Iraq. Ministry of Agriculture & Agrarian Reform, Baghdad, Press, London/Cambridge pp 274–288 Safrai Z, Linn M (1988) Excavations and surveys in the Mishmar Ha- Arterburn LM, Hall EB, Oken H (2006) Distribution, interconversion, ’Emeq area. In: Mazar B (ed) Geva: archaeological discoveries and dose response of n-3 fatty acids in humans. Am J Clin Nutr at Tell Abu-Shusha, Mishmar Ha-’Emeq. Israel Exploration 83(suppl):1,467S–1,476S Society and Hakibbutz Hameuchad, Tel Aviv, pp 167–214 (in Ash HB (1941) Columella, on agriculture and trees, vol. 1 (translated Hebrew) edition). The Loeb Classical Library, Harvard University Press, Shamir O (2009) A linen textile fragment. In: Panitz-Cohen N, Mazar Cambridge A (eds) Excavations at Tel Beth-Shean 1989–1996, vol 3, the Bedigian D (2004) History and lore of sesame in Southwest Asia. 13th–11th centuries BCE (Areas S and N). Israel Exploration Econ Bot 58:329–353 Society and Institute of Archaeology, Hebrew University of Berman SA (1996) Midrash Tanhuma-yelammedenu (translated from Jerusalem, Jerusalem, pp 608–610 Hebrew). Ktav, Hoboken Siddiqui RA, Shaikh SR, Sech LA, Yount HR, Stillwell W, Zaloga Epstein I (1935) Babylonian Talmud: Seder Nezikin (translated with GP (2004) Omega 3-fatty acids: health benefits and cellular notes). Soncino Press, London mechanisms of action. Mini Rev Med Chem 4:859–871 Ertug˘ F (2000) Linseed oil and oil mills in central Turkey: flax/Linum Simopoulos AP (1991) Omega-3 fatty acids in health and disease and and Eruca, important oil plants in Anatolia. Anatol Stud in growth and development. Am J Clin Nutr 54:438–463 50:171–185 Stern E (1993) The new encyclopedia of archaeological excavations Fouilloux G (1989) Breeding flax methods. In: Marshall G (ed) Flax: in the Holy Land. Israel Exploration Society and Carta, breeding and utilization. Kluwer, Dordrecht, pp 14–25 Jerusalem Gallant TW (1985) The agronomy, production and utilization of Thompson RC (1949) A dictionary of Assyrian . British sesame and linseed in the Graeco-Roman world. Bull Sumer Academy, London Agric 2:153–158 Vaisey-Genser M, Morris DH (2003) Introduction: history of the Germer R (1985) Flora des pharaonischen A¨ gypten. Philipp von cultivation and uses of flaxseed. In: Muir AD, Westcott ND (eds) Zabern, Mainz Flax: the genus Linum. Taylor and Francis, Boca Raton, pp 1–21 Guggenheimer HW (1999) Jerusalem Talmud, Kilaim (translated into Van Zeist W (2000) Cultivated and wild food plants at Tell Ramad. English). Mesorah Publications, Berlin In: Contenson H (ed) Ramad: site ne´olithique en Damasce`ne Hooper WD, Ash HB (1967) Varro, on agriculture (translated (Syrie) aux 8e et 7e mille´naires avant l’e`re chre´tienne, vol 157. edition). The Loeb Classical Library, Heinemann/Harvard Uni- Institut Franc¸ais d’Arche´ologie du Proche-Orient, Beirut, versity Press, London/Cambridge pp 257–273 Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (2005) Dietary Van Zeist W, Heeres JAH (1973) Paleobotanical studies of Deir ’Alla, reference intakes for energy, carbohydrate, fiber, fat, fatty acids, Jordan. Pale´orient 1:21–37 cholesterol, protein, and amino acids. National Academies Press, Vartavan C, Asensi Amoro´s V (1997) Codex of ancient Egyptian Washington, DC plant remains. Triade Exploration, London Kislev ME, Simchoni O, Melamed Y, Maroz L (2009) Food and Waetzoldt H (1985) O¨ lpflanzen und Pflanzeno¨le im 3. Jahrtausend. industrial crops. In: Panitz-Cohen N, Mazar A (eds) Excavations Bull Sumer Agric 2:77–96 at Tel Beth-Shean 1989–1996, vol 3, The 13th–11th centuries Zohary D, Hopf M (2000) Domestication of plants in the Old World, BCE (Areas S and N). Israel Exploration Society and Institute of 3rd edn. Oxford University Press, New York

123