Intact Roman Eggs Were Uncovered By Archaeologists After Spending 1,700 Years In A Waterlogged Pit
In central England, excavations were conducted at an ancient Roman settlement called Berryfields between 2007 and 2016.
Archaeologists found four chicken eggs that had remained sheltered in a waterlogged pit for 1,700 years. Some of them had cracked open by accident.
The archaeological site was located along a Roman road known as Akeman Street. A bunch of other artifacts were dug up from a hole in the ground, including various tools, leather shoes, wooden vessels, and rare wooden baskets. The hole was situated below the water level, allowing the relics to escape ruin.
Three of the four eggs were intact upon discovery, but two of them broke during the retrieval process.
Now, only one egg has been left undamaged. It is the first complete Roman egg that has ever been found in Great Britain.
“There’s a very good reason it’s the first and only find in the U.K.,” Stuart Foreman, the project manager of the excavation, said.
“In a pit that has been waterlogged for thousands of years, you get things that would never survive in a dry environment. But it’s incredible we even got one out. They were so fragile.”
Normally, organic objects of this kind would not have survived for so long, but the eggs had been buried in a layer of soft, wet silt.
The conditions of the pit prohibited bacteria from forming, which would have caused the eggs to decay.
Mara Zemgaliete – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
It is believed that during the second and third centuries, the hole in which the artifacts were discovered was used for malting grain to brew beer.
Afterward, its purpose experienced a dramatic shift. The pit was also possibly used as a wishing well for Romans to leave sacrifices to the gods.
During Roman times, eggs were associated with rebirth, fertility, and the gods of Mithras and Mercury.
The eggs and bread basket may have been offerings during a religious ceremony or funeral. Other evidence of funerary activity in Berryfields included a funeral pyre.
“The eggs may have carried with a funerary procession,” said archaeologist Edward Biddulph. “The procession stopped at the pit, where a religious ceremony took place, and the food offerings were cast into a pit for the spirits of the underworld or in the hope of rebirth.”
Currently, the egg is being held in a box lined with acid-free tissue paper at Oxford Archaeology’s headquarters. Later, it will be available for public viewing at Buckinghamshire County Museum.
The find is exceptionally remarkable for being the only intact egg in the region and having been preserved for nearly two millennia.
Roman-period eggs are no stranger in Britain, but they are usually found in the form of shell fragments.
The only other complete chicken egg from the Roman era was found in Rome in 2010. It was buried in a child’s hand.
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