Archaeologists discovered the jars inside an underground shrine found at the ancient ruins of Paestum in southern Italy.

In 1954, archaeologists working in southern Italy uncovered a number of bronze jars left at an ancient Greek shrine. The jars were filled with a sticky orange substance, though researchers were initially unable to identify what it was. But now, more than 70 years later, scientists have determined that the substance in the jars was honey.

An important substance in antiquity, honey was often used as an offering to the gods or left to honor the dead. In the sixth century B.C.E., someone seems to have left jars full of honey at this Greek shrine, which has now given researchers a unique look at ritual practices in the ancient world.

The Discovery Of 2,500-Year-Old Honey I

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