Julia Rutland - Honey: 50 Tried & True Recipes

Honey and History

Throughout human history, honey has been a significant product used as food and medicine. Prehistoric rock paintings created during the Stone Age depict people and other animals braving the hives to collect the precious liquid. Originally, honey was extracted from wild beehives located in hollow trees or other crevices. Early beekeepers found they could entice bees to nest in trees or stumps hollowed out for that purpose. Later, upside-down baskets called skeps were made from woven straw and used to house beehives.

Early methods of beekeeping destroyed the hive and colony in the process of harvesting the honey, but improvements to hive maintenance occurred over time. In 1851, American Reverend L.L. Langstroth, building on the work of European beekeepers and others, revolutionized beekeeping with his invention of a hive with moveable frames. Langstroths design enabled beekeepers to remove filled honeycombs without damaging the hive. His design is popular today, and Langstroth is considered the Father of American Beekeeping.

Beehives provide more than just honey. The byproducts of honey creation have also found many uses. Beeswax was (and is) used in a many ways: as an art medium; to make candles, soap, and cosmetics; to seal letters, cheese, and other foods; to waterproof leather and fabric; and even to embalm bodies. Early scribes found that wax tablets could be written on, then scraped smooth, making them the original dry-erase boards!