Making bread on a massive scale was the main occupation for the majority of the inhabitants, said Zahi Hawass, the head of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities.

After all, people had to eat...

The archaeologists unearthed two ovens and a potter's wheel. This was used to make the ceramic bread molds in which the bread was baked.

All indications show that the settlement had quite a long life. It began during the Middle Kingdom (2134-1569 B.C.) and lasted to the beginning of the New Kingdom (1569-1081 B.C.).

Apicius is the title of a collection of Roman cookery recipes, usually thought to have been