(ORDO NEWS) — Scientists from Italy and France studied the composition and structure of the walls of three amphorae and found that the winemakers of ancient Rome used local grapes and their flowers, they also imported resin and spices from other regions of Europe, according to the journal PLoS One.
Experts examined amphoras that were used to store red and white wines.
“The characteristic form of grape pollen, as well as the chemical composition of the walls of the amphorae, indicate that local wild or domesticated grapes were used to produce wine.
In addition, we found traces of resins and aromatic substances that were probably imported by winemakers from Calabria or Sicily,” the scientists said.
A team of researchers led by Donatella Magri, Associate Professor at the Sapienza University of Rome (Italy), used paleochemistry and paleobotanical methods to study how the ancient Romans made wine and where they obtained the resources to produce these drinks.
Scientists have studied three amphoras that were discovered a few years ago on the coast near the Italian commune of San Felice Circeo.
According to researchers, the vessels were buried at the bottom of the Tyrrhenian Sea after the wreck of one or more ships, and subsequently the amphorae were washed ashore.
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