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The History of Bee Keeping

Beekeeping is an ancient way of obtaining honey without having to go out and look for it. The ancient world perfected methods of keeping bees in a variety of containers, spreading the practice from Egypt, through the Middle East and around the world. Beekeeping provides not only a consistent supply of honey and wax, but insects to help pollinate crops. These beekeepers, or apiarists, also sell bees to other beekeepers to keep populations thriving and decreasing the need to harvest wild bees. Modern beekeepers use a metal canister called a smoker to squirt smoke into beehives in order to calm the bees, and then they lift the lid off the hives and remove the frames in which the bees build their honeycombs.

Ancient Beekeeping
- Honeybees with stingers are native to Europe, Asia and Africa. The ancient Mayans who lived in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico kept stingerless bees that successfully made honey. Ancient beekeepers used a variety of containers to keep bees, such as pottery, old logs and woven straw, depending on the region. Before beekeeping, humans would hunt for honey, then smoke out the bees and take the hive with them.
Egyptian Beekeeping
- The ancient Egyptians kept bees in woven wicker baskets, depicted on the reliefs of Rekhmire and the tombs of Pabasa dating back to the seventh century B.C. Other beekeepers created beehives out of clay, shaping them into ellipses. By 200 B.C., beekeepers had perfected modern honey extraction by using smoke to calm the bees. They approached with shaved heads, the perfumed oil in the hair having a negative effect on the Egyptian bees.
Middle Eastern Bee Keeping
- The earliest archaeological evidence in Israel dates back between the ninth and 10th century B.C. An ancient apiary was discovered at Tel Rehov in September 2007. Ancient Turkey, ruled by the Hittites, was well-versed in beekeeping, according to Harry A. Hoffner Jr., author of "Food Production in Hittite Asia Minor." Beekeeping was present in Iran as early as 224 AD, but completely absent from the tribes in the region of Iraq around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers known as Mesopotamia.
European Beekeeping
- The Ancient Greeks built horizontal hives from clay pots, discovered in the 1960s near Athens. They cut small trenches inside the pots so the bees would have secure places to anchor their hives. The Romans kept bees in pottery, woven wicker, cork, wooden boards and bricks. They distributed this knowledge throughout their empire.
United States
- The first European honeybees arrived on North America in 1622 at the Virginia colony. Subsequent shipments to Massachusetts arrived by 1638. Wooden boxes with removable frames took root in the 1800s--the current model was created and patented by Lorenzo. L. Langstroth in 1852. This model allowed the keepers access to the honey and beeswax without having to kill the bees. This artificial hive replaced all previous artificial hives, and variations of Langstroth's design are in use today.

Insects & Science