A Microbiological Treasure in Pharaonic Tombs

Honey taken from ancient Egyptian tombs -- some over 3,000 years old -- retains significant antibacterial properties, reveals a study published in August 2026 in the journal MicrobiologyOpen.1 Samples from hermetically sealed funerary vessels were subjected to microbiological tests in the laboratory, with remarkable results: the vast majority inhibit the growth of several pathogenic bacterial strains, including Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The study sheds new light on the sophistication of Egyptian pharmacopoeia and funerary practices.

Egyptian mummy at the British Museum
Egyptian mummyMummyA body preserved from decay, naturally (cold, aridity, peat) or artificially; the frozen Pazyryk kurgans yielded natural mummies with tattooed skin.→ preserved at the British Museum. Honey was used in Egyptian funerary rites and medicine from at least the Old KingdomOld KingdomThe first great period of unified pharaonic Egypt (c. 2700-2200 BC, 3rd-6th Dynasties), the golden age of the great pyramids and of a strongly centralised state.→ period. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Honey is one of nature's most stable substances. Its low water content (below 20%), acidic pH, high osmotic sugar concentration, and the presence of hydrogen peroxide -- produced by the enzyme glucose oxidase -- make it a near-impenetrable environment for microorganisms. Samples found in Tutankhamun's tomb in 1922 and in several hypogea in the Valley of the Kings had already demonstrated that it could survive millennia without deteriorating. But beyond simple physical preservation, the question was whether the biologically active molecules had also survived.

Methodology and Results

The team led by microbiologist Dr. Amira Hassan of Cairo University, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Copenhagen, collected samples from 14 funerary vessels from Theban tombs of the 18th and 19th dynasties (c. 1550-1190 BCE), as well as from two containers from the Ptolemaic period (300-30 BCE).1 The vessels came from excavations carried out between 1998 and 2020 at the Deir el-Medina necropolisNecropolisA large organised burial ground, a "city of the dead", often spanning several periods.→.

Egyptian canopic jars
Egyptian funerary vessels at the Louvre. Similar containers were used to store honey and other offerings in tombs. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons, public domain)

Antibacterial tests -- using the agar diffusion method against eight reference strains -- revealed significant inhibition zones for 11 of the 14 dynastic samples and for both Ptolemaic samples. Chemical analyses by gas chromatography confirmed the presence of active phenolic compounds, notably kaempferol and quercetin, in all positive samples. These flavonoids are known for their antimicrobial properties. Hydrogen peroxide, more unstable, was only quantifiable in four samples. The quality of preservation -- vessel integrity, absence of moisture -- proved more determinant than age alone.

Honey in Egyptian Culture: Far More Than a Food

For the ancient Egyptians, honey occupied a central place in religious symbolism and medical practice. Associated with the sun god Ra and the idea of rebirth, it was offered in temples and deposited in tombs to nourish the deceased in the afterlife. The Ebers Papyrus (c. 1550 BCE) lists over 900 prescriptions, several hundred of which use honey, to treat wounds, skin infections, eye conditions and sore throats.2

Apis mellifera honeybee in flight
Apis mellifera was kept in Egypt from the predynasticPredynasticThe period of Egypt before unification (c. 3100 BCE) and the First Dynasty, marked by the Naqada cultures and the gradual emergence of the state.→ period onwards. Depictions of beehives and honey harvesting decorate temples dating to the Old Kingdom. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0)

Textual evidence for the use of honey as a preserving and healing agent dates back at least to the Old Kingdom (c. 2700-2200 BCE). The Egyptians obviously had no knowledge of bacteria, but their empirical pharmacopoeia had identified honey as a preserving and wound-healing substance. Some later texts suggest honey was applied directly to mummification bandages -- an intuitive form of antisepsis that modern microbiology can now scientifically validate.

This study is part of a broader reassessment of the medical sophistication of ancient civilisations. At a time when antibiotic resistance is one of the most pressing global health crises, the remarkable longevity of ancient honey's biological activity fascinates researchers working on medical formulations derived from the hive, such as Manuka honey, already approved for clinical applications in New Zealand and Europe.

Sources

1. Hassan A. et al., "Antibacterial activity of ancient Egyptian tomb honey samples spanning 3,000 years", MicrobiologyOpen, August 2026.

2. Ebers Papyrus, translation E. Ebbell, Copenhagen, 1937.

3. Zumla A., Lulat A., "Honey -- a remedy rediscovered", Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 1989.

4. Carter H., The Tomb of Tut.Ankh.Amen, vol. II, Cassell, London, 1927.