The Fascinating Art of Ancient Greek Bread Baking and Its 72 Varieties

The ancient Greeks used to make a wide variety of breads, as they considered it to be of great importance in their eating habits.

Wheat, considered a gift from the goddess Demeter, was highly valued by the Greeks, who particularly preferred the hulled varieties. Barley, however, thrived in larger regions of mainland Greece. The varieties of wheat and barley with hulls had to be dried to separate the grain before they could be ground. Most Greeks, however, even in areas where wheat cultivation was economically unprofitable, were fond of wheat bread.

Bread made from hulled barley and porridge formed the basis of the ancient Greeks’ diet. The bread was enriched with olive oil and flavored with herbs, spices or honey.

Athenian bread was renowned for its excellent quality and was a source of pride for the Athenians, who imported wheat as the soil of Attica was unsuitable for its cultivation. Thearion, an Athenian of the 5th century BCE, had the honor of being considered the inventor of bakery ovens, and probably of the first bakeries.

Plato mentions Thearion the baker as one of the three people who “were the best caretakers of the human body.” The other two were Mithaecus, a Sicilian, the first known cookbook writer, and Sarambus, a famous wine maker.

The ancient Greeks showed great ingenuity and skill in the art of baking. Athenaeus cites many serious studies on the subject and lists over seventy different types of bread.

Breads were distinguished according to the grain used in their preparation: wheat, rye, millet and spelt. The last three were used only out of necessity, as everyone preferred wheat.

There was bread made from various types of flour: white bread made from finely sifted flour, black bread made from wholemeal flour, which was healthier. Nevertheless, ancient Greeks preferred white bread, because they considered it more refined and better tasting.

Bread was leavened with or without yeast and could be differentiated according to the baking method: oven bread, bread baked on embers or in a pan over the fire into which they put a filling and then dipped it in wine. Delicious, if we believe the praises of the poets: “bread spread from embers, a soft and delightful combination.” Also, some baked the dough on a spit.

The various liquids, fats and spices added to the flour could vary the density and taste of the bread. Wine, milk, cheese and honey, separately or combined in some way, as liquids, oil, ghee or lard as fats, but also poppy seeds, sesame and linseed are most often mentioned as spices.

Finally, the bread would be filled with various types of cheese, raisins and other nuts, sweet or savory ingredients. The bread was often served as a plate, on which meat or fish was placed.

Bread history and stories

The staples of the ancient Greeks were bread, vegetables, cheese and olives. In the Mycenaean era, each house made its own bread and was equipped with its own hand-operated mill which turned wheat into flour.

Bread was kneaded and baked in homes, seasoned with sea salt for better taste.

In the Great Dionysia festivals, participants brought with them baskets containing wine, water and bread, which was needed for the sacrificial offerings. Ancient texts show that the Greeks offered bread to the gods, which they called the Gods’ Breads (Θειαγόνους Άρτους).

In the temple of Demeter in Eleusis, during the Thesmophoria feast, a large loaf of bread was offered to the goddess. The festival got its name Megalartia (meaning large bread) from the bread offering.

There was fierce competition among ancient Greek cities for which one produced the best bread. Athens boasted of Thearion, its best baker, whose name was found in the writings of many authors.

At weddings in ancient Macedonia, the bride’s parents cut the bread in two and the future husband tasted both portions. The custom was followed at the wedding of Alexander the Great to Roxane.

In ancient times, Cyprus was one of the granaries of the Greek world. According to Pliny, the wheat of Cyprus produced a famous brownish-yellow bread.

According to Diogenes Laertius, the smell of fresh, warm bread kept the wise man Democritus alive for three days so that his sister could take part in the Thesmophoria festival, in honor of Demeter. Thus, Democritus “hosted death in his house for three days and treated him to fresh, warm bread.”

Hippocrates mentions various types of bread made from wheat flour, sifted or not, with or without leaven, with bran, with bulgur, with honey and cheese, oil, poppy seeds and sesame seeds.

In the German Bread Museum in the city of Ulm, the most beautiful exhibits are four Greek figurines with female figures from the 5th century BCE, originating from Boeotia. The figurines depict the grinding of wheat in a mortar, the shaping of dough, the baking of bread, and the loaves ready for sale and eating.

In Rome, bread became popular and in 500 BCE, when the well-off Romans insisted on expensive white bread. Bread also played an important role in Roman weddings. In ancient Roman wedding ceremonies, the two families that were joining ate bread together.

Types of ancient Greek breads

There were at least 72 types of ancient Greek breads, named after the added ingredients used or the kneading, preparation method or baking procedure. Several of them are still made today in slight variations.

Alifatitis (Αλιφατίτης): a well-known bread made with added oil. It also contained animal fats. Similar to today’s puff pastry made with butter, a bread recipe of the ancient Greeks according to Larousse Gastronomique encyclopedia.

Artolaganon or laganon (Αρτολάγανον or λάγανον): a flavored bread with the dough rolled out thinly like a small pita and fried in oil. Artolaganon was the ancestor of today’s lagana which Greeks eat on Clean Monday. It was made with good quality flour.

Atabyritis (Αταβυρίτης): a round-shaped bread of the ancient Greeks that had a lot of crumb, and was particularly nutritious and fattening.

Vlomiaios bread (Βλωμιαίος άρτος): a ​​bread with notches to make it easier to divide into pieces. Vlomiaios bread was usually octavlomos, that is, divided into eight pieces (vlomos: a small piece of bread).

Egrides (Εγκρίδες): made with soft dough like pancakes that was dipped in oil and honey.

Thridakini (Θριδακίνη): bread with the dough mixed with wild lettuce.

Plytos or Vasinias (Πλυτός or Βασυνίας): boiled bread. When boiled, it floats in the water. It is made in Crete (boiled buns) and is the ancestor of the Jewish bagel. There are mentions  of this bread offering to goddess Iris on Delos island.

Krivanitis (Κριβανίτης): bread baked in a krivanos, that is, in a mobile clay oven.

Obelias (Οβελίας): it got this name because it was baked in special molds, the “obelisks” (spits) and because it was sold for an obol (όβολο), a small value coin.

Chondritis (Χονδρίτης): bread made from coarsely ground cereals.

Paxamas (Παξαμάς): a type of hard rusk. The name belongs to the baker (Paxamos) who had introduced it. The rusk was baked twice.

Plakountas (Πλακοῦς): was a sweet that had similarities to the modern cheesecake-type dessert. The sweet consisted of several layers of dough filled with honey and soft cheese. Its main ingredients were flour, cheese and honey. The dough of the plakountas was enriched with milk, fat, herbs and spices.

Pyritis bread (Πυρίτης): hulled wheat bread, from the ancient Greek word πυρός meaning the heart of the wheat seed.

Streptikios (Στρεπτίκιος): bread kneaded with milk, oil and honey. It was prepared by twisting the dough with the shape of the Easter tsoureki.