Emmer, the oldest cultivated variety of wheat, was grown as early as 8700 B.C. in ancient Turkey and quickly spread to regions such as Mesopotamia, Egypt, Rome, and Greece. The cultivation of wheat during these prehistoric times experienced rapid expansion, reaching North Africa and the Indus Valley in northern India by 4000 B.C, northern China by 3000 B.C. and western Europe by 2000 B.C.
The grinding of grain was one of the earliest food processing techniques adopted by civilized humans. While flour milling can be traced back to prehistoric times, the modern systems known as gradual reduction flour mills were only developed in the last 200-300 years. Ancient grinding methods have been observed in the Far East, Egypt, and Rome, with evidence of humans grinding grains with rocks as early as 6,700 B.C.
During the Neolithic period (between 5000 and 3000 B.C.), people already utilized wooden or stone mortars and querns to convert cereals into flour. The development of quern technology during the Greek-Roman era gave rise to the use of millstone manhandles. This technology was further enhanced over time, with larger grinders and the utilization of animal or water power in addition to human effort.
In ancient Egypt, the cereal grinding quern took the form of a mostly flat or slightly curved stone with a roughened surface. A handstone was rubbed back and forth along its long axis to pulverize the grains. This type of quern is also known as a saddle quern.
Before the invention of the rotary quern in northeastern Spain around the fifth century B.C., all grinding was done by manually rubbing a handheld handstone against a larger base stone.
Water mills made their appearance in Asia Minor in 85 B.C., while windmills emerged between 1180 and 1190 A.D. in Syria, France, and England.
In the nineteenth century, advancements in milling technology led to excellent performance and higher flour yields. The consumption of white flour and bread has historically been associated with prosperity. The development of sophisticated roller mills in Austro-Hungary during the second half of the 19th century allowed for the production of larger quantities of whiter flour compared to traditional milling methods involving stone grinding and sieving.
Wheat flour milling since ancient times
