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→Use in Historical Periods
Egyptian sources also indicate the Levant as a land of honey. The Egyptian hero Sinuhe indicates that beehives were being kept in the Levant in the 3rd millennium BCE. This depiction of the Levant as a "land of honey" may have later influenced references to the region in the Bible as a "land of milk and honey." Both in the Egyptian and Biblical references to honey denote prosperity in referencing honey. In war campaigns in the region by the Egyptians, they mention taking honey as tribute, indicating the importance of honey as a food product but also, in Egypt, as something used in the embalming process. This is also true in other cultures that embalmed, such as in Georgia, which also used honey as part of the embalming process for the dead. In fact, honey jars have been found in Egyptian tombs.
In India, the Vedas mention honey as a spiritual product and reference its potential for healing. Marriage ceremonies were often symbolized with honey as a way to ward evil from the marriage. The term "madhu" was used for honey and likely influenced the much later Anglo-Saxon term "medu" for honey, which today has become mead, an alcoholic drink that uses honey. Chinese texts from the 1st millennium BCE record beekeeping as also an important activity in ancient China. In ancient Greece, bees were also vital for providing honey that was not only consumed to sweeten food but also used as offerings to the gods. In the New World, stingless honeybees were kept, where the Maya cultivated honey for use in alcoholic drinks (similar to mead) as well as food. In fact, bees for the Maya were treat as pets and kept around the house, likely because they did not sting, although they could still bite. We know from other various ancient cultures, honey has been used to treat stomach ailments, ulcers, and various skin burns and wounds.
==Modern Use==
