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most scientists agree that maize originated in central Mexico, domesticated 7-9,000 years ago from a wild grass called teosinte

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As a food, maize is used to make a wide variety of dishes including Mexican tortillas and tamales, Italian polenta, and American hominy grits. Maize protein is low in some essential amino acids, and the niacin it contains only becomes available if freed by alkali treatment. In Mesoamerica, maize is deified as a maize god and depicted in sculpturesMaize is cultivated throughout the world; a greater weight of maize is produced each year than any other grain. In 2020, world production was 1.1 billion tonnes. It is afflicted by many pests and diseases; two major insect pests, European corn borer and corn rootworms, have each caused annual losses of a billion dollars in the US. Modern plant breeding has greatly increased output and qualities such as nutrition, drought, and tolerance of pests and diseasesMaize is one of the world’s most important crops – responsible for roughly six percent of human calorie intake. Beyond human consumption it has a variety of uses, including for use as livestock feed, for fermentation for the American alcohol industry, and for production of plastics and ethanol. Globally, about a billion tons of maize is produced per yearAlthough maize has long been a significant crop on the European continent, it only became significant in the UK relatively recently, where it is mainly grown as food for livestock, and as game cover. Additionally, in recent decades the increasing trend for green power has driven farmers to use it as an energy crop for anaerobic digesters. The amount of maize grown in the UK has rocketed since the 1970s. In 1973 there was around 20,000 acres of maize being farmed in Britain, by 2016 this had reached 450,000 acres. And there is no sign of this growth slowing downAlthough maize has long been a significant crop on the European continent, it only became significant in the UK relatively recently, where it is mainly grown as food for livestock, and as game cover. Additionally, in recent decades the increasing trend for green power has driven farmers to use it as an energy crop for anaerobic digesters. The amount of maize grown in the UK has rocketed since the 1970s. In 1973 there was around 20,000 acres of maize being farmed in Britain, by 2016 this had reached 450,000 acres. And there is no sign of this growth slowing downe to its having smaller, fewer and more spaced out kernels, each surrounded by a tough casing. While it is descended from Teosinte, modern day corn, with its closely-packed kernels, does not exist in the wild and could not survive without human agricultural intervention.

Early farmers in Mexico domesticated Teosinte by selecting the biggest and best kernels until the crop we recognise today as maize was arrived at. Maize spread fast because it was nutritious, easy to grow, easy to store and easy to carry. Domesticated maize initially spread south down the coast to Peru and beyond, as well as across the North Americas, until eventually Native Americans continent-wide had adopted it as a vital part of their diet. Before long, it was a staple food across most cultures in North and South America and the Caribbean.

The Columbian Exchange

The Columbian Exchange is the colloquial name for the wide-ranging exchange of disease, food, ideas and people that happened between the ‘New World’ – the Americas – and the ‘Old World’ – Europe, Africa and Asia. It is so-named because it occurred in the 15th and 16th centuries, during the flurry of trade and colonization in the region that came in the aftermath of Christopher Columbus’s 1492 voyage. It was during this period that maize, along with three other crops that were subsequently to become vital staples in the Old World – potatoes, sweet potatoes and cassava – were brought to Europe. As well as these staples, a range of other foods came too, such as peanuts and pineapples and cocoa beans chilli peppers.

Maize

La Santa Trinidad – a Spanish galleon. Earlier versions of such ships were used by the first European voyagers to reach the Americas

When Europeans arrived in the Americas, maize was already being grown from Canada to Chile, although interestingly, very little was grown in the plains and savannahs of the central US and northern Argentina, areas which today are amongst the most productive agricultural areas in the world. This was because Native Americans practised s***h and burn agriculture – which was not suitable for grassy areas.

While it is possible that previous pre-Columbian contacts between the Old and New Worlds did occur, and that maize was first transported to the Old World at an earlier date, there is little doubt amongst archaeologists and historians that the first effective introduction of maize to the Old World – after which the crop became widespread – didn’t happen until after Columbus. Maize seeds and the plants that had grown from them were described in 1493 by one Peter Martyr, and one of the first European illustrations of corn was published in Venice in 1534 in Oviedeo’s Sumario de la

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The Ramesside Period: Egypt Strengthens Its Hold over Canaan The Ramesside Period: Egypt Strengthens Its Hold over Canaan The time of the early Nineteenth Dynasty saw increasing attempts by Hittites to take over parts of Syria that were under Egyptian control, as well as ongoing skirmishes among the local Canaanite rulers. To regain control of their northern territories, the Nineteenth Dynasty kings Seti I, Ramesses II, and Merneptah conducted military campaigns in Canaan, which are recorded on victory stelae and reliefs in Canaan and Egypt. These developments necessitated the reinforcement of the ... Read More » Stela of Seti I ("First Stela") Stela of Seti I ("First Stela") Beth Shean, 1295 BCE, basalt Israel Antiquities Authority This stela commemorates a successful military campaign of Seti I against a small group of rebellious Canaanite towns near Beth Shean. The upper part shows the king offering incense and libation to the falcon-headed sun god Re-Horakhty. The lower part features an inscription that opens with the date (Year 1 of the king's reign), continues with the king's official names and praises of his valor, and ends with an account of the campaign. From the Catalogue » Stela of Seti I >br>("Second Stela") Stela of Seti I >br>("Second Stela") Beth Shean, 1295–1290 BCE, basalt Israel Antiquities Authority The upper part of this stela is lost and at several points the surviving text is partly or entirely illegible. The inscription refers the king's suppression of an attack by the Apiru, a group of outsiders, renegades, and mercenaries who frequently caused trouble in Canaan for both the locals and the Egyptian forces stationed there. Reconstructed gateway facade of a fortress of Ramesses II Reconstructed gateway facade of a fortress of Ramesses II Jaffa, 1279–1212 BCE, kurkar sandstone Israel Antiquities Authority Only a few fragments have survived of the monumental gateway facade tentatively reconstructed here. The facade originally had inscriptions on both sides that bore the official names of Ramesses II, and it adorned the entrance to a gate in a fortress at Jaffa. The fragments were recovered in a secondary context, some of them reused as construction blocks along the sides and in the foundations of a later gateway. Jar fragment bearing the throne name and birth name of Seti II Jar fragment bearing the throne name and birth name of Seti II Tell el-Farah (South), 1201–1195 BCE, pottery Israel Antiquities Authority Model pen case Model pen case 1182-1151 BCE Meggido, Ivory Statue of Ramesses III Statue of Ramesses III Beth Shean, 1185–1153 BCE, basalt Israel Antiquities Authority This life-size statue depicts the seated figure of Ramesses III, who ruled Egypt for 32 years and who is often considered the last great pharaoh of ancient Egypt. It was probably dedicated to a Canaanite temple in Beth Shean, but was found broken and mutilated in a secondary context. The statue may have been installed as a form of Egyptian propaganda – an attempt to exercise power when Egypt's actual hold over Canaan was in decline. From the Catalogue » Papyrus-shaped capitals Papyrus-shaped capitals Beth Shean, 1300–1130 BCE, chalk Israel Antiquities Authority These capitals are among the most impressive architectural elements from the time of the Egyptian Empire in Canaan. They apparently originated in the Governor's Residence at Beth Shean. The capitals surmounted columns of (cedar?) wood and are designed in the shape of splaying papyrus flowers. Similar capitals, many of which were brightly painted, were very common in Egypt. In Canaan remains of such capitals have also been found in Megiddo and Lachish. From the Catalogue » Reconstructed gate to the residence of the Egyptian governor Reconstructed gate to the residence of the Egyptian governor Beth Shean, 1185–1153, limestone Israel Antiquities Authority This reconstruction includes a partially preserved lintel, doorjamb, and cornices. The lintel depicts a kneeling worshiper facing columns of hieroglyphs that present the names of Ramesses III, words of adoration of the king, and the name and titles of the worshiper – Ramesses-user-khepesh, the Egyptian governor at Beth Shean. Words of praise for the king appear also on the doorjamb. Scenes of adoration of and words of praise for the Egyptian king are well attested in Egyptian private architecture, suggesting that these architectural elements belonged to the residence of the Egyptian governor at Beth Shean. Base of a statue of Ramesses VI Base of a statue of Ramesses VI Megiddo, 1141–1133 BCE, bronze Israel Antiquities Authority This base bears the names and royal epithets of Ramesses VI, the last pharaoh of the Egyptian Empire in Canaan, and originally supported his statue. It was deliberately separated from the statue and buried, probably just before the destruction of Megiddo, where it was found. Presumably, the statue was erected during the king's reign, indicating that Egypt still maintained some control over the region at that time. סגור עמוד The time of the early Nineteenth Dynasty saw increasing attempts by Hittites to take over parts of Syria that were under Egyptian control, as well as ongoing skirmishes among the local Canaanite rulers. To regain control of their northern territories, the Nineteenth Dynasty kings Seti I, Ramesses II, and Merneptah conducted military campaigns in Canaan, which are recorded on victory stelae and reliefs in Canaan and Egypt. These developments necessitated the reinforcement of the Egyptian military and administrative presence in the region. The kings of the Nineteenth and early Twentieth Dynasties (1300–1130 BCE) considerably increased the number of Egyptian personnel stationed in Canaan and founded new Egyptian strongholds at many sites. The archaeological remains associated with these Egyptian centers include distinctive Egyptian and Egyptian-style architecture, inscriptions, ceramic, stone, and faience vessels, jewelry, amulets, and scarabs. Egyptian administrative practices are also evidenced, as well as Egyptian-style funerary customs. The Egyptian Empire in Canaan came to an end around 1130 BCE when dramatic political, social, and economic changes took place throughout the Eastern Mediterranean, marking the end of the Late Bronze Age in the region.

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