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Findings in Gornja Tuzla indicate that Neolithic communities already mastered brine evaporation techniques in ceramic containers, revealing an ancient relationship between salt, human permanence, food, and social organization in the interior of the Balkans.
Traces analyzed at the archaeological site of Gornja Tuzla, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, indicate that Neolithic communities exploited salt around 5700 BC, using ceramic containers to evaporate brine.
The discovery reinforces the importance of salt in the formation of ancient settlements and places the Tuzla region among the most relevant sites for the study of prehistoric production of this resource in Eastern Europe.
Published in 2024 in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews, the research was conducted by Ivana Pandžić, Rejhana Dervišević, and Bojan Šarac, who investigated ceramic fragments from Tuzla and Gornja Tuzla.
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In the examined materials, researchers searched for sodium and chloride, elements associated with the use of vessels in processes of boiling saltwater and obtaining salt.
Although the term “salt factory” frequently appears in outreach texts, the finding is more accurately described as evidence of Neolithic salt exploitation and production.
The difference is important because it is not an industrial facility, but an ancient system of brine utilization, based on repetition, technical knowledge, and organized use of ceramics.
Salt Archaeology in Gornja Tuzla
The study started from a site already known for its relationship with salt deposits and brine sources, a characteristic that helps explain the prolonged human presence in this area of the Balkans.
In the Tuzla region, the occurrence of rock salt and saltwater created favorable conditions for ancient communities to exploit a valuable resource far from coastal areas.
The chemical analysis aimed to verify whether certain vessel fragments could have been used in brine evaporation, a technique in which saltwater was heated until only salt remained.
To interpret the traces, researchers compared the archaeological materials with experimental containers made of local clay and used in saltwater boiling tests.
This comparison helped to observe how sodium and chloride remained on ceramic surfaces after use, creating a reference to understand the prehistoric fragments found at the site.
The oldest layers studied in Gornja Tuzla were situated in the Middle Neolithic, around 5700 BC, a period linked to already established agricultural communities capable of manipulating ceramics.
In this context, the site became associated with groups that depended on local resources to organize food, storage, and possible exchanges long before the emergence of classical civilizations.
Why salt shaped ancient settlements
Long before refrigeration, salt was essential for preserving food and enhancing the food security of human groups, as it allowed meats, fish, and other products to be preserved for longer periods.
Besides being a seasoning, this mineral could reduce losses during periods of scarcity or displacement, making its acquisition strategic for communities that needed to plan food reserves.
In the prehistoric context, the presence of salt could also influence the choice of living places, especially in areas where the resource was not abundantly available.
According to the study, salt deposits played an important role in the formation of the settlements of Tuzla and Gornja Tuzla, in a region with limited availability compared to coastal zones.
This relationship between salt, territory, and human permanence explains the archaeological interest in the find, which points to a more complex technical chain than the simple collection of a natural resource.
Behind the ceramic fragments, stages such as locating brine, manufacturing suitable containers, controlling heating, and transforming saltwater into a product usable by the community appear.
History of salt in Tuzla
The connection of Tuzla with salt continued for many centuries, as shown by records from Solana Tuzla, a local company dedicated to salt production and preserving this regional memory.
According to the institution, the oldest data on organized production in Gornja Tuzla and Donja Tuzla date back to 1478, when 13 tons of salt were produced under Ottoman rule.
This historical record does not replace the Neolithic evidence, but it shows that the relationship between the region and salt remained relevant in different periods of human occupation.
The preservation of this heritage is of interest to archaeology because it helps reconstruct production techniques, forms of territorial occupation, and ancient relationships between food, economy, and natural resources.
There is also an important cultural dimension, as salt connects Tuzla’s local history to broader debates about how essential ingredients influenced societies over time.
Therefore, the safest reading is that the find brings together science, heritage, and food, without attributing institutional support or specific mobilization to groups not confirmed in the consulted sources.
What the discovery still does not reveal
Despite the advances, the available data does not allow us to confidently state what the site’s production capacity was, how the work was divided, or how the salt circulated among neighboring communities.
These answers depend on new evidence, regional comparisons, and broader studies on the material remains linked to salt exploitation in Gornja Tuzla.
It is also necessary to separate Neolithic exploitation from modern industrial production in Tuzla, as ancient remains involve ceramics and brine evaporation, not contemporary factory structures.
Industrial production appears much later, with historical records and units opened during the Austro-Hungarian period, such as the Simin Han plant, inaugurated in 1885.
Even with these differences, Gornja Tuzla occupies a central position in understanding how salt helped organize settlements, production techniques, and possible exchange networks in a period before writing.
In the history of food, a common ingredient in today’s kitchens emerges as a key to investigating the economy, technology, and survival millennia ago.
If salt already helped Neolithic communities to settle, produce, and exchange resources, what other ancient practices might still change the way we understand the origin of food?
