Hundreds of whisky and gin bottles found at remains of British army barracks near town of Ramle

Archaeologists have unearthed hundreds of whisky and gin bottles at the remains of a first world war British army barracks in the centre of Israel.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said in a statement that the camp, near the town of Ramle, was used by an expeditionary force under Gen Edmund Allenby for about nine months from November 1917 during a pause in the campaign against the Turkish army in Palestine.

The statement quoted excavation director Ron Toueg as saying the bottles were found among crockery shards and broken cutlery in a rubbish tip.

“About 70% of the waste that was discarded in the refuse pit was liquor bottles,” Toueg said. “It seems that the soldiers took advantage of the respite given them to release the tension by frequently drinking alcohol. The discovery of this site and the finds in it provide us with an opportunity for a glimpse of the unwritten part of history, and to reconstruct for the first time the everyday life and leisure of the soldiers.”

Pictures of the bottles showed several marked as Gordon’s Gin and Dewar’s Whisky.

Researcher Brigitte Ouahnouna said it was the first such discovery in Israel. “It is a fascinating testimony of the everyday life of the British military camp a century ago,” the statement quoted her as saying.</s>Hundreds of whisky and gin bottles found at remains of British army barracks near town of Ramle

Archaeologists have unearthed hundreds of whisky and gin bottles at the remains of a first world war British army barracks in the centre of Israel.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said in a statement that the camp, near the town of Ramle, was used by an expeditionary force under Gen Edmund Allenby for about nine months from November 1917 during a pause in the campaign against the Turkish army in Palestine.</s>In a search for antiquities, Israeli archaeologists have unearthed a far more modern find — century-old liquor bottles that belonged to British soldiers in World War I.

The Israel Antiquities Authority said Wednesday it was excavating 250,000-year-old flint tools when the archaeologists stumbled upon hundreds of liquor bottles near a building where British soldiers were garrisoned in 1917.

Excavation director Ron Toueg says uniform buttons, belt buckles and riding equipment were found near the city of Ramle in addition to the bottles of gin, whiskey and wine. He said it offered a glimpse into "the everyday life and leisure of the soldiers."

The items appear to have belonged to members of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force commanded by General Edmund Allenby.</s>(JTA) – Hundreds of liquor bottles whose contents were consumed by British soldiers during World War I were uncovered near Ramla in central Israel.

The bottles were excavated by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) in preparation for the construction of a new highway, the IAA announced Wednesday. They were found near a building where British soldiers were garrisoned during the war.

Also found in the area were 250,000-year-old flint tools.

The uncovered building where the bottles were found was originally used for agricultural purposes during the Ottoman period and converted by the British for military use, according to Ron Toueg, excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority. The intact bottom floor was a barracks for the soldiers. Uniform buttons, belt buckles, parts of riding equipment and other artifacts that were the property of the British soldiers were discovered in the excavated building, according to the IAA.

“The place where the soldiers discarded debris was revealed just a few meters from the building,” Toueg said. “We were surprised to discover that along with broken crockery and cutlery there was an enormous number of soft drink and liquor bottles. In fact, about 70 percent of the waste that was discarded in the refuse pit was liquor bottles. It seems that the soldiers took advantage of the respite given them to release the tension by frequently drinking alcohol.”

The glass bottles had once contained mainly wine, beer, soda and alcoholic beverages such as gin, liquor and whisky.</s>The Israel Antiquities Authority said Wednesday it was excavating 250,000-year-old flint tools when the archaeologists stumbled upon hundreds of liquor bottles near a building where British soldiers were garrisoned in 1917.

Excavation director Ron Toueg says uniform buttons, belt buckles and riding equipment were found near the city of Ramle in addition to the bottles of gin, whiskey and wine. He said it offered a glimpse into "the everyday life and leisure of the soldiers."

The items appear to have belonged to members of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force commanded by General Edmund Allenby.

Explore further: Israeli archaeologists find inscription of name from Bible</s>Israeli archaeologists have found hundreds of glass bottles at the site of a First World War British army barracks.

The remains of the drinking session were found during excavations for a new road near the central city of Ramle, where soldiers under the command of Field Marshal Edmund Allenby were garrisoned in 1917.

The camp, based around a tall building, was occupied for about nine months from November 1917 during a pause in the campaign against the Turkish army in Palestine.

Workers uncovered a waste pit filled with cutlery, broken plates and the giant haul of empty glass bottles, including Gordon's gin and John Dewar's whisky.

Excavation director Ron Toueg said: 'About 70 percent of the waste that was discarded in the refuse pit were liquor bottles.

'It seems that the soldiers took advantage of the respite given them to release the tension by frequently drinking alcohol.'

Mr Toueg said the find gave a unique insight into the everyday lives of the soldiers while they were away from the battlefield.

He said: 'The discovery of this site and the finds in it provide us with an opportunity for a glimpse of the unwritten part of history, and reconstruct for the first time the everyday life and leisure of the soldiers.'

The soldiers were part of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force, captured the land around Ramle in November 1917 and went into Jerusalem the next month.

Researcher Brigitte Ouahnouna said it was the first such find uncovered in Israel.

She added: 'It is a fascinating testimony of the everyday life of the British military camp a century ago.'</s>Israeli archaeologists digging near the city of Ramla are used to uncovering flint tools and Palaeolithic remains.

But when they began excavating land that is about to be used for a new motorway they made a significantly less dry discovery.

Hundreds of bottles of gin, wine, beer and other alcohols left behind by British troops during the First World War were dug out of the dry earth.
Near the town of Ramle, Israeli archeologists uncover hundreds of gin and whiskey bottles dating back to the First World War at the site of a former British Army barracks.