Babies in the ancient Greek city of Himera in Sicily were breastfed until nearly age 4, far longer than later ancient medical advice suggested, according to a new study of burial remains. Although other foods were introduced within the first few months, breast milk remained part of children’s diets for years.
The study, led by University of Georgia anthropologist Laurie Reitsema and published in the European Journal of Archaeology, examined 58 children and adolescents and 27 adult women from two cemeteries at Himera. The city, on Sicily’s northern coast, was a meeting place for Greek, Phoenician and indigenous Sicilian traditions between the seventh and fifth centuries B.C.
Scientists measured chemical traces of carbon and nitrogen in bone collagen to work out how diets changed as children grew. A statistical model using 50 children aged 10 or younger estimated exclusive breastfeeding ended at around 3 to 4 months. Complete weaning came at about 3.8 years, although the timing differed between individuals.
How ancient Greek babies were breastfed at Himera
The lengthy transition meant children could eat other foods while continuing to receive breast milk for roughly three and a half years. All infants in the sample who died before 6 months showed chemical signs of nursing. That suggests breastfeeding was widely practiced, even among children who did not survive infancy.
The findings contrast with guidance from Soranus and Galen, medical writers of the second century A.D. Both favored a shorter nursing period. But the researchers noted that those recommendations were recorded long after Himera’s era and may not reflect the choices of ordinary households.
Children’s bones also pointed to diets containing more plants and less animal protein than adult diets. The differences persisted until about age 9 or 10. The analysis could not identify particular dishes, but ancient sources describe foods such as bread, cereal porridge, and eggs during weaning.
Childcare traditions varied across Mediterranean communities
Himera’s results closely matched those from Apollonia Pontica, another Greek colony on the Black Sea. Researchers estimated breastfeeding continued there until around 4.3 years. The Roman-era cemetery at Isola Sacra near Rome, by comparison, yielded an estimate of about 1.2 years, although Roman sites differed widely.
Within Himera, however, families did not appear to follow a rigid schedule. The study described a common approach to infant feeding with “room for flexibility,” potentially shaped by caregivers’ work, health, and household demands.
The researchers also cautioned that skeletal samples from children who died young cannot fully represent an entire population or establish whether extended breastfeeding improved survival.
Still, the findings offer an unusually detailed view of daily care in a community where children’s lives are poorly documented.
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