GOOD NEWS FROM MAYOR ÜNLÜCE ABOUT KÜLLÜOBA BREAD

The Yeast of Time exhibition, which was included in the opening program of Museums Week, opened its doors at the Eti Archeology Museum. The burnt 5000-year-old bread found during the excavations carried out at Küllüoba Mound with the support of the Metropolitan Municipality was exhibited for the first time in the exhibition. Speaking at the exhibition and giving good news to the people of Eskişehir, Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce said, We produced 5000-year-old bread together with the Metropolitan Municipality and Halk Ekmek A.Ş. and it will be available for sale in our Producer Markets as of tomorrow.

The Yeast of Time exhibition, prepared with the support of Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality and Eskişehir Governorship, was opened to visitors at Eti Archaeology Museum. In the exhibition, which includes bread-themed works from the Eskişehir Museum Directorate collection, bread, which was unearthed in archaeological excavations carried out in Küllüoba Mound with the contributions of the Metropolitan Municipality and dated back 5000 years, was introduced to the public for the first time.

The opening of the exhibition was attended by Eskişehir Governor Hüseyin Aksoy, Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce, CHP Eskişehir Deputy İbrahim Arslan, Eskişehir Chief Public Prosecutor Üzeyir Karakülah, Odunpazarı Mayor Kazım Kurt, Eskişehir Eti Archaeology Museum Director Emriye Yurt, Küllüoba Excavation Director Prof. Dr. Murat Türkteki, Yazılıkaya Midas Excavation Director Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yusuf Bolat and many other interested parties.

Governor Hüseyin Aksoy, who started his speech by celebrating Museums Week, said, Our aim is to share cultural values with the society and to bring them to a point where we can gain economically from cultural tourism. In this sense, our museums are very important and, along with our Eskişehir Archaeology Museum, it is one of the provinces with the most thematic museums, which we can perhaps call a pioneer in Türkiye. It is a province that has such an important cultural wealth and has a very important place in terms of the majority of thematic museums.

Mayor Ünlüce said, The excavations carried out in our city make us proud. Especially the bread sample that was found in 2024 in Külloba, which was cooked and processed and preserved its first form, is of great value for Eskişehir and excited us immensely. I congratulate everyone who contributed to these excavations and these works regarding the oldest known history of Eskişehir, and the important heritages that emerged from here are being preserved in our museums as they deserve, finding their place and value. As you know, bread is one of our most important companions that accompanied us in our ancient history. When we see bread on the ground, we pick it up, kiss it, and put it in a protected corner. When we talk about our struggle for life or when we talk about our own beliefs, we call it our bread struggle. These lands that have preserved this bread for 5 thousand years gifted us the Küllüoba bread last year, and it is up to us to protect this beautiful gift and heritage, both today and to pass it on to future generations in the best way.

Murat Türkteki said that the excavations have been continuing for 28 years and that they are protecting Eskişehirs heritage with every important piece found, and said, There was a drought in Küllüoba in 2600 and 2700 BC. Not only in Küllüoba, but in the entire region and during this drought process, product preferences in Küllüoba change. Very simple, instead of wheat, black burçak is grown, goats are grown instead of sheep. When we put these statistically, we can see the difference. This means adapting to natural life, they are making an effort to survive, they are trying to adapt. I always say this, I have to say it here today; unfortunately, we are planting sunflowers and corn in the same region today. Yet, we are talking about drought and climate change. Therefore, there are some lessons we need to learn from here.

Türkteki also stated that they found the first fermented and baked bread sample in Küllüoba and said, We found the first fermented and baked bread sample during our Küllüoba excavation. This bread, which was found burnt, is a first. We would like to thank Eskişehir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Ayşe Ünlüce, who has always supported us in every way.

Murat Türkteki said that he left the floor to Mayor Ünlüce and that he would announce some good news.

Mayor Ünlüce also gave important good news at the exhibition opening, announcing that the 5000-year-old bread was re-produced together with Eskişehir Halk Ekmek A.Ş. and will be offered for sale in Producers Markets starting tomorrow. Mayor Ünlüce said, We have a surprise for you today. When I was talking to Murat Hoca 4-5 years ago, we were thinking about how we could get sponsorship from the metropolitan municipality. We have 8 companies. These companies operate in different areas such as culture, sports and marketing. Among those companies, Halk Ekmek came to my mind for some reason. We understood that there was a reason when bread was found in the excavations in 2024. So, fate has woven its web. We took this as our duty and determined how much gernik wheat, how much yeast and how much lentils were used in line with the laboratory data that Murat Hoca mentioned a moment ago. In light of these ratios, we produced our Küllüoba bread at Halk Ekmek. It will be sold in our producer markets as of tomorrow under the name Küllüoba. Unfortunately, its price was a little more expensive than Halk Ekmek because as Murat Hocam mentioned, it is really very hard to find this wheat. It will be sold for 50 TL at its cost price. This ancient land of Eskişehir has kept bread in its bosom for 5 thousand years and entrusted this heritage to us, and it will come to us as well. "It was our fortune to pass it on to future generations," he said.

After the speeches, Mayor Ünlüce, Governor Aksoy and their entourage examined the historical artifacts found in the Küllüoba excavations, such as burnt bread, pottery and mortar.