Nautilus: The stubborn fact remains that, no matter how deeply we probe into the nature of bacon, eggs, oatmeal, and avocado toast—to say nothing of shakshuka, grits, bear claws, or dim sum—or the interactions between these fundamental building blocks and, say, orange juice or coffee and the morning paper, we simply have no convincing theory to explain how such disparate, seemingly inert components give rise to the phenomenon we subjectively experience as “breakfast.”

In particular, we know from the work of Scherzinger, et al. that breakfast is not located in the eggs. The chicken is involved but the pig is committed.

Oxford Archaeology’s excavation at Berryfields uncovered a wealth of evidence for Iron Age and Roman occupation at the site. They found a waterlogged pit containing what are thought to be votive deposits. Among those finds were four chicken eggs, one of which was extracted intact, making it the only complete Roman-era egg known in Britain.