Pots of honey, thousands of years old, have been found by archeologists in Egyptian tombs. Unspoiled, the honey is edible and retains its medicinal properties. Why?
Reason One: Honey is sugar and in its natural form is very low in moisture. In this environment of low moisture, bacteria and microorganisms do not survive.
Reason Two: Low ph - honey is acidic with a ph 3.5-4, also another reason bacteria do not survive.
Reason Three: Hydrogen Peroxide - the chemical makeup of a bee's stomach also plays a large part in honey’s resilience. Bees have an enzyme in their stomachs called glucose oxidase (PDF). When the bees regurgitate the nectar from their mouths into the combs to make honey, this enzyme mixes with the nectar, breaking it down into two by-products: gluconic acid and hydrogen peroxide.
Commercial honey is heat-treated and pasteurized, destroying the enzymes mentioned above. This is why we only use raw honey in our medicinal products.
Beeswax is made by the bees from eight wax-producing glands on the bellies. Beeswax has an almost indefinite shelf life if stored in cool dry conditions. Samples that are thousands of years old have been tested and found to have almost identical properties to freshly produced beeswax.