Barley-What

Barley was an important grain crop to the ancient world, second only to wheat. It was sacred to Demeter, as when she was searching for Persephone (her daughter), she stopped at a farmer's cottage for a sweet barley drink. A boy named Askalabos mocked her for this, and in anger Demeter cast the drink upon him. This transformed him into a lizard, with spots from the flecks of barley.

Picture: http://www.hgca.com/images/upload/barley.jpg