Who invented
ice cream?
The fascinating history of ice cream
Text:
Katharina Kuhlmann
Photography:
istock © Vladimir Sretenovic
29 June 2026
There is no single inventor. The history of ice cream stretches back more than 2,000 years, from the first frozen desserts in ancient China, through Persia, to Italy, where it gradually evolved into what we know today as ice cream. Today, ice cream is one of the most popular summer classics of all – whether vanilla, strawberry or chocolate. Chocolate ice cream, in particular, remains one of the Germans’ favourite flavours to this day. But how did the idea for this ice-cold treat come about? When did ice cream arrive in Europe, and how did it develop into our favourite ice cream of today? Join us on an exciting journey through the history of ice cream.
Historical ice cream preferences
Not all ice cream is the same – after all, there are numerous varieties, such as milk ice cream, sorbet and fruit ice cream, each of which is distinguished from its counterparts by its different ingredients. Yet it is unlikely that anyone today makes ice cream in the same way as in ancient times: back then, snow and glacial ice were popular ingredients. The earliest enthusiasts of ice were probably the Chinese, who as early as the third millennium BC created underground ice stores to serve their rulers ice-chilled, sorbet-like drinks on hot summer days. This principle was also known in ancient Europe. For instance, around 400 BC, the famous Greek physician Hippocrates prescribed delicious water ice to patients suffering from painful ailments to aid their recovery.
Alexander the Great went one step further: around 350 BC, he motivated his army officers to achieve military feats by providing them with glacier ice or snow from mountain peaks, mixed with milk, honey, fruit juice or wine. In the Middle Ages, too, mixtures of snow and fruit (‘sherbet’) were extremely popular; the recipes for these were brought back from the East by the Crusaders.
The triumph of an ice-cold treat
In the centuries that followed, famous figures such as Marco Polo and Catherine de’ Medici helped to spread the popularity of ice cream throughout Europe. Inventions such as saltpetre, which made it possible to generate cold artificially for the first time, and the first hand-operated ice cream maker by Nancy Johnson (1843) made it increasingly easier to produce ice cream.
From the early 20th century onwards, Italian ice-cream makers ensured the definitive breakthrough of ice cream as a mass-market product. Its global popularity also reached Germany, where the ‘Italian ice-cream parlour’ literally took the country by storm from the 1960s onwards and remains one of Germans’ favourite places to visit during the height of summer.
Chocolate ice cream remains very popular
It is impossible to say for certain who first came up with the idea of combining ice cream with chocolate. What is certain, however, is that chocolate ice cream still occupies a top spot in the rankings among ice cream lovers and is far from being overtaken by new flavours. In second place is another classic: vanilla ice cream. This is followed by stracciatella – the best of both worlds.
Stracciatella
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