EXPLORING THE INTERSECTION BETWEEN THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF RELIGIOUS RITUAL PRACTICES AND SOCIAL FOOD ARCHAEOLOGY.

This article examines the intersection between the archaeology of religious ritual practices and social food archaeology, focusing specifically on how food functions within ritual and religious contexts across diverse cultures and time periods. It highlights the methodological challenges of identifying ritual food use in the archaeological record, emphasizing the need for interdisciplinary approaches that integrate archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological, artefactual, textual, and ethnographic evidence. The volume’s case studies explore themes such as ritual feasting, offerings, ancestor veneration, and the socio-political roles of food in reinforcing status, identity, and cultural memory. By concentrating on food’s role in mediating relationships between the living, the dead, and the supernatural, the work contributes to broader understandings of how food practices are embedded within religious belief systems and social dynamics. [Extracted from the article]