Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner examines how specific types of food were prepared and eaten during feasting rituals in prehistoric Europe and the Near East. Such rituals allowed people to build and maintain their power and prestige and to maintain or contest the status quo. At the same time, they also contributed to the inner cohesion and sense of community of a group. When eating and drinking together, people share thoughts and beliefs and perceive the world and human relationships in a certain way. The twelve contributions to this book reflect the main theoretical and methodological issues related to the study of food and feasting in prehistoric Europe and the Near East. The book is introduced by Ferrán Adrià, considered to be the world’s greatest chef. Famed for his “molecular gastronomy”, he invented the technique of reducing foods to their essence and then changing how they are presented, for example in the form of foam. In 2010,he was named Best Chef of the Decade by the prestigious Restaurant magazine.
Editorial Reviews
Review
“Overall, this volume has much to offer the reader interested in feasting and food-related practices in archaeology. The papers do not present a single perspective but rather a collection of possibilities, questions, and potential new directions. They give a clear sense of how far archaeology has come in considering issues of feasting, as well as some of the directions in which future work can fruitfully take us.” — European Journal of Archaeology European Journal of Archaeology
From the Publisher
Gonzalo Aranda Jiménez is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Granada, Spain. His research interests are related to the emergence, development and collapse of complex societies in Late Prehistory of the southern Iberian Peninsula, focusing on topics such as the construction of social identities, the ritual practices of food and drink consumption, the social organization of pottery production, and the appearance of interpersonal conflicts that involve the use of violence.
Margarita Sánchez Romero is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Granada, Spain. Her main research area is archaeology of women and gender relations focusing her analysis on the study of the body, material culture and maintenance activities, and the archaeology of children and childhood, taking into account process of learning and socialization.
About the Author
Gonzalo Aranda Jiménez is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Granada, Spain. His research interests are related to the emergence, development and collapse of complex societies in Late Prehistory of the southern Iberian Peninsula, focusing on topics such as the construction of social identities, the ritual practices of food and drink consumption, the social organization of pottery production, and the appearance of interpersonal conflicts that involve the use of violence. Margarita Sánchez Romero is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Prehistory and Archaeology at the University of Granada, Spain. Her main research area is archaeology of women and gender relations focusing her analysis on the study of the body, material culture and maintenance activities, and the archaeology of children and childhood, taking into account process of learning and socialization.
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