Monastic diet in Late Antique Egypt: zooarchaeological finds from Kom el-Nana and Tell el-Amarna, Middle Egypt

Contemporary literature suggests that meat and fish were not common fare of monastic communities in Egypt during the Late Antique Period (AD 330 to 642). A sizeable assemblage of fishbone from the Monastery at Kom el-Nana has allowed, in conjunction with other zooarchaeological material, a reapprais...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental archaeology : the journal of human palaeoecology 2007-10, Vol.12 (2), p.161-174
Main Author: Luff, Rosemary M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
BONES
FISH
LATE ANTIQUE PERIOD
MONASTERY
PHARAONIC
SALTING
Synodontis schall
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Contemporary literature suggests that meat and fish were not common fare of monastic communities in Egypt during the Late Antique Period (AD 330 to 642). A sizeable assemblage of fishbone from the Monastery at Kom el-Nana has allowed, in conjunction with other zooarchaeological material, a reappraisal of this assumption. In addition, comparative data from the adjacent Pharaonic site at Tell el-Amarna have highlighted distinct cultural differences in the utilisation of the mammal, bird and especially the fish remains between the sites. The difference in size of the catfish Synodontis schall demonstrates that in contrast to the ancient Egyptians the monks were targeting very small fish, most likely for salting in ceramic vessels.
ISSN:1461-4103
1749-6314
DOI:10.1179/174963107x226426