This is the first volume of a projected series from the Department of Archaeology at Nottingham University. What sets it apart is that it is a postgraduate conference, not just the usual old lags' excuse for a get-together, so the contributors are presenting research that is both new and at the cutting-edge of academic preoccupation. While the importance of nutrition for survival has long been recognised, increasing emphasis is being put on the cultural significance of the production, distribution and consumption of foodstuffs throughout all archaeological periods. The ancient Near East, the Mediterranean, Europe and the British Isles come under the microscope, even the household diet of the Willoughby family, former residents of Wollaton Hall in Nottingham is scrutinised.More than 20 researchers write on topics, including hunting in Roman Britain; how food reached the Roman frontier; what was sold in the grocery shops of Roman Pompeii and Ostia; the use of stimulants in ancient societies; feasting in Mycenae and the Aegean; food storage and production in Norse Greenland and 17th century. The format is that of academic proceedings, and the readership is expected to be wholly academic.

This is the second volume of a series from the Department of Archaeology at Nottingham University which organises a postgraduate conference on this particular theme in the early summer of each year. Save for the keynote essay by the archaeologist of Roman Britain, Hilary Cool, all the authors are postgraduate researchers. While the importance of nutrition for survival has long been recognised, increasing emphasis is being put on the cultural significance of the production, distribution and consumption of foodstuffs throughout all archaeological periods. These papers reflect an interest in the sorts of foods consumed, the ways in which they were consumed, and the consequences of their consumption. Contributions range widely over Europe and Asia and cover several forms of historical or archaeological investigation based on documentary and visual records as well as excavation and chemical analysis. In like manner, a number of different historical and prehistorical eras are under discussion.