Death and changing rituals

In most societies the disposal of the corpse is accompanied by some form of celebration or ritual which may range from a simple act of deportment in solitude to the engagement of large masses of people in laborious and creative festivities. In a funerary context the term ritual may be taken to represent a process that incorporates all the actions performed and thoughts expressed in connection with a dying and dead person, from the preparatory pre-death stages to the final deposition of the corpse and the post-mortem stages of grief and commemoration.

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The contributions presented here are focused not on the examination of different funerary practices, their function and meaning, but on the changes of such rituals – how and when they occurred and how they may be explained. In this new book based on case studies from a range of geographical regions and from different prehistoric and historical periods, a range of key themes are examined concerning belief and ritual, body and deposition, place, performance and commemoration, exploring a complex web of practices.

Death and Changing Rituals: Function and meaning in ancient funerary practices, J. Rasmus Brandt, Håkon Roland and Marina Prusac (Editors), Oxford: Oxbow Books 2014, 320p, H242 x W170 (mm) b/w and colour illustrations

ISBN: 9781782976394

More details and ordering information available here

New book edited by project member Håkon Roland together with Marina Prusac and J. Rasmus Brandt.

Tags: Funerary rituals By Svein

Published Feb. 21, 2015 7:31 PM - Last modified Mar. 5, 2021 8:27 AM