Diet and subsistence occupy a central position in archaeologists’ attempts to reconstruct the economic and social organization, as well as the cultural orientation of past societies. The last decades have witnessed the adoption and refinement of various scientific approaches which allow us to reconstruct variation in past diet as well as the role of food in social interaction. These are exciting developments, but the proliferation of analytical techniques also brings in a certain danger, namely over-specialization and a fragmentation of the field. It is therefore becoming imperative to reflect on the integration of scientific and archaeological data, and to compare different methods of analysis more explicitly.

For this reason, we decided to organize a conference which will focus precisely on this topic. The main aims of the Conference are:

• To explore the relation between subsistence, economy and society in the prehistoric Aegean and the ancient world

• To examine diet, subsistence and economy by integrating and comparing results of different analytical methods such as

- the analysis of animal remains

- the analysis of plant remains

- the analysis of human remains, and more specifically

stable isotope analysis

dental analysis

dental microwear analysis

- organic residue analysis

• To place the data in their economic, social and cultural context

• To formulate new research questions and select appropriate sampling procedures

• To explore the legal framework and the regulations about sampling procedures, especially in cases of destructive sampling.

We would like to stress that only papers with an explicitly comparative content will be accepted. Papers will therefore have to compare different methods and to integrate scientific results with archaeological data. Papers presenting results obtained by means of one method of analysis (even if they cover different periods or regions) will not be accepted.

Shorter contributions can be presented in the form of posters. We would like to emphasize, however, that posters also need to have a comparative content.

Please note:

• The official languages of the Conference are English and Greek.

• The Conference covers the prehistoric and historical periods to the end of the Roman era.

• As the demarcation of ‘the Greek world’ changes through time, we would like to specify that the Conference covers the northern and southern Greek mainland and the Aegean islands during the prehistoric period. In the historical periods we focus on the same area, although we may include a few papers on the eastern Mediterranean to the margins of the Hellenistic world and the Roman empire.

• Participants will be allotted 15-20 minutes to allow time for discussion (10 minutes per contribution).

• Technical specifications about the posters will be sent in the 2nd Circular.

• The Proceedings of the Conference will be published.

For more information on the conference please check the website of the Netherlands Institute at Athens (http://www.nia.gr), or write to Sofia Voutsaki (s.voutsaki@rug.nl).

The conference will cover accommodation for the speakers. We

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