Diet and religious practices: the example of two monastic orders in Rome between the XVI^th and XVIII^th century

Summary (Nutrition and Religious practices: the example of two monastic orders in Rome between the XVI and XVIII century): In two ecclesiastical buildings of Rome, the Certosa "Santa Maria degli Angeli" and The Convent of "Minimi di San Francesco di Paola" in Trinità dei Monti, animal remains have been rescued which can be related to some levels of life in the above monasteries. The "Rule" of the monastic communities involved evidently influenced the nature of the sample in a substantial manner. The excavations, made in the two unrelated contexts, dated between the XVI and the XVIII century AD, have revealed a large quantity of fish remains, each one with peculiar characteristics. In the Certosa of Santa Maria degli Angeli many otter bones with visible butchering marks were recovered. On the other hand, the records of the Certosa, preserved in the Archivio di Stato at Rome, allowed us to obtain a detailed analysis of food consumed and of the system of food-supply. Furthermore, in the sample discovered in the Convent of "Minimi di San Francesco di Paola" in Trinità dei Monti turtles were found to have been used in alternatives to fish.