Creating Community with Food and Drink in Merovingian Gaul exposes the manner in which feasting and fasting, in other words, ritualized actions not performed solely for the purpose of nourishment, were central to social interaction in Gaul both prior and subsequent to Christianization of the mixed population of Franks and Gallo-Romans. In exploring these issues using a multidisciplinary methodology, Effros suggests that scholars may assess historical manifestations of the use of food and drink to create and reinforce the social hierarchy. Effros addresses the tensions between monastic and lay communities and focuses on patronage through food and drink as a source of informal power, a subject too often overlooked in favour of institutional structures more familiar to twentieth-century historians.

Introduction PART I: THE RITUAL SIGNIFICANCE OF FEASTING IN THE FORMATION OF CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY Saints and Sacrifices in Sixth-Century Gaul Saints and the Provisioning of Plenty Defining Christian Community through the Fear of Pollution; Conclusion PART II: FOOD, DRINK, AND THE EXPRESSION OF CLERICAL IDENTITY Defining Masculinity without Weapons: Amicitia among Bishops Monks and the Significance of Convivia in Ascetic Communities Amicitia between Clerics and Laymen Bishops and Civitias in Late Antique and Early Medieval Gaul Conclusion PART III: GENDER AND AUTHORITY: FEASTING AND FASTING IN EARLY MEDIEVAL MONASTERIES Feasting and the Power of Hospitality The Claustration of Nuns in Sixth-Century Gaul Caesarius' Rule for Nuns and the Prohibition of Convivia Radegund of Poitiers' Relationship to Food and Drink Conclusion PART IV: FOOD AS A SOURCE OF HEALING AND POWER Healing Alternatives in Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages Christian Cures: Blessed Oil and Holy Relics Anthimus' Guide to a Proper Diet for a Merovingian King Conclusion PART V: FUNERARY FEASTING IN MEROVINGIAN GAUL Ancient Sources and Early Medieval Practices Christian Attitudes to Funerary Meals in Early Medieval Gaul Interpreting Early Medieval Archaeological Evidence for Feasting Future Directions for Research

BONNIE EFFROS is Assistant Professor in the Department of Historical Studies at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville.