At the front door of my athr, you can already see and scent one of the prior businesses of this house: the preparation of exquisit and honest ancient Etruscan meals for those who are hungry or just passing by and in for a nice little snack...

Phiale, KM 79.4.6, Late 4th c BC, Italy

Gods were believed to watch over the success or failure of crops. Sacrifice -the offering of food to the gods - formed the principal link between mortals and the beings they worshipped. Death was observed and the dead commemorated with meals. Nothing played a more integral role in religious practices and beliefs in the ancient world than the sharing and consumption of food.

A shallow dish used in the performance of sacrificial rituals in ancient Greece, Etruria, and Rome, the phiale was intended to hold wine or the blood of a slain victim for pouring on the altar.

Blood sacrifices were thought to link the human and divine spheres, and were celebrated on countless occasions. Sacrificial victims were usually domestic animals such as goats, sheep, pig and oxen. Their flesh would be shared and consumed by the worshipers present at the sacrifice.