Organic residue analysis (ORA) is a well established analytical technique and has been routinely applied to determine the content and function of archaeological ceramics. Its main advantage is that by analysing the fatty residues trapped within the ceramic matrix, ORA provides direct evidence for vessel use. Although it does not offer a broad picture of a community’s economy, ORA contributes significant data on the different types of commodities which past societies chose to process within ceramic vessels, for both culinary and non-culinary practices. It is also instrumental in identifying the use of organic products, which may not have survived in the archaeological record, or perhaps are too fragmented for a confident interpretation.

Cynthianne Debono Spiteriis