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> we don’t know if anything from archeology is “for ritual use (for real).” I apologize for being unable resist thinking of a counterexample any time someone m

> we don’t know if anything from archeology is “for ritual use (for real).” I apologize for being unable resist thinking of a counterexample any time someone makes a generalization. Would household utensils found in a sealed burial chamber be a clear case of ritual use for real, or did dead people in ancient times put them to some practical use we haven't identified?

Retric 4y ago
I do think people getting buried in clothing qualifies as ritualistic when the body was presented for an open casket funeral. However, people still regularly get buried with their wedding rings or similar such items. Do you consider that behavior ritualistic, or just sentimental?
- lostlogin 4y ago
  > Do you consider that behavior ritualistic, or just sentimental? If you squint a little is a bit of overlap in the definitions of those words. I think that’s where the practice lies. Sentimental: A: marked or governed by feeling, sensibility, or emotional idealism B: resulting from feeling rather than reason or thought Ritual: 1: the established form for a ceremony specifically : the order of words prescribed for a religious ceremony 2A: ritual observance specifically : a system of rites B: a ceremonial act or action C: an act or series of acts regularly repeated in a set precise manner https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary
  - Retric 4y ago
    That’s fair. I can’t help but point out that “if you squint a little” is grounds for a great deal of debate. It’s exactly the kind of thinking that makes some sort of “ritual object (for real)” hard to distinguish even when actually living in the culture in question.
    - lostlogin 4y ago
      Touché!