Antonio Ricci

Antonio Ricci is a Full Professor at the Department of History, Anthropology, Religions, Art, and Entertainment (SARAS) within the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy at Sapienza University of Rome. Since 2001, he has taught demoethnoanthropological disciplines across undergraduate and graduate programs, including History, Anthropology, and Religions; Ethno-Anthropological Disciplines (which he previously presided over); and Musicology. He currently serves on the teaching staff for the PhD program in History, Anthropology, and Religions at SARAS.

Professor Ricci's research focuses on visual anthropology, the anthropology of sound, and the anthropology of museums with particular attention to tangible and intangible heritage. His fieldwork spans central and southern Italy, examining pastoral cultures, listening practices, ethnographic museography, ethnographic photography, the anthropology of music, and festive and ceremonial events. His scholarly approach integrates sensory ethnography with visual and auditory methodologies, creating a distinctive perspective on cultural practices.

Ricci's extensive publication record demonstrates evolving interests from early work on Calabrian soundscapes and visual anthropology to more recent explorations of demology, cultural heritage, and remote ethnographic methods. His 2023 book "Distant Views. Photography and Ethnography in the First Half of the Twentieth Century" reflects his longstanding interest in historical visual documentation, while his 2025 work "Soundscape and the Anthropology of Listening" continues his pioneering research in auditory anthropology. His articles consistently bridge theoretical and methodological concerns with specific regional studies in Italy.

As an academic leader, Ricci coordinates the editorial boards of the journals "Voci" – Annual of Human Sciences and "L'Uomo – Society, Tradition, Development," and serves on the editorial board of the Imagines series (FrancoAngeli). His commitment to scholarly communication extends beyond traditional publishing to include innovative approaches to ethnographic representation and knowledge sharing.