Comparative Issues In The Archaeology Of The Roman Rural Landscape

This book treats theoretical and methodological implications of the classification of archaeological sites of the Roman period in regional survey and archaeology, and the potential of classifications for making intra- and interregional comparisons and interpretations. Overall the papers testify to the importance of surface survey as an autonomous form of archaeological investigation with well-developed methodologies and analytical frameworks able to generate data that is just as complex as that derived from excavation, and with a similarly wide interpretative potential.

The Archaeology of Imperial Landscapes examines the transformation of rural landscapes and societies that formed the backbone of ancient empires in the Near East and Mediterranean. Through a comparative approach to archaeological data, it analyses the patterns of transformation in widely differing imperial contexts in the ancient world. Bringing together a range of studies by an international team of scholars, the volume shows that empires were dynamic, diverse, and experimental polities, and that their success or failure was determined by a combination of forceful interventions, as well as the new possibilities for those dominated by empires to collaborate and profit from doing so. By highlighting the processes that occur in rural and peripheral landscapes, the volume demonstrates that the archaeology of these non-urban and literally eccentric spheres can provide an important contribution to our understanding of ancient empires. The 'bottom up' approach to the study of ancient empires is crucial to understanding how these remarkable socio-political organisms could exist and persist.

This volume presents the results of the fourteenth workshop of the international network 'Impact of Empire'. It focuses on the ways in which Rome's dominance influenced, changed, and created landscapes, and examines in which ways (Roman) landscapes were narrated and semantically represented. To assess the impact of Rome on landscapes, some of the twenty contributions in this volume analyse functions and implications of newly created infrastructure. Others focus on the consequences of colonisation processes, settlement structures, regional divisions, and legal qualifications of land. Lastly, some contributions consider written and pictorial representations and their effects. In doing so, the volume offers new insights into the notion of ‘Roman landscapes’ and examines their significance for the functioning of the Roman empire.

A Companion to the Archaeology of the Roman Republic offers a diversity of perspectives to explore how differing approaches and methodologies can contribute to a greater understanding of the formation of the Roman Republic. Brings together the experiences and ideas of archaeologists from around the world, with multiple backgrounds and areas of interest Offers a vibrant exploration of the ways in which archaeological methods can be used to explore different elements of the Roman Republican period Demonstrates that the Republic was not formed in a vacuum, but was influenced by non-Latin-speaking cultures from throughout the Mediterranean region Enables archaeological thinking in this area to be made accessible both to a more general audience and as a valuable addition to existing discourse Investigates the archaeology of the Roman Republican period with reference to material culture, landscape, technology, identity and empire

Provides a thorough examination of Greek and Roman urbanism in a single volume A Companion to Cities in the Greco-Roman World offers in-depth coverage of the most important topics in the study of Greek and Roman urbanism. Bringing together contributions by an international panel of experts, this comprehensive resource addresses traditional topics in the study of ancient cities, including civic society, politics, and the ancient urban landscape, as well as less-frequently explored themes such as ecology, war, and representations of cities in literature, art, and political philosophy. Detailed chapters present critical discussions of research on Greco-Roman urban societies, city economies, key political events, significant cultural developments, and more. Throughout the Companion, the authors provide insights into major developments, debates, and approaches in the field. An unrivalled reference work on the subject, A Companion to Cities in the Greco-Roman World: Offers wide-ranging thematic and multidisciplinary coverage of Greco-Roman urbanism Focusses on both the archaeological (spatial, architectural) as well as the historical (institutions, social structures) aspects of ancient cities Makes Greco-Roman urbanism accessible to scholars and students of urbanism in other historical periods, up to the present day Integrates a uniquely broad range of topics, themes, and sources, all enriched with coverage of the very latest work in the field Discusses topics such as urbanization, urban development, warfare, socio-economic structures and literary and philosophical representations of cities Part of the authoritative Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World series, A Companion to Cities in the Greco-Roman World is an excellent resource for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, and lecturers in Classics, Ancient History, and Classical/Mediterranean Archaeology, as well as historians and archaeologists looking to update their knowledge of Greek or Roman urbanism.

This volume aims to present an updated portrait of the Roman countryside in Roman Spain by the comparison of different theoretical orientations and methodological strategies including the discussion of textual and iconographic sources and the analysis of the faunal remains. The archaeology of rural areas of the Roman world has traditionally been focused on the study of villae, both as an architectural model of Roman otium and as the central core of an economic system based on the extensive agricultural exploitation of latifundia. The assimilation of most rural settlements in provincial areas of the Roman Empire with the villa model implies the acceptance of specific ideas, such as the generalization of the slave mode of production, the rupture of the productive capacity of Late Iron Age communities, or the reduction in importance of free peasant labor in the Roman economy of most rural areas. However, in recent decades, as a consequence of the generalized extension of preventive or emergency archaeology and survey projects in most areas of the ancient territories of the Roman Empire, this traditional conception of the Roman countryside articulated around monumental villae is undergoing a thorough revision. New research projects are changing our current perception of the countryside of most parts of the Roman provincial world by assessing the importance of different types of rural settlements. In the last years, we have witnessed the publication of archaeological reports on the excavation of thousands of small rural sites, farms, farmsteads, enclosures, rural agglomerations of diverse nature, etc. One of the main consequences of all this research activity is a vigorous discussion of the paradigm of the slave mode of production as the basis of Roman rural economies in many provincial areas. A similar change in the paradigm is taking place, with some delay, in the archaeology of Roman Spain. After decades of preventive/emergency interventions there is a considerable quantity of unpublished data on this kind of rural settlements. However, unlike the cases of Roman Britain or Gallia Comata, no synthesis or national projects are undertaking the task of systematizing all these data. With the intention of addressing this current situation the present volume discusses the results and methodological strategies of different projects studying peasant settlements in several regions of Roman Spain.

A Companion to Roman Italy investigates the impact of Rome in all its forms—political, cultural, social, and economic—upon Italy’s various regions, as well as the extent to which unification occurred as Rome became the capital of Italy. The collection presents new archaeological data relating to the sites of Roman Italy Contributions discuss new theories of how to understand cultural change in the Italian peninsula Combines detailed case-studies of particular sites with wider-ranging thematic chapters Leading contributors not only make accessible the most recent work on Roman Italy, but also offer fresh insight on long standing debates

This study presents a new regional history of the middle Tiber valley as a lens through which to view the emergence and transformation of the city of Rome from 1000 BC to AD 1000. Setting the ancient city within the context of its immediate territory, the authors reveal the diverse and enduring links between the metropolis and its hinterland.

This book presents the results of the first systematic archaeological study of Roman peasants. It examines the spaces, architecture, diet, agriculture, market interactions, and movement habitus of non-elite rural dwellers in a region of southern Tuscany, Italy, during the Roman period. Volume 1 presents the excavation data from eight non-elite rural sites including a farm, a peasant house, animal stall/work huts, a ceramics factory, field drains, and a site of uncertain function, here framed as individual chapters complete with finds analysis. Volume 2 examines this data synthetically in thematic chapters addressing land use, agriculture, diet, markets, and movement. The results suggest a different, more sophisticated Roman peasant than heretofore assumed. The data suggests that Roman peasants particularly in the first century BC/AD built specialized sites distributed throughout the landscape to maximize use of diverse land parcels. This has important implications for the interpretation of field survey data, the estimate of rural demographics from that survey, and assumptions about the long-term changes to human settlement. It also points to an important moment of agricultural intensification in this period, a contention beginning to be supported by other studies. The project also identified sophisticated systems of land use, including crop rotation and an important investment in animal agriculture. This work presents the first systematic data from Roman Italy for rural consumption, tracking the fine wares made at a production site to local sites nearby. This supports the largely theoretical problematizing of the so-called consumer city model and suggests the potential importance of rural aggregate demand. Movement studies, based on finds from the sites themselves, describe a more mobile population than anticipated, engaged in quotidian and long-distance movement patterns, supported by the small but steady stream of imports and exports into and out of this seemingly liminal region. The book concludes by addressing the implications of this new data for major questions in Roman social and economic history.

This volume results from the conference "Between Appia and Latina, Settlement Dynamics and Territorial Development on the Slopes of the Alban Hills", held at the Royal Dutch Institute at Rome (KNIR) in February, 2017. It contains 23 methodological, thematic and material culture studies on the historical topographical reconstruction of the Alban Hills in Antiquity with a focus on the area of contact with the suburbium of Rome. Papers present both data from new research and results of research done in the past. In the initiative a range of research institutions partook (foreign Institutes at Rome, Universities, Archaeological Services) and independent researchers stimulating the exchange of current knowledge of this small, but important part of the Campagna Romana.