Recent International Research Projects & Networks by Annalisa Marzano
This project investigates how coastal lagoons—environments characterized by high biodiversity and... more This project investigates how coastal lagoons—environments characterized by high biodiversity and several natural resources—were used, settled, and exploited in Roman Italy. It addresses a debated topic in ancient studies, i.e. what role lagoons had in the settlement hierarchy and economy, and uses as case study the northern area of the Venetian lagoon and the archaeological site of Lio Piccolo. While today several lagoons are protected natural habitats, only rarely are their rich cultural and historic heritage and the added value awareness of this heritage could offer to modern local communities recognized. The case study area was chosen because of the good archaeological and paleoenvironmental data arising from the Ca’ Foscari ongoing archaeological investigations, the availability, in the Altino Museum, of unpublished fishing implements, and the need to offer to the local communities a more complete reconstruction of their cultural heritage, which in turn may contribute to new modes of sustainable tourism. The case study will also offer the opportunity to assess the degree of continuity between past and present in the case of activities centred on this lagoonal landscape. This project aims to bring a new approach to the study of lagoons in Roman time, focusing on their socio-economic role and environmental context, thus bridging the gaps between subdisciplines.
Books by Annalisa Marzano
The book investigates the cultural and political dimension of Roman arboriculture and the associa... more The book investigates the cultural and political dimension of Roman arboriculture and the associated movement of plants from one corner of the empire to the other. It uses the convergent perspectives offered by textual and archaeological sources to sketch a picture of large-scale arboriculture as a phenomenon primarily driven by elite activity and imperialism. Arboriculture had a clear cultural role in the Roman world: it was used to construct the public persona of many elite Romans, with the introduction of new plants from far away regions or the development of new cultivars contributing to the elite competitive display. Exotic plants from conquered regions were also displayed as trophies in military triumphs, making plants an element of the language of imperialism. It argues that the Augustan era was a key moment for the development of arboriculture and identifies colonists and soldiers as important agents contributing to plant dispersal and diversity
Italian revised and updated edition of the OUP monograph published in 2013.
La ricerca che qui s... more Italian revised and updated edition of the OUP monograph published in 2013.
La ricerca che qui si presenta offre il primo studio sistematico sullo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine nel Mediterraneo romano; il quadro d’insieme che ne risulta mette in evidenza l’importanza sociale ed economica rivestita da attività come la pesca su larga scala, le salagioni di pesce, l’acquacoltura o la produzione di sale e tintura di porpora. Gli obiettivi dell’opera sono due: offrire uno studio generale delle varie attività produttive incentrate sul mare nel periodo romano e analizzare il loro ruolo nelle economie regionali insieme alla struttura organizzativa e sociale. Grazie all’approccio interdisciplinare, che combina fonti letterarie, epigrafiche, giuridiche, archeologiche ed etnografiche, questo studio mostra che lo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine era un importante elemento dell’economia romana, da considerarsi, per scopo e produzione finalizzata al mercato, alla stessa stregua delle attività economiche basate sullo sfruttamento della terra. Il libro si sofferma anche sull’importanza delle innovazioni tecnologiche e l’organizzazione del lavoro e manodopera, affiancando alle fonti antiche dati e fonti etnografiche per valutare la produttività delle antiche tecniche di pesca e allevamento. Lo studio affronta l’importante questione dello status giuridico del mare e se lo stato romano potesse, in circostanze particolari, imporre monopoli sui diritti di pesca in mare. Un attento esame delle fonti mostra, inoltre, come il quadro di riferimento giuridico esistente nel periodo imperiale potesse essere manipolato o ignorato nel tentativo di controllare risorse naturali a fini di sfruttamento economico.
This volume offers a comprehensive survey of Roman villas in Italy and the Mediterranean province... more This volume offers a comprehensive survey of Roman villas in Italy and the Mediterranean provinces of the Roman Empire, from their origins to the collapse of the Empire. The architecture of villas could be humble or grand, and sometimes luxurious. Villas were most often farms where wine, olive oil, cereals, and manufactured goods, among other products, were produced. They were also venues for hospitality, conversation, and thinking on pagan, and ultimately Christian, themes. Villas spread as the Empire grew. Like towns and cities, they became the means of power and assimilation, just as infrastructure, such as aqueducts and bridges, was transforming the Mediterranean into a Roman sea. The distinctive Roman/Italian villa type was transferred to the provinces, resulting in Mediterranean-wide culture of rural dwelling and work that further unified the Empire.
"Harvesting the Sea provides the first systematic treatment of the exploitation of various marine... more "Harvesting the Sea provides the first systematic treatment of the exploitation of various marine resources, such as large-scale fishing, fish salting, salt and purple-dye production, and oyster and fish-farming, in the Roman world and its role within the ancient economy.
Bringing together literary, epigraphic, and legal sources, with a wealth of archaeological data collected in recent years, this study shows that these marine resources were an important feature of the Roman economy and, in scope and market-oriented production, paralleled phenomena taking place in the Roman agricultural economy on land. The book also examines the importance of technological innovations, the organization of labour, and the use of the existing legal framework in defence of economic interests against competitors for the same natural resource."
This volume investigates the socio-economic role of elite villas in Roman Central Italy drawing o... more This volume investigates the socio-economic role of elite villas in Roman Central Italy drawing on both documentary sources and material evidence. Through the composite picture emerging from the juxtaposition of literary texts and archaeological evidence, the book traces elite ideological attitudes and economic behavior, caught between what was morally acceptable and the desire to invest capital intelligently. The analysis of the biases affecting the application of modern historiographical models to the interpretation of the archaeology frames the discussion on the identification of slave quarters in villas and the putative second century crisis of the Italian economy. The book brings an innovative perspective to the debate on the villa-system and the decline of villas in the imperial period.
Chapters and Articles by Annalisa Marzano
A Companion to the Archaeology of the Roman Empire, 2024
Quaternary Science Reviews Volume 336 , 108776, 2024
While we have abundant archaeological evidence for the salting establishments that once operated ... more While we have abundant archaeological evidence for the salting establishments that once operated in the Roman world salting fish (and meat), archaeological evidence for salt works is rarer; yet in antiquity salt was essential not only in food preservation but in many other production processes. The few known cases of Roman salt works investigated archaeologically (e.g., those at O Areal near Vigo or at Caunos in Turkey) offer some information on the physical infrastructure for salt production. However, the issue of ownership – whether marine salt works in the late republican and imperial periods were always a state monopoly – remains unclear. This article presents the available archaeological evidence for Roman marine salt works and argues that in the late Republic and during the first two centuries of the Empire state ownership was not the norm for marine salt pans, but rather the exception. The capillary diffusion of fish-salting workshops is a good indicator that salt could be freely acquired in the quantities needed for this activity, presumably at a fair price. This is in stark contrast compared to later historical period when salt was certainly a state monopoly.
Rivista di Archeologia, 2023
This article offers an overview of the exploitation of lagoons in the Roman era, discussing the m... more This article offers an overview of the exploitation of lagoons in the Roman era, discussing the main textual and archaeological evidence available. It draws attention to the role lagoonal fishing must have had in the commercial success of urban centres famous for the production and trade of salted fish and sauces, such as Gades and Troia in the Iberian Peninsula. After discussing the evidence for various fishing techniques used in antiquity in lagoonal fishing, the article addresses the role lagoons of Roman Italy played in the development and perfecting of aquaculture practices in the republican era, both for fish and oysters. It is suggested that two geographic areas played a crucial role in this development, the lagoons near Ostia at the mouth of the Tiber and the lagoons near Cosa in south Etruria.
Rivista di Studi Pompeiani 34, 2023
Mediterraneo Antico. Economie Società Culture, 2023
In the Roman world, marine, lagoonal, and riverine fisheries were regularly exploited.
Unlike mod... more In the Roman world, marine, lagoonal, and riverine fisheries were regularly exploited.
Unlike modern times, the concept of territorial waters did not exist in antiquity, and the state did not impose any monopoly on the sea and its exploitation rights. However, internal bodies of water such as lagoons could be owned by the state or by individuals. This legal framework co-existed alongside informal rights, which impacted the access individuals could
have to the sea and its resources. The article discusses the issue of access to fisheries. It first examines the difference in Roman law between the sea and internal waters and why past scholars thought that in some cases the Roman state could control marine fishing rights. It then addresses the special case of lagoons and the disputes arising from the control of these fisheries before examining the organization and financing of fishing activity.
By the early first century AD the city of Rome had become the largest metropolis in the western w... more By the early first century AD the city of Rome had become the largest metropolis in the western world, counting an estimated one million inhabitants (and probably another 500.000 or so in the suburbium). Urban sprawls had developed over time around the proper core of Rome, encroaching onto the old Servian walls, as attested by Dionysius of Halicarnassus: If anyone wishes to estimate the size of Rome by looking at these suburbs he will necessarily be misled for want of a definite clue by which to determine up to what point it is still the city and where it ceases to be the city; so closely is the city connected with the country, giving the beholder the impression of a city stretching out indefinitely. 1
The Oxford Classical Dictionary, 2023
The Roman economy was preindustrial, and most of the population was engaged in agricultural produ... more The Roman economy was preindustrial, and most of the population was engaged in agricultural production. Agriculture and household production were salient features of the economy, along with urbanization, taxation, market exchanges, and slavery. Roman economic history is usually divided into three major chronological periods: the Republic (509 BCE–31 BCE), the principate (31 BCE–c. 284 CE), and the late empire (late 3rd–6th centuries CE). The Republican period was characterized by significant territorial expansion and the acquisition of vast amounts of wealth in the form of booty. The principate is when one can consider economic developments in Roman Italy and the provinces and investigate the empire as an economic system. The late empire was marked by increasing state interventionism.
Oxford Bibliographies Online in Classics. Ed. Ruth Scodel., 2023
Uploads
Recent International Research Projects & Networks by Annalisa Marzano
Books by Annalisa Marzano
La ricerca che qui si presenta offre il primo studio sistematico sullo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine nel Mediterraneo romano; il quadro d’insieme che ne risulta mette in evidenza l’importanza sociale ed economica rivestita da attività come la pesca su larga scala, le salagioni di pesce, l’acquacoltura o la produzione di sale e tintura di porpora. Gli obiettivi dell’opera sono due: offrire uno studio generale delle varie attività produttive incentrate sul mare nel periodo romano e analizzare il loro ruolo nelle economie regionali insieme alla struttura organizzativa e sociale. Grazie all’approccio interdisciplinare, che combina fonti letterarie, epigrafiche, giuridiche, archeologiche ed etnografiche, questo studio mostra che lo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine era un importante elemento dell’economia romana, da considerarsi, per scopo e produzione finalizzata al mercato, alla stessa stregua delle attività economiche basate sullo sfruttamento della terra. Il libro si sofferma anche sull’importanza delle innovazioni tecnologiche e l’organizzazione del lavoro e manodopera, affiancando alle fonti antiche dati e fonti etnografiche per valutare la produttività delle antiche tecniche di pesca e allevamento. Lo studio affronta l’importante questione dello status giuridico del mare e se lo stato romano potesse, in circostanze particolari, imporre monopoli sui diritti di pesca in mare. Un attento esame delle fonti mostra, inoltre, come il quadro di riferimento giuridico esistente nel periodo imperiale potesse essere manipolato o ignorato nel tentativo di controllare risorse naturali a fini di sfruttamento economico.
Bringing together literary, epigraphic, and legal sources, with a wealth of archaeological data collected in recent years, this study shows that these marine resources were an important feature of the Roman economy and, in scope and market-oriented production, paralleled phenomena taking place in the Roman agricultural economy on land. The book also examines the importance of technological innovations, the organization of labour, and the use of the existing legal framework in defence of economic interests against competitors for the same natural resource."
Chapters and Articles by Annalisa Marzano
Unlike modern times, the concept of territorial waters did not exist in antiquity, and the state did not impose any monopoly on the sea and its exploitation rights. However, internal bodies of water such as lagoons could be owned by the state or by individuals. This legal framework co-existed alongside informal rights, which impacted the access individuals could
have to the sea and its resources. The article discusses the issue of access to fisheries. It first examines the difference in Roman law between the sea and internal waters and why past scholars thought that in some cases the Roman state could control marine fishing rights. It then addresses the special case of lagoons and the disputes arising from the control of these fisheries before examining the organization and financing of fishing activity.
La ricerca che qui si presenta offre il primo studio sistematico sullo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine nel Mediterraneo romano; il quadro d’insieme che ne risulta mette in evidenza l’importanza sociale ed economica rivestita da attività come la pesca su larga scala, le salagioni di pesce, l’acquacoltura o la produzione di sale e tintura di porpora. Gli obiettivi dell’opera sono due: offrire uno studio generale delle varie attività produttive incentrate sul mare nel periodo romano e analizzare il loro ruolo nelle economie regionali insieme alla struttura organizzativa e sociale. Grazie all’approccio interdisciplinare, che combina fonti letterarie, epigrafiche, giuridiche, archeologiche ed etnografiche, questo studio mostra che lo sfruttamento di varie risorse marine era un importante elemento dell’economia romana, da considerarsi, per scopo e produzione finalizzata al mercato, alla stessa stregua delle attività economiche basate sullo sfruttamento della terra. Il libro si sofferma anche sull’importanza delle innovazioni tecnologiche e l’organizzazione del lavoro e manodopera, affiancando alle fonti antiche dati e fonti etnografiche per valutare la produttività delle antiche tecniche di pesca e allevamento. Lo studio affronta l’importante questione dello status giuridico del mare e se lo stato romano potesse, in circostanze particolari, imporre monopoli sui diritti di pesca in mare. Un attento esame delle fonti mostra, inoltre, come il quadro di riferimento giuridico esistente nel periodo imperiale potesse essere manipolato o ignorato nel tentativo di controllare risorse naturali a fini di sfruttamento economico.
Bringing together literary, epigraphic, and legal sources, with a wealth of archaeological data collected in recent years, this study shows that these marine resources were an important feature of the Roman economy and, in scope and market-oriented production, paralleled phenomena taking place in the Roman agricultural economy on land. The book also examines the importance of technological innovations, the organization of labour, and the use of the existing legal framework in defence of economic interests against competitors for the same natural resource."
Unlike modern times, the concept of territorial waters did not exist in antiquity, and the state did not impose any monopoly on the sea and its exploitation rights. However, internal bodies of water such as lagoons could be owned by the state or by individuals. This legal framework co-existed alongside informal rights, which impacted the access individuals could
have to the sea and its resources. The article discusses the issue of access to fisheries. It first examines the difference in Roman law between the sea and internal waters and why past scholars thought that in some cases the Roman state could control marine fishing rights. It then addresses the special case of lagoons and the disputes arising from the control of these fisheries before examining the organization and financing of fishing activity.
The aim of the paper is to discuss the motivations behind the desire to accumulate wealth in the Roman early imperial period as revealed by archaeological examples. By focusing on case-studies, the paper will investigate the mechanisms behind the accumulation of capital in connection to the development of viticulture in Gaul and in Hispania Tarraconensis in the early imperial period; the growth in investment related to large-scale fishing and processing of fish products; and the intensification and growth of horticulture and arboriculture attested for the early first century ad. The key questions the essay will investigate concern who was able to accumulate capital in the Roman world and if, and to what degree, social mobility impacted on capital accumulation; and whether capital accumulation allowed for investment in innovation and improvements in production or was largely used for conspicuous consumption, which characterized the highly competitive behavior of the Roman elite.
The location of luxury villas was dictated primarily by either the desirability of the area or by the availability of exploitable natural resources. In this paper, I examine the case of the luxury maritime villa of Positano, on the Amalfi side of the Sorrento Peninsula. The villa, whose existence was known since the 18th century but that only recently has been partially excavated, does not appear to conform to these criteria. It was a luxury residence built in a location that, however beautiful for its natural landscape, was difficult and very challenging in antiquity: it had no relevant natural resources, it presented very little land that could afford only limited agriculture, and it could be reached only by sea. Yet, someone decided to build a villa on this spot. What were the reasons? What motivated the owner to invest in the high-quality décor and in the shipping of building material from Rome to erect a residence that was completely isolated? The archaeological identification of a late Republican phase in this building indicates that the answer cannot simply be that the villa developed after Tiberius retired on the island of Capri because someone desired geographic proximity to the emperor. The paper will discuss the Positano villa in the context of the real estate market along the Bay of Naples and Sorrento Peninsula and offer some considerations on the possible reasons it came into existence.
The aim of the paper is to discuss the motivations behind the desire to accumulate wealth in the Roman early imperial period as revealed by archaeological examples. By focusing on case-studies, the paper will investigate the mechanisms behind the accumulation of capital in connection to the development of viticulture in Gaul and in Hispania Tarraconensis in the early imperial period; the growth in investment related to large-scale fishing and processing of fish products; and the intensification and growth of horticulture and arboriculture attested for the early first century AD. The key questions the essay will investigate concern who was able to accumulate capital in the Roman world and if, and to what degree, social mobility impacted on capital accumulation; and whether capital accumulation allowed for investment in innovation and improvements in production or was largely used for conspicuous consumption, which characterized the highly competitive behavior of the Roman elite.