European Journal of Archaeology Special Issue 'Animal husbandry in the western Roman Empire: a zooarchaeological perspective' 20(3): 535-556.

Botanical and faunal remains from a 3rd-4th century AD Roman farm at the modern Great Holts Farm, Boreham have provided a picture of an agricultural system based predominantly on arable production. Agrarian innovation is evinced by the bones of exceptionally large cattle which, it is suggested, may have been imported as powerful tractors so as to exploit heavy clay soils more effectively. Although the farm house was a vernacular timber building, lacking decorative refinements, the occupants were affluent: they had the resources to consume imported plant foods and preserved fish, and to enjoy recreations including hunting and, probably, hawking (or some other form of hunting with tamed raptors). Architectural pretension was not the only way to express affluence and status in the countryside of late Roman Britain; structural remains are only one indication of prosperity. Biological evidence for economy, diet and lifestyle can be equally significant.

Recent analysis of a large faunal assemblage from a Roman roadside settlement at Ware, Hertfordshire has indicated potentially strong links between the nature of animal exploitation on site and its location on Ermine Street. Animal husbandry was focused on the production of cattle and sheep, both of which had experienced stock 'improvement' by the late Roman period. Relatively high proportions of horse, and the presence of young horses, suggest the importance of this animal and the potential for its local breeding; the site could have acted as a station for changing or selling horses. The presence of marine fish and black rat also indicate clear links to the wider trade network. This was not an isolated settlement, outside the sphere of Roman influence, as rural Roman sites are often considered to be, but well-connected to wider economic networks. This paper places these new results in context, by providing a review of faunal assemblages from Roman roadside settlements across Britain. The review indicates that most of the characteristics of animal exploitation at Ware are shared with other roadside settlement sites, though interesting differences also emerge.

Recent analysis of a large faunal assemblage from a Roman roadside settlement at Ware, Hertfordshire has indicated potentially strong links between the nature of animal exploitation on site and its location on Ermine Street. Animal husbandry was focused on the production of cattle and sheep, both of which had experienced stock 'improvement' by the late Roman period. Relatively high proportions of horse, and the presence of young horses, suggest the importance of this animal and the potential for its local breeding; the site could have acted as a station for changing or selling horses. The presence of marine fish and black rat also indicate clear links to the wider trade network. This was not an isolated settlement, outside the sphere of Roman influence, as rural Roman sites are often considered to be, but well-connected to wider economic networks. This paper places these new results in context, by providing a review of faunal assemblages from Roman roadside settlements across Britain. The review indicates that most of the characteristics of animal exploitation at Ware are shared with other roadside settlement sites, though interesting differences also emerge.

This special issue of the European Journal of Archaeology discusses aspects of animal husbandry in a number of provinces of the Western Roman Empire. In this introduction, we describe the general characteristics of animal husbandry in pre-Roman and Roman times to assess any changes that may have occurred after the Roman conquest. The results suggest that the territoriality typifying the first millennium BC had a significant impact on production, resulting in a decrease in cattle size and frequencies across Europe. Nevertheless, not all the regions reacted in the same way, and regional communities that focused their animal production on pigs implemented more sustainable husbandry practices over time. By bringing together studies carried out across Europe, this journal issue highlights the existence of cases of both change and continuity across the Empire, and the (uneven) impact of the market economy on animal husbandry and dietary practices in climatically different regions.

This is a slightly revised version (updated bibliography) of an article published in 1984, in Blagg, T F C & King, A C (ed), Military and Civilian in Roman Britain, Oxford: BAR Brit Ser 136, 187-217. It presents an analysis of cattle, sheep/goat and pig bone percentages at military and civilian sites in the NW provinces of the Roman Empire. The notion of a military diet is explored, and the extent of dietary influence coming into Britain via the military. It is suggested that Germanic and Gallic provincial diet in the early Roman Empire had a strong effect on the development of diet in military areas and subsequently on the British civilian population. Italian meat diet was very different, and appears to have had relatively little effect on changing dietary preferences in the NW provinces.