Dietary preferences of the inhabitants of ancient Akrai/Acrae (south-eastern Sicily) during Roman times and the Byzantine period (original) (raw)
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Interdisciplinary approaches to the study of ancient Roman foodways
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2018
Interdisciplinary approaches to the study of ancient Roman foodways The Roman world developed over hundreds of years during which time it extended over vast regions in three continents. Throughout its history, there were significant changes in political, economic, and military organization and although there were elements of a common identity, there were also significant regional contrasts. Such historical aspects are intertwined with what were practices of food consumption and production which can be investigated using a variety of methodological approaches. Through the study of these interlinks or foodways it becomes possible to reveal the nature of the relationships between past populations and their local environments, including how available resources were exploited and associated environmental responses. In addition, given that food production rests on specific forms of economic organization studies of past foodways also provides insights into topics such as labour organization, technological choices, and productivity levels. Furthermore, large-scale forms of economic organization operate within political systems having internal and external networks that are reflected in the trade of foodstuffs. For single individuals, the study of diet and nutrition combined with socioeconomic data (e.g. sex, age, or status) is employed to identify practices of social differentiation. Individual dietary choices are also dependent on religious or cultural contexts and constitute a symbolic expression of identity potentially revealing phenomena of social integration or resistance. Previous studies on Roman foodways have addressed several of the topics listed above. However, this special issue embodies an effort to strengthen and promote the integration of multiple sources of evidence. The expectation is that through evidence integration, novel historical insights will emerge that go beyond the mere sum of independent datasets. A major source of evidence on Roman food consumption and production is the study of literary sources. Following this research line Kokoszko et al. collected and summarized written statements on dairy products from the medical treatise De Materia Medica authored by Pedanius Dioscorides of Anazarbos (1st century CE). Described within the treatise are methodologies for producing dairy products, considerations of how milk properties varied with animal food consumption, and which milk sources were the healthiest. Similarities among the writings of Dioscorides and those made by other early Imperial authors (Pliny the Elder or Sextius Niger) suggest the existence of a common earlier source identified as the school of Asclepiades of Bithynia. Furthermore, the medical guidelines could be part of an even earlier Hellenistic tradition, which also continued after the 1st century CE. Beyond the wide temporal range of this medical tradition Kokoszko et al. also suggest that it may have been adopted across a wide social spectrum given a lack of references to luxury or imported items. Popova and Hristova also collected literary information on the Roman use of stone pine nuts (Pinus pinea L.) as a food source, which was combined with compiled data on seed and macroscopic remains of stone pine found in Bulgarian Hellenistic and Roman sites. In particular, burnt nut seed remains, together with remains from local plant species, can be found in Roman religious and burial contexts. Popova and Hristova point out that similar finds occur throughout the Roman world highlighting the symbolic dimension of stone pines and the trade connections that this implied. A similar symbolic role and contribution to the establishment of a Roman identity were shown for chickens in Roman Britain by Maltby et al. These authors examined data available from two major projects investigating past chicken exploitation by humans on rural settlements in Roman Britain. Data was obtained using a variety of methods including the study of written sources (e.g. Vindolanda tablets), study of archaeofaunal distributions, eggshell identification using optical microscopy and ZooMS (ZooArchaeology by Mass Spectrometry), and x-ray analysis of medullary bone to identify the presence of laying eggs. The temporal distribution of chicken bone remains shows that there was a small increase in chicken exploitation during the Roman period in Britain. However, this exotic species represented only a minor part of total faunal remains and its presence was concentrated in well-Romanized sites. Beyond diet, chickens were used as offerings in burial and religious contexts having thus a symbolic role. In terms of large-scale economic exploitation the main source of animal protein in Roman Britain was cattle whereas cereals constituted the main source of calories. This was shown by Hurely through the study of the distribution of gathered data from animal and plant archaeological remains in the Roman Food Database. Focusing on high-quality data from Iron Age and Roman Cambridgeshire, a trend towards an increase in the exploitation of hulled wheat and cattle during the Roman period was shown and linked to agriculture intensification and expansion. Besides the relative caloric contributions from different foodstuffs the study of past human food consumption also includes assessing if nutritional requirements were achieved (e.g. mineral intakes). Heinrich and Erdkamp reviewed available evidence (e.g. osteological data) on Roman malnutrition. They argue that potential Roman malnutrition was not necessarily caused by an excessive consumption of cereals deficient in mineral nutrients, given that reference values for these are based on modern cereals that have different nutrient and genetic compositions. Furthermore, the authors state that past malnutrition is not necessarily indicative of economic performance given its prevalence throughout history and the existence of non-economic causes for malnutrition. Increasingly, isotopic proxies are being employed to quantify dietary contributions for Roman individuals. The most common type of isotopic analyses is the measurement of the abundance of stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in the protein collagen extracted from bone or tooth remains. This type of analysis was made by Martyn et al. for individuals from the coastal site of Herculaneum buried during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE. Isotopic results showed that the predominant source of protein for Herculaneum individuals was from terrestrial foods although the
Our understanding of diet in the past and of the role of food acquisition, procurement and consumption have been enriched in the last few decades by the adoption of new scientific techniques (stable isotope analysis, dental microwear analysis, organic residue analysis, etc) which are nowadays used alongside the traditional study of animal bones and plant remains. The growth of archaeological science has very much contributed to archaeology's 'loss of innocence', but it does also present new risks and new challenges. 1 The rate of specialisation increases, as new special journals are published, conferences dedicated to one analytical technique multiply, special discussion groups appear on the internet and specialised academic positions are advertised all around the world. While intensive interaction within specialised applications undoubtedly promotes further growth and refinement, communication between practitioners working in different methods, and between archaeologists and specialists in archaeological science is becoming increasingly difficult, or -worse -to some practitioners irrelevant. While growing specialisation is perhaps inevitable, the growing fragmentation of the field has many negative consequences. We may have moved beyond the stage of placing scientific results in an appendix at the end of an archaeological publication, but we are running the risk of ignoring scientific results that bear directly on our own questions, simply because we are not familiar with existing analytical techniques, let alone new ones. Or we use scientific results, but we do so uncritically, precisely because it is impossible to familiarise ourselves with the entire range of analytical techniques in use at the moment.
GLOBALISED DIET PATTERNS IN MEDITERRANEAN: THE EVIDENCE OF THE COOKING WARES FROM AQUILEIA
This paper aims to analyse the finds of Cooking ware, discovered during the excavations carried out on the former Cossar property at Aquileia (UD), in order to examine how the quantitative and formal relationship between cooking pottery of local production and the one imported from other Italic or Mediterranean regions has changed between the early Roman period and the late Antiquity. More in details, we will talk about how the reconstruction of the pottery sets used during different time periods has permitted us to draw some consideration in regards of commercial patterns, diet and how this two varies as a result of the changing of globalization and reviving of local tradition phenomenon. The pottery sets during the 1st century BC includes mostly pots of local coarse ware. Alongside them we find, however, pans of both Pompeian red slip ware and Tyrrhenian origin: their presence could testifies the swift acceptance of common Italic diet trends in the Cisalpine area as possible result of the process of Romanization. From the beginning of the 1st century AD and also for the mid Roman times the recipients made in Tyrrhenian coarse ware are gradually being replaced from pots, casseroles and pans imported from the Aegean and North African area; it seems that also the forms produced in local coarse ware are by now part of a koiné that links together different parts of northern Italy. Completely different is, on the other hand, the framework that comes into light during the 4th century AD: during that period when African imports (mostly amphorae and fine wares) are widely present, the arrival of African Cooking ware decreases unexpectedly as well as for the quantitative presence of Aegean cooking, while coarse ware pots of alpine tradition assert their presence, thus probably following a revival of traditional practices of consumption behavior or food preparation techniques more than a reason of economical nature.
2022
A considerable amount of archaeological material is linked with food-preparation and the culinary activities that took place in domestic and public space in the ancient Greek world. A certain place or room intended exclusively for cooking and keeping all necessary equipment cannot always be recognized in ancient Greek houses. The occasional ambiguity of the items referring to ancient Greek “kitchen ware” is often clarified through excavation contexts which include a combination of finds (structures, vessels, and organic remains) and with the help of written and iconographic sources. Different shapes of cooking pottery (chytra, kakkabe, lopas, teganon) testify the variety ofrecipes that corresponded to different culinary preferences depending on specific regions and periods. Other implements, mostly portable such as ovens, braziers, and grills, are connected with the processes of cooking, roasting and baking. Some devices like mortars in several forms and sizes with their grinders relate to cereal- and food-processing for the mixing of pulses and sauces; some others like trays or basins have been used for dough kneading. The preparation and consumption of bread and pastries played a primary role in ancient Greek diet. Finally, the dissemination of various cooking pots in several areas is of importance not only for their functional value and technological superiority but perhaps also for the adoption of certain recipes and the change of eating habits.