This week two papers investigating Roman foodways in the western provinces of the Roman Empire, in the eastern part of the Iberian Peninsula, led by GIAP PhD candidate Theoni Baniou (supervised by Drs Alexandra Livarda and Núria Romaní Sala) have been published GOLD OPEN ACCESS.
The first paper, published in the journal of Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences is titled:
‘Tracing culinary practices in the western provinces of the Roman Empire using Organic Residue Analysis’
and is authored by Theoni Baniou1,2, Akshyeta Suryanarayan3,4,5, Alexandra Livarda1,2 , Núria Romaní Sala6, Nuria Moraleda Cibrian7, Joan Villanueva7, Esther Rodrigo Requena6
Here is the summary:
This study aims at reconstructing foodways in the north-east (NE) of the Iberian Peninsula, focusing on lipid residue analysis of utilitarian vessels and using as case studies the sites of Puig Castellar of Biosca (180–120 BCE) and Guissona (120 BCE-third century CE). In total, fifty vessel fragments of different types and origins were analysed with techniques such as as chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and gas chromatography-combustion-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-C-IRMS). As some vessel fragments were recovered from waterlogged contexts, they had excellent lipid preservation, which enabled the detection of various compounds that are rarely reported in archaeological contexts in Iberia. Analyses revealed both animal and plant products in the vessels, suggested that a variety of food resources was consumed, and that vessels had multiple uses. The detection of levoglucosan in some extracts, along with other heat markers, further suggested the presence of cellulose or starchy products in contact with fire as well as the heating of animal fats. Combined with available bioarchaeological and palaeoenvironmental studies from both sites, the analyses indicated a continuity in diet across the time periods during which the sites were occupied. Some differences were also observed, including the possible use of tubers until the first century CE. The results are then contextualised and compared with other available organic residue studies from the Roman Iberian Peninsula. The study demonstrates how the combination of multiple bioarchaeological proxies and biomolecular approaches can provide a holistic means to approach Roman foodways.
Links to free download:
Online version: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-024-02011-7
Pdf: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s12520-024-02011-7.pdf
Author affiliations:
1 University of Rovira I Virgili, Tarragona, Spain
2 Landscape Archaeology Research Group (GIAP), Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC), Tarragona, Spain
3 Culture, Archaeology and Socio Ecological Dynamics (CASEs), Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
4 Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
5 McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
6 Serra Hunter Fellow, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
7 Laboratori d’Analisi d’Isotops Estables, Institute of Environmental Science and Technology (ICTA UAB), Autonomous University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
The second paper, published in Archaeozooms (edited by Yannis Chatzikonstantinou) is titled:
‘The diet in the roman period through the study of sites with waterlogged assemblages: the case study of Guissona (Catalonia, Spain)’
and is authored by Theoni Baniou1, Alexandra Livarda1, Núria Romaní Sala2, Esther Rodrigo Requena2
Abstract:
The recovery of archaeobotanical assemblages preserved under anoxic conditions (in waterlogged environments) is a rare phenomenon in the Mediterranean, as opposed to central and northern Europe. One of the few sites in the western Mediterranean that offer such contexts is the site of Guissona (Catalonia, Spain), dated to the Roman period. This article presents the preliminary archaeobotanical findings from one of the wells excavated at this site. Other Roman sites with waterlogged preservation in the area are also presented to provide an adequate framework for the contextualisation of the results. The study of the assemblage indicates that fruits and nuts were part of the diet of the Roman population, even if they are not common archaeobotanical finds. The species that are detected in archaeobotanical assemblages are the result of several factors. Therefore, this paper concludes with an exploration of the reasons behind the relative rarity of certain taxa in Roman assemblages.
Links to free download:
For the chapter: https://books.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/propylaeum/catalog/book/1319/chapter/19013
For the book: https://books.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/propylaeum/catalog/book/1319
Author affiliations:
1Landscape Archaeology Research Group (GIAP), Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC), Tarragona, Spain
2Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain
Funding for the first paper in AAS:
Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer Nature. The organic residue laboratory analysis was funded by the GIAP Archaeobotany Research Team funds and the Quadrennial Archaeological Project 2022–2025 ‘Transformacions urbanistiques, dinamiques constructives i vida urbana a la ciutat romana de Iesso (Guissona, Segarra) (CLT009/22/00039)’funded by the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia and the Guissona City Council. Alexandra Livarda was funded by the Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (Ramon y Cajal RYC-2017–22105). Joan Villanueva was funded by the ICTA-UAB “Maria de Maeztu” Programme of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (CEX2019-000940-M). The Catalan Institute of Classical Archaeology (ICAC) funded the research of Theoni Baniou. Akshyeta Suryanarayan was funded by the EUTOPIA-SIF programme (European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska Curie grant agreement number 945380).
