On the Margins of the Villa System? Rural Architecture and Socioeconomic Strategies in North-Eastern Roman Spain
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Víctor Revilla
Abstract
The study of the rural habitat in north-eastern Hispania Citerior has been conditioned by a paradigm built on two complementary assumptions: the apparent hegemony of the villa as a form of territorial occupation and exploitation and the separation between the villa system and the peasant economy. In this context, rural buildings that are clearly different from the architectural model of the villa have been interpreted as the expression of ways of life characterized by socioeconomic and cultural alterity. However, progress made in research shows that the spread of the villa system is associated with the diffusion of a settlement pattern characterized by the simultaneous presence of very different types of buildings. These buildings are distributed hierarchically in the rural space and with an unequal density in relation to specific forms of the exploitation of territorial resources. The analysis of this evidence makes it possible to question the traditional paradigm that oppose the villa system with the peasant economy and to better evaluate, from another perspective, the process of cultural change generated by the Roman conquest.
Abstract
The study of the rural habitat in north-eastern Hispania Citerior has been conditioned by a paradigm built on two complementary assumptions: the apparent hegemony of the villa as a form of territorial occupation and exploitation and the separation between the villa system and the peasant economy. In this context, rural buildings that are clearly different from the architectural model of the villa have been interpreted as the expression of ways of life characterized by socioeconomic and cultural alterity. However, progress made in research shows that the spread of the villa system is associated with the diffusion of a settlement pattern characterized by the simultaneous presence of very different types of buildings. These buildings are distributed hierarchically in the rural space and with an unequal density in relation to specific forms of the exploitation of territorial resources. The analysis of this evidence makes it possible to question the traditional paradigm that oppose the villa system with the peasant economy and to better evaluate, from another perspective, the process of cultural change generated by the Roman conquest.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments V
- Contents VII
- Introduction 1
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Part I: From Traditional to New Approaches: Methodological Insights
- Early Imperial Roman Peasant Communities in Central Spain: Agrarian Structure, Standards of Living, and Inequality in the North of Roman Carpetania 23
- Perceiving the Countryside: Some Thoughts on the Representation of Agrarian Cycles and Tasks in the Mosaics of Roman Spain 49
- Investigating Livestock Practices in the Countryside of Roman Spain: An Archaeozoological Approach 71
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Part II: Beyond Villascapes: Peasants in Landscapes
- A Peasant Landscape in the Eastern Roman Spain. An Archaeological Approach to Territorial Organization and Economic Models 91
- Exploring the Complexity of Roman Agrarian Landscapes. State of the Art and a Study Case from the Southwestern Iberian Peninsula 111
- Roman Peasantry, Spatial Archaeology, and Off-site Survey in Hispania 143
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Part III: Comparing Villae and Peasants Habitats in Settlement Systems
- On the Margins of the Villa System? Rural Architecture and Socioeconomic Strategies in North-Eastern Roman Spain 169
- Villae and Farms: Early Imperial Rural Settlement in the Adaja-Eresma Basin (Central Roman Spain) 201
- With the measure you use you will be measured back… Late Roman and Early Medieval Peasants in Central Spain on Examination 229
- From Villa to Village? Relational Approaches within Roman and Medieval Iberian Rural Societies 253
- Conclusions 277
- List of Contributors 285
- List of Figures 291
- Index 295
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Acknowledgments V
- Contents VII
- Introduction 1
-
Part I: From Traditional to New Approaches: Methodological Insights
- Early Imperial Roman Peasant Communities in Central Spain: Agrarian Structure, Standards of Living, and Inequality in the North of Roman Carpetania 23
- Perceiving the Countryside: Some Thoughts on the Representation of Agrarian Cycles and Tasks in the Mosaics of Roman Spain 49
- Investigating Livestock Practices in the Countryside of Roman Spain: An Archaeozoological Approach 71
-
Part II: Beyond Villascapes: Peasants in Landscapes
- A Peasant Landscape in the Eastern Roman Spain. An Archaeological Approach to Territorial Organization and Economic Models 91
- Exploring the Complexity of Roman Agrarian Landscapes. State of the Art and a Study Case from the Southwestern Iberian Peninsula 111
- Roman Peasantry, Spatial Archaeology, and Off-site Survey in Hispania 143
-
Part III: Comparing Villae and Peasants Habitats in Settlement Systems
- On the Margins of the Villa System? Rural Architecture and Socioeconomic Strategies in North-Eastern Roman Spain 169
- Villae and Farms: Early Imperial Rural Settlement in the Adaja-Eresma Basin (Central Roman Spain) 201
- With the measure you use you will be measured back… Late Roman and Early Medieval Peasants in Central Spain on Examination 229
- From Villa to Village? Relational Approaches within Roman and Medieval Iberian Rural Societies 253
- Conclusions 277
- List of Contributors 285
- List of Figures 291
- Index 295
