Revisiting the Biferno Valley: Understanding the Roman rural world through the application of legacy survey data in predictive modelling

The rural world and farming activities were a crucial part of Roman life. The majority of the Roman population was in some way involved in agriculture, meaning that socio-economic developments depended for a large part on what happened in the countryside, away from city life. Much of what we know about the rural world is based on information gathered during archaeological surveying. Over the years, incredible amounts of data have been gathered in this way. However, older projects suffer from issues in consistency and representability. As a result, they are often disregarded in the current academic climate. Nevertheless, much information can still be inferred from this older data, also known as legacy survey data. This research studied the organisation of the rural world through legacy survey data on the hand of the Biferno Valley. This region in central-eastern Italy saw much surveying. The Biferno Valley survey charted many sites in the period of activity, from the 1970s through...Show moreThe rural world and farming activities were a crucial part of Roman life. The majority of the Roman population was in some way involved in agriculture, meaning that socio-economic developments depended for a large part on what happened in the countryside, away from city life. Much of what we know about the rural world is based on information gathered during archaeological surveying. Over the years, incredible amounts of data have been gathered in this way. However, older projects suffer from issues in consistency and representability. As a result, they are often disregarded in the current academic climate. Nevertheless, much information can still be inferred from this older data, also known as legacy survey data. This research studied the organisation of the rural world through legacy survey data on the hand of the Biferno Valley. This region in central-eastern Italy saw much surveying. The Biferno Valley survey charted many sites in the period of activity, from the 1970s through the 1990s, but suffered from the same problems mentioned above. Therefore, it forms the perfect case-study for this research. Through the application of a theory-based sequence of predictive modelling, this legacy survey data was used to gain new insights into the Roman rural world. Firstly, ancient literature and other research were used to build hypotheses on the locations of rural farms and villas. These hypotheses were subsequently tested through the archaeological data gathered in the Biferno Valley Survey. Influential variables were assessed and combined into a model which visualises the probability of site presence. Four maps were created in this way, representing two main site types, farms and villas, in two time frames, the Roman Republican and Imperial periods. Results were statistically tested through the legacy survey data. As such, this data functioned as a validation tool for the study of the Roman past. The models were adjusted until each map represented the probability of site presence with significant accuracy. The results allowed for a reconstruction of the Roman rural world, which gives an indication as to how Roman agriculture was organised. It was found that the impact of most variables fell within expectations. Logically, steep slopes and areas of high elevation were avoided. Locations near waterways, roads and towns were preferred. Especially in the Imperial period, roads and towns must have been a great force of attraction, especially for villas. Two variables mainly deviated in practice from what was expected. The types of soils that seem to have been preferred point towards a high degree of cash crop cultivation. Similarly, the fact that south-facing slopes were not as popular as initially hypothesised indicates the same thing. It is possible that a large degree of crop rotation was in part responsible for these findings, although this cannot be said with certainty. Regardless, results indicate that the Biferno Valley must have had a strong reliance on trade over larger distances. Cash crops could be exported, whilst imported cereals fed the region’s urban population. Within the research area itself, strong spatial and social relations must have existed between owners of farms and villas. This all points towards a highly interconnected Roman rural world. These results thus show that significant gains can be made from the usage of legacy survey data in modern archaeology.Show less

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Revisiting the Biferno Valley: Understanding the Roman rural world through the application of legacy survey data in predictive modelling