The Making of a Roman Imperial Estate presents excavations and analysis of material remains at Vagnari, in southeast Italy, which have facilitated a detailed and precise phasing of a rural settlement, both in the late Republican period in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, when it was established on land leased from the Roman state after Rome's conquest of the region, and when it became the hub (vicus) of a vast agricultural estate owned by the emperor himself in the early 1st century AD. This research addresses a range of crucial questions concerning the nature of activity at the estate and the changes in population in this transitional period. It also maps the development of the vicus in the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD, shaping our understanding of the diversity and the mechanics of the imperial economy and the role of the vicus and its inhabitants in generating revenues for the emperor. By contextualising the estate in its landscape and exploring its economic and social impact on Apulia and beyond, archaeological research gives us extremely valuable insight into the making of a Roman imperial estate.

About the Author
Maureen Carroll completed her tertiary education with a PhD in Classical Archaeology from Indiana University (USA) and the Freie Universitat (Berlin). After working for the state archaeological services in Germany and teaching at the University of Cologne, she was Professor of Roman Archaeology at the University of Sheffield. Since 2020, she holds the Chair in Roman Archaeology at the University of York where she directs the MA in Roman Archaeology. She has been visiting professor at the Universitat Basel, the Universite de Fribourg, the Humboldt Universitat, McMaster University, and the University of Calgary.

Reviews

'The volume is well produced and fully illustrated, with many colour images, and only a few typos and slips in the cross-references to the figures. The book will be of particular interest to scholars and research students interested in the Roman agricultural economy, the archaeology of Roman vici, and in details about the management of, and daily life on, an imperial estate.' - Annalisa Marzano (2023): Antiquity Vol. 97 (392)

Book Information
ISBN 9781803272054
Author Maureen Carroll
Format Paperback
Page Count 392
Imprint Archaeopress Archaeology
Publisher Archaeopress
Weight(grams) 1393g