The Economy of PompeiiMiko Flohr, Andrew Wilson This volume presents fourteen papers by Roman archaeologists and historians discussing approaches to the economic history of Pompeii, and the role of the Pompeian evidence in debates about the Roman economy. Four themes are discussed. The first of these is the position of Pompeii and its agricultural environment, discussing the productivity and specialization of agriculture in the Vesuvian region, and the degree to which we can explain Pompeii's size and wealth on the basis of the city's economic hinterland. A second issue discussed is what Pompeians got out of their economy: how well-off were people in Pompeii? This involves discussing the consumption of everyday consumer goods, analyzing archaeobotanical remains to highlight the quality of Pompeian diets, and discussing what bone remains reveal about the health of the inhabitants of Pompeii. A third theme is economic life in the city: how are we to understand the evidence for crafts and manufacturing? How are we to assess Pompeii's commercial topography? Who were the people who actually invested in constructing shops and workshops? In which economic contexts were Pompeian paintings produced? Finally, the volume discusses money and business: how integrated was Pompeii into the wider world of commerce and exchange, and what can the many coins found at Pompeii tell us about this? What do the wax tablets found near Pompeii tell us about trade in the Bay of Naples in the first century AD? Together, the chapters of this volume highlight how Pompeii became a very rich community, and how it profited from its position in the centre of the Roman world. |
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Allison analysis ancient Andreau archaeological archaeological contexts artefacts assemblages atrium bakeries Bay of Naples bronze Cambridge Campanian Casa dei Vettii Casa delle Vestali cent century BC Chapter coin finds coin loss coinage commercial consumer consumption contexts decoration denarii Dioscuri discussion doorways Ebusus economic history elite Ellis Ercolano eruption Esposito evidence example excavated Figure fish Flohr Guzzo Herculaneum Hobbs households houses important inhabitants insula iugera Jongman Laurence Lazer Maiuri Massalia monetized Monteix Mount Vesuvius Neapolis Nola number of coins Oplontis Oxford painters painting peristyle Poehler Pompeian Pompeian economy Pompeii Pompeii and Herculaneum population porotic hyperostosis Porta production Puteoli reconstruct region retail Robinson Roman economy Roman world Rome sample Scheidel sesterces shops skeletal social space space syntax Stabia street suggests Sulpicii taberna units tablets TPSulp types urban economy vessels Vesuvian Vesuvius Vicolo Villa wall Wallace-Hadrill wine