Imperialism, Empire and the Integration of the Roman Economy
Author(s): Greg Woolf
Source: World Archaeology, Vol. 23, No. 3, Archaeology of Empires (Feb., 1992), pp. 283-293 Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/124763 . Accessed: 28/11/2013 11:36 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at . http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp . JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. . Taylor & Francis, Ltd. is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to World Archaeology. http://www.jstor.org This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy Greg Woolf Compet in g mod els of t h e R oman econ omy Empires are polit ical syst ems based on t h e act ual or t h reat en ed use of f orce t o ext ract surpluses f rom t h eir subject s. Imperial elit es spen d t h ese reven ues on t h e in f rast ruct ure n ecessary t o main t ain power, an d ret ain a prof it t h at is d ist ribut ed t o groups t h at are privileged by virt ue of t h eir place wit h in t h e imperial h ierarch y. Pre-in d ust rial empires d if f ered f rom ot h er imperial syst ems in so f ar as t h ey ext ract ed surplus f rom econ omies t h at were primarily agrarian , by mean s of relat ively primit ive milit ary an d commun i- cat ion s t ech n ologies. As a result pre-in d ust rial empires could n ot support large govern - men t al in st it ut ion s an d so secured t h eir power by promot in g a commun it y of in t erest amon g 6elit es wit h in t h e empire, an d a sen se of imperial membersh ip based on part icipat ion in ruler worsh ip an d ad h eren ce t o imperial cult ural an d symbolic syst ems. Econ omically, h owever, empires were f irst an d f oremost t ribut ary st ruct ures, an d much of t h e limit ed en ergy at t h eir d isposal was d evot ed t o en surin g ad equat e supplies of cash , labour an d agricult ural prod uce f rom t h e areas un d er t h eir con t rol. Such an an alysis f it s t h e case of R ome well. Th e provin ces were t axed , t axes were spen t on t h e army an d t h e capit al, t h e supremacy of R ome was main t ain ed more by t h e support of R oman ized elit es t h an by a subst an t ial milit ary or govern men t al est ablish men t , especially in t h e early empire (Garn sey an d Saller 1987: 20-40). But if t h e broad n at ure of t h e polit ical econ omy is agreed , t h e same can n ot be said f or t h e econ omy of t h e R oman world as a wh ole. Some see t h e polit ical econ omy as t h e on ly lin k bet ween a series of essen t ially local econ omic syst ems (e.g. Fin ley 1985), wh ile ot h ers see t h e R oman world as a well in t egrat ed econ omic syst em, wit h in wh ich t h e polit ical econ omy played an import an t role, but wh ich was also un if ied by market s in lan d , cred it an d agricult ural prod uce (e.g. Caran d in i 1986; 1989b). In t ermed iat e posit ion s migh t be en visaged . Th e R oman world migh t h ave con sist ed of a series of region al econ omies, on ly loosely in t egrat ed in t o a sin gle syst em, or else a loosely an d sluggish ly in t egrat ed R oman econ omy migh t h ave exist ed alon gsid e t h e polit ical econ omy. In t h e absen ce of d at a on t h e levels of , an d f luct uat ion s in , prices, wages an d in t erest rat es f or most of t h e empire, arch aeology of f ers t h e best mean s of ch oosin g bet ween t h ese alt ern at ives. Lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge is import an t h ere, n ot because commerce played a cen t ral role in t h e an cien t econ omy, but because t h e exch an ge of good s is t h e most visible sympt om of con t act s World Arch aeology Volume 23 No. 3 Arch aeology of Empires ? R out led ge 1992 0043-8243/92/2303/283 $3.00/1 This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 284 Greg Woolf bet ween region s. Th e exist en ce of lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge is n ot in it self evid en ce f or a commercial econ omy. Amon g curren t ly compet in g in t erpret at ion s we may d ist in guish at least f our posit ion s. First , t h at t h e polit ical econ omy, t oget h er wit h t h e t ran sport of privat e prod uce by it s own ers f or t h eir own use, migh t accoun t f or most lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge wit h in t h e R oman world (Wh it t aker 1985). Secon d , t h at t h e operat ion of t h e polit ical econ omy migh t also st imulat e some ot h er lon g-d ist an ce exch an ges wit h in t h e empire (Hopkin s 1980; Wickh am 1988). Th ird , t h at t h e exist en ce of t h e empire migh t in various ways f acilit at e t h e limit ed growt h of a mercan t ile econ omy (Caran d in i 1986). Fourt h , t h at lon g-d ist an ce exch an ges d erived f rom f eat ures of t h e an cien t world as a wh ole, such as urban ism an d t h e un even d ist ribut ion of resources, an d even t h e imposit ion of empire d id n ot creat e an in t egrat ed econ omy (Dun can -Jon es 1990: 30-58). Such t h umbn ail sket ch es d o lit t le just ice t o t h e soph ist icat ion of t h e works cit ed ; all t h ese writ ers h ave argued t h eir views in n umerous publicat ion s an d t h ere are man y poin t s of con vergen ce an d agreemen t bet ween t h em. But t h e d iversit y of in t erpret at ive h ypot h eses curren t ly available is clear. Th ese h ypot h eses migh t be used in d if f eren t ways. On e met h od would be t o use rival mod els pred ict ively, t o gen erat e mod els t h at migh t be f alsif ied or mod if ied by con f ron - t at ion wit h exist in g d at a set s. For example, if t h e polit ical econ omy was t h e mot or f or all lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge, we migh t expect evid en ce f or exch an ges bet ween t h e t ribut ary provin ces an d t h e capit al or t h e f ron t iers, but n ot bet ween t ribut ary provin ces. In pract ice, some such exch an ges d id t ake place, such as t h e t ran sport of Pascual 1 win e amph orae f rom Tarracon en sis in Spain t o sout h -west Fran ce (Fit zpat rick 1985: 319-21; Tch ern ia 1986: 142-5, 1989: 531). Exch an ges bet ween t h e cen t re an d t h e periph ery can n ot t h en accoun t f or all t h e lon g-d ist an ce exch an ges in t h e empire an d t h e mod el must be ad just ed accord in gly. Th is met h od is a powerf ul on e, part icularly if t h e pred ict ion s are f ramed so t h at t h eir f alsif icat ion d oes n ot d epen d on argumen t s f rom silen ce. But t h is paper will use a d if f eren t t ech n ique. Th e d ist ribut ion s f irst of con t ain er amph orae, an d t h en of ot h er art ef act s, will be used t o suggest some very gen eral con clusion s about exch an ge syst ems an d t h eir d evelopmen t bet ween t h e lat e R epublic an d early Empire. In part icular, a con t rast will be d rawn bet ween t h e kin d of in t egrat ion ach ieved at t h e h eigh t of R oman imperialism, an d t h at main t ain ed af t er expan sion h ad virt ually ceased . Th e evid en ce of con t ain er amph orae Th e pot en t ials an d problems of amph ora st ud ies h ave been much d iscussed (Pat erson 1982; Peacock an d Williams 1986; Tch ern ia 1986). Amph orae are t h ick-walled ceramic con t ain ers, used f or much of t h e period , f or t ran sport in g win e, olive oil an d f ish prod uct s. On t h e basis of t h eir epigraph y, t ypology an d pet rology, an d t h rough t h e excavat ion of wreck cargoes, kiln sit es an d d umps, amph orae are t h e best guid e t o pat t ern s of prod uct ion , exch an ge an d con sumpt ion in t h e an cien t world . Problems remain . We are ign oran t of t h e con t en t s an d origin s of man y amph ora t ypes, an d in some areas, crucially in t h e east Med it erran ean , amph ora st ud ies are st ill in t h eir in f an cy. It is also likely t h at some amph ora t ypes h ave been wron gly or in complet ely proven an ced , an d besid es, amph orae were n ot t h e on ly f orm of con t ain er used in t h is period . All t h e same, t h e broad pat t ern s of d evelopmen t can n ow be recon st ruct ed , in part icular f or t h ose amph orae used t o t ran sport win e. This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy 285 Th e f irst R oman win e amph orae d eveloped f rom Hellen ist ic mod els in t h e mid -t h ird cen t ury BC an d were prod uced in Et ruria, Lat ium an d Campan ia (Will 1982; Emp6reur an d Hesn ard 1988: 25-30; Hesn ard et al. 1989). Some of t h ese Greco-It alic t ype amph orae were prod uced at Marseilles an d possibly elsewh ere (Lauben h eimer 1989: 119), but t h e majorit y seem t o be cen t ral It alian in origin . Wid ely d ist ribut ed in t h e west ern Med it erran ean , t h ey f irst appear on sout h ern Fren ch sit es at t h e en d of t h e t h ird cen t ury BC, on ly becomin g n umerous in t h e f irst h alf of t h e secon d cen t ury (Goud in eau 1983: 79-81; Tch ern ia 1986: 94-8). Greco-It alics are more common in Spain , but again on ly become common in t h e early secon d cen t ury (Nolla an d Niet o 1989). A very f ew even f oun d t h eir way in lan d as f ar as Ch at eaumeillan t in t h e Berry an d Man ch in g in Bavaria. More import an t , but as yet un quan t if ied , were t h ose export ed t o t h e east ern Med it er- ran ean (Tch ern ia 1986: 98). Will (1989) argues t h at a cen t re of prod uct ion n ear Brin d isi supplied t h e east , but t h ere is n o f irm evid en ce f or t h e prod uct ion of Greco-It alic amph orae in Ad riat ic It aly (Ciprian o an d Carre 1989: 89-91). Greco-It alic amph orae were replaced by a series of n ew t ypes in t h e mid -secon d cen t ury BC. On e of t h em, t h e Dressel 1, represen t s t h e most wid ely d ist ribut ed amph ora t ype in t h e an cien t world , it s varian t s bein g t ran sport ed t h rough out t h e Med it erran ean , an d over large part s of t emperat e Europe, wh ere it is ubiquit ous on set t lemen t sit es of t h e lat est iron age (Pan ella 1981; Fit zpat rick 1985; Tch ern ia 1986: 74-87). Dressel 1 amph orae were prod uced bet ween c. 140 an d c. 10BC, of t en in t h e same kiln s as h ad prod uced Greco-It alics in cen t ral It aly (Tch ern ia 1986: 42-8, 126-7). R ecen t ly it h as been sh own t h at some Dressel 1 were also prod uced in Fran ce, in clud in g at Lyon (Lauben h eimer 1989: 116-18) an d at least on e varian t , Dressel 1C, was possibly prod uced in Spain (Will 1979; Fit zpat rick 1987: 81-2). Pet rological object ion s seem overt urn ed by recen t research (Peacock an d Williams 1986: 91-2; Comas et al. 1987). Nort h -east Spain an d sout h -west Fran ce cert ain ly prod uced an ot h er varian t , t h e Pascual 1 amph ora, wh ich was d ist ribut ed t h rough out west ern Fran ce (Fit zpat rick 1985: 319-21; Peacock an d Williams 1986: 93-5). Prod uct ion seems t o h ave span n ed t h e period c. 50BC-AD 80, but t h e majorit y of examples are f oun d in August an an d Tiberian con t ext s (Tch ern ia 1986: 143-5). Prod uc- t ion of amph orae on t h e east coast of It aly is less well un d erst ood , but Tch ern ia argues t h at it f ollowed a similar course t o prod uct ion in t h e west , wit h Lamboglia 2 amph orae appearin g an d d isappearin g at about t h e same t imes as Dressel 1 (Tch ern ia 1986: 53-6, 68-74). R ecen t research h as sh own t h at t h ese amph orae were prod uced in a n umber of cen t res on t h e west an d n ort h Ad riat ic coast s, but t h e ch ron ology of t h eir origin s an d t h eir mut at ion in t o Dressel 6A amph orae is st ill un clear (Ciprian o an d Carre 1989). Lamboglia 2 amph orae are kn own in t h e west , but t h e main d ist ribut ion cen t red on t h e Ad riat ic an d t h e east ern Med it erran ean proper. Th e last d ecad es of t h e last cen t ury BC marked an ot h er series of ch an ges in win e amph orae (Tch ern ia 1986: 126-57). As in t h e case of t h e ch an ges d escribed above, t h ere were probably period s wh en several t ypes were prod uced simult an eously an d ch an ges in f orm n eed n ot h ave correspon d ed t o d iscon t in uit ies in d ist ribut ion . Dressel 6A seem t o h ave evolved grad ually out of Lamboglia 2 (Ciprian o an d Carre 1989). But t h e most import an t n ew t ype was t h e Dressel 2-4, prod uced in cen t ral an d Ad riat ic It aly, n ort h -west ern an d sout h ern Spain , sout h ern Fran ce an d possibly Brit ain (Peacock an d Williams 1986: 105-6; Tch ern ia 1986: 127-9; Ciprian o an d Carre 1989: 91-2). Similar amph orae h ad lon g been prod uced in t h e vicin it y of R h od es an d Cos, in coast al Cilicia an d This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 286 Greg Woolf Alexan d ria in Egypt (Emp6reur an d Picon 1989), an d it was almost cert ain ly t h e popularit y of east ern win es t h at led t o t h e ad opt ion of t h e f orm in t h e west . But alt h ough t h e d ist ribut ion of Dressel 2-4 was Med it erran ean -wid e, t h ey are much rarer in t emperat e Europe t h an Dressel 1 amph orae. Th e n umber of prod uct ion cen t res of Dressel 2-4 is great er, t h e proport ion prod uced out sid e It aly is h igh er, but each prod uct ion seems t o h ave a much smaller d ist ribut ion (Pan ella 1981). Th e same is t rue f or Dressel 6A, wh ich h ad a more rest rict ed d ist ribut ion t h an Lamboglia 2, an d f or Pascual 1, wh ich are main ly con cen t rat ed in n ort h -east Spain an d sout h -west Fran ce. Dressel 2-4 was t h e last win e amph ora t o be prod uced on a Med it erran ean -wid e scale. Even d urin g t h e main period of it s prod uct ion , f rom t h e en d of t h e last cen t ury BC t o t h e mid -secon d cen t ury AD, it coexist ed alon gsid e ot h er t ypes, like Pascual 1 an d Dressel 6A. Th e n ext gen erat ion of amph orae are region al prod uct ion s. On e of t h e best st ud ied prod uct ion s is t h at of Gaul (Lauben h eimer 1985: 1989). A t ot al of f ort y-six kiln sit es are kn own in Narbon en sis an d f ive in cen t ral Gaul. Th ese kiln s h ad prod uced a f ew Greco-It alic an d Dressel 1 amph orae an d some Dressel 2-4, Pascual 1 an d perh aps Dressel 7/11, but in t h e early f irst cen t ury AD a n ew series wit h f lat -bot t oms, suit able f or t ran sport by cart , began t o be mad e. Lauben h eimer h as id en t if ied n in e f orms: of t h ese, most were prod uced by on ly on e or t wo kiln s, Gauloises 1 an d 5 were mad e in several kiln s in t wo localit ies, but Gauloise 4 was prod uced all over sout h ern Gaul bet ween t h e mid -f irst cen t ury an d t h e t h ird cen t ury AD, in a surprisin gly st an d ard ized f orm. Th ese amph orae were d ist ribut ed primarily wit h in Gaul, German y, t h e Low Coun t ries an d Brit ain (Peacock an d Williams 1986: 142-3). Win e amph orae h ave received more at t en t ion t h an an y ot h er kin d , gen erat in g compet in g h ist ories of R oman win e (Purcell 1985; Tch ern ia 1986; Caran d in i 1989a; 1989b). Th e ot h er major commod it y carried in amph orae was olive oil, but n o syn t h esis h as yet been at t empt ed d espit e much recen t research of h igh qualit y (Blazquez an d R emesal 1980; 1983; Mat t in gly 1988a; 1988b). In man y respect s, oil amph orae exh ibit comparable pat t ern in g t o t h at prod uced by win e amph orae. Best kn own are t h e Dressel 20 amph orae prod uced in t h e valley of t h e Guad alquivir in sout h ern Spain an d d ist ribut ed in large n umbers in t h e R h in elan d , Fran ce, Brit ain an d in t h e cit y of R ome. Prod uct ion st art ed in t h e early f irst cen t ury AD an d con t in ued in t o t h e t h ird cen t ury (Belt ran 1970; Pon sich 1974; 1979; Mat t in gly 1988a: 38-44). Tripolit an ian amph orae are less well st ud ied , but prod uct ion seems t o h ave begun in t h e f irst cen t ury AD, an d t h eir d ist ribut ion ext en d ed wid ely over Nort h Af rica an d cen t ral It aly in t h e secon d an d t h ird cen t uries AD (Peacock an d Williams 1986:166-70; Mat t in gly 1988b: 31-6). Bot h Baet ica an d Tripo- lit an ia st art ed prod ucin g amph orae t o export oil in t h e early f irst cen t ury an d con t in ued t o supply region al market s in t o t h e t h ird cen t ury; t h e region al scale of t h eir d ist ribut ion s is comparable wit h t h at of win e amph orae like Pascual 1, Gauloise 4 or Dressel 6A. Similar d ist ribut ion s may h ave exist ed in t h e east ern Med it erran ean (R iley 1979: 112-236), but as yet f ew of t h em are as clear as t h e west ern examples. Wh at pat t ern s emerge f rom t h is brief survey? First , it is clear t h at a n umber of region s were prod ucin g subst an t ial surpluses f or d ist an t con sumpt ion . Olive oil an d win e were h ard ly luxuries, but t h ey were n ot st aples eit h er: t h at d ich ot omy suit s moralit y bet t er t h an econ omics. Surpluses were creat ed wit h in t h e t rad it ion al ran ge of agricult ural prod uce, t h e Med it erran ean t riad t oget h er wit h supplemen t ary f ood s like f ish prod uct s. Deman d This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy 287 f or t h ese prod uct s d epen d ed part ly on t h eir un even d ist ribut ion , part ly on t h e f requen cy of bot h f ood crises an d glut s in t h e Med it erran ean basin (Garn sey 1988: 8-16), part ly on t h e h igh proport ion of t h e populat ion wh o n eit h er worked on n or own ed t h e lan d , but also part ly because some areas were h eld t o prod uce h igh er qualit y prod uce t h an ot h ers. In t h ese con d it ion s, a market f or grain h ad lon g exist ed in t h e East (R at h bon e 1983b). But in t h e west t h e amph ora d ist ribut ion s at t est n ew levels of prod uct ion . Th ese prod uct ion s began in t h e early f irst cen t ury AD, an d t h eir f loruit coin cid ed wit h t h e period wh en t h e h igh est proport ion of t h e imperial populat ion lived in cit ies. Secon d , t h e d ist ribut ion s give some id ea of t h e d if f eren t scales of exch an ge an d prod uct ion . Bet ween t h e wid est d ist ribut ion s an d t h e most local t h ere was a con t in uum, but f or con ven ien ce we can d ivid e it in t o local, region al an d empire-wid e exch an ges. Local d ist ribut ion s h ave been least well st ud ied an d h ard ly men t ion ed h ere, but are perh aps t ypif ied by t h ose Gauloise amph orae t h at were prod uced in on ly on e kiln sit e an d d ist ribut ed in t h e immed iat e vicin it y. R egion al d ist ribut ion s in clud e t ypes like Dressel 20, Pascual 1, Dressel 6A, Tripolit an ian I an d most Dressel 2-4 prod uct ion s. Empire-wid e d ist ribut ion s are represen t ed by Greco-It alic an d Dressel 1. Classif ied in t h is f ash ion , it is clear t h at t h e last cat egory, t h e empire-wid e d ist ribut ion , is in f act very rare. Lon g-st an d in g in t erest in It alian win e prod uct ion may h ave obscured t h e ext en t t o wh ich it s success was ext remely at ypical. Much more ch aract erist ic of t h e empire as a wh ole, alt h ough n ot of t h e period bef ore it in t h e west , were region al d ist ribut ion s. Fin ally, t h e ch ron ology of t h e an omalous case of cen t ral It alian win e prod uct ion is in t erest in g. Large scale d ist ribut ion in t h e west began in t h e early secon d cen t ury BC. Tch ern ia n ot es ch an ges bet ween Caesar an d August us, wit h t h e appearan ce of Dressel 2-4 an d Dressel 6A, but if t h ese t ypes h ad much smaller d ist ribut ion s t h an t h eir pred ecessors, t h en t h ose pred ecessors were alread y in d eclin e. Wit h in t h e Dressel 1 series, a sh if t t ook place f rom Dressel 1A t o Dressel 1B f rom about 70 BC. At least in t h e n ort h -west Dressel lB is d ist ribut ed more wid ely an d occurs in great er n umbers t h an Dressel 1A (Fit zpat rick 1985). Th e an omalous d ist ribut ion of It alian win e t h us began slowly in t h e t h ird cen t ury BC, reach in g a peak in t h e t h ird quart er of t h e last cen t ury BC bef ore d eclin in g rapid ly. Th e pat t ern f ollows t h e rh yt h m of R ome's imperial expan sion . Tableware, coin s an d ot h er evid en ce Con t ain er amph orae provid e d irect evid en ce of lon g-d ist an ce exch an ges in t h e R oman world . Th e d ist ribut ion s of t h ose good s n ot t ran sport ed by amph ora are much less accessible, alt h ough some sen se of region al sph eres of exch an ge can be gain ed f rom n on -arch aeological sources in t h e case of grain (Garn sey 1983: 119-21; R at h bon e 1983b: 50-3). But f urt h er in vest igat ion of t h e in t egrat ion of t h e Med it erran ean econ omy d epen d s on more in d irect sources. Ceramic t ablewares of f er on e such source. Ceramics, even coarse wares, were t rad ed lon g d ist an ces, but more of t en as space-f illers t h an as primary cargoes. Nevert h eless, an y import ed ware st ill h ad t o out -compet e local prod uct ion s, wh et h er in t erms of cost or perceived qualit y. An cien t cargoes were usually mixed , sh ippers pickin g up an d put t in g d own it ems at man y of t h e port s visit ed in t h e course of 'cabot age' (Parker 1990: 342-3). This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 288 Greg Woolf As a result , t h e proven an ces of t h e most popular ceramics in d icat e n eit h er t h e sources of t h e primary cargoes n or t h eir d est in at ion s. Wh at t h e d ist ribut ion s d o sh ow are region s lin ked by sh ippin g f requen t en ough t o allow t ablewares t o compet e wit h each ot h er in a region al market . High proport ion s of import ed wares in t h e ceramic assemblages of Med it erran ean cit ies t h emselves suggest a h igh level of exch an ge (Fulf ord 1987). R oman t ablewares evolved out of a wid espread Hellen ist ic t rad it ion of black-glaze ware. Th e so-called Campan ian ware spread t h rough out t h e west Med it erran ean at much t h e same t ime as Greco-It alic amph orae an d f rom t h e same area (Morel 1980; 1981). Like t h e amph orae, t h is sh in y black t ableware expan d ed in t o areas wh ere similar local prod uct ion s h ad previously been d omin an t an d bot h in f luen ced subsequen t prod uct ion of t h ose wares, an d in spired imit at ion s. Campan ian A d eveloped n ear Naples in t h e lat e t h ird cen t ury, Campan ian B was prod uced in Et ruria f rom t h e early secon d cen t ury, an d Campan ian C appeared in Syracuse a lit t le lat er, f ollowed by prod uct ion s elsewh ere in Sicily, Af rica, t h e Balearic Isles an d imit at ion s in Af rica, east ern Spain an d sout h ern Gaul. Campan ian ware was replaced sud d en ly by Arret in e ware bet ween 50 an d 30 BC (Goud in eau 1980; Pucci 1981). Th e n ew prod uct was sh in y red an d of t en d ecorat ed , an d f ormed t h e prot ot ype f or red glossy wares prod uced all over t h e R oman world f or t h e n ext six cen t uries. Arret in e was d ist ribut ed wid ely t h rough out t h e Med it erran ean basin an d well in t o t emperat e Europe. Th e t ran sit ion f rom Campan ian t o Arret in e was mad e in n ort h It aly, probably f ollowin g east ern mod els. But prod uct ion of similar wares, gen erically t ermed t erra sigillat a, spread rapid ly. Bran ch worksh ips of t h e Arret in e f irms an d local pot t ers h ad st art ed prod ucin g t erra sigillat a in sout h ern Gaul bef ore 20 BC (Bemon t an d Jacob 1986: 33). By t h e mid -f irst cen t ury AD, t erra sigillat a was prod uced at cen t res in n ort h ern It aly (Pucci 1980), Spain (Mayet 1980), n ort h Af rica (Tort orella 1988) an d cen t ral Fran ce (Bemon t an d Jacob 1986: 121-71). Sigillat a h ad been prod uced in Cyprus an d Pamph ylia f rom at least t h e last cen t ury BC (Gun n eweg 1987). Most of t h ese wares are ill un d erst ood , but it is clear t h at t erra sigillat a was prod uced in a large n umber of cen t res in each area, an d t h at on ly a min orit y of t h ese cen t res ach ieved a more t h an local d ist ribut ion . But t h e d ist ribut ion s of t h e prod uct s of t h e major cen t res, like La Grauf esen que an d Lezoux in Fran ce or Tricio an d An d f ijar in Spain , sh ow very clear pat t ern in g. Un like t h e empire-wid e d ist ribut ion of Arret in e ware, t h e provin cial t erra sigillat a prod uct ion s were region al in scale. Tricio's wares are f oun d t h rough out Iberia an d Morocco, An d f ijar supplied Baet ica an d Morocco an d cen t ral Gallic prod uct s are con cen t rat ed n ort h of t h e Alps, in cen t ral an d n ort h ern Fran ce, Brit ain an d t h e R h in elan d . Most lat er prod uct ion s h ave very local d ist ribut ion s wit h t h e except ion of Af rican R ed Slip, wh ich is d ist ribut ed wid ely sout h of t h e Alps (Hayes 1972). It is possible t h at n o sigillat a was prod uced in Spain in t h e t h ird cen t ury, wh ile n ort h of t h e Alps a series of local prod uct ion s in east ern Fran ce d isappears bef ore 300 AD (Kin g 1981). Th e amoun t of f in eware supplied by successive cen t res was less an d less, even wit h in t h eir more rest rict ed d ist ribut ion s (Marsh 1981). But in t h e f ourt h cen t ury region al sph eres of exch an ge on ce again appeared in t h e d ist ribut ion of red t ableware in Spain (Mayet 1980), n ort h ern Fran ce an d Brit ain (Fulf ord 1989: 196-8), wh ile t h e Af rican prod uct s go f rom st ren gt h t o st ren gt h (Fen t ress an d Perkin s 1989). Th e overall pat t ern recalls t h at suggest ed by amph orae. Cen t ral It alian prod uct s ach ieved an empire-wid e d ist ribut ion f or a wh ile in t h e last t wo cen t uries of t h e R epublic, This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy 289 but bef ore t h e en d of t h e last cen t ury BC, region al d ist ribut ion s h ave assert ed t h emselves, in clud in g over areas of t h e west t h at h ad n ot part icipat ed in t h at t rad it ion bef ore R oman con quest . Th is pict ure is corroborat ed by ot h er cat egories of evid en ce. Th e n umber of Med it erran ean sh ipwrecks per cen t ury sh ows a grad ual in crease f rom t h e f if t h cen t ury BC, sud d en ly in creasin g bet ween t h e t h ird an d secon d cen t uries an d peakin g in t h e last cen t ury BC, bef ore d eclin in g slowly t o a n ad ir in t h e sixt h cen t ury AD (Parker 1990: 336). Th e record is in complet e - more research h as been con d uct ed in t h e n ort h ern Med it erran ean t h an in t h e sout h an d much more aroun d t h e coast s t h an in d eep wat er, but t h e t ren d st ill suggest s a t emporarily h igh level of in t egrat ion in t h e last cen t ury BC. An alysis of t h e silver coin ages of t h e Med it erran ean world , sh ows t h e process by wh ich n on -R oman coin ages were progressively replaced by d en arii f rom t h e early secon d cen t ury BC (Crawf ord 1985). But d espit e t h e creat ion of a un if orm curren cy syst em, local coin ages persist ed un d er R oman con t rol in Spain , Gaul an d t h e Greek world in t h e lat e R epublic, wh ile closed curren cy syst ems exist ed un d er t h e empire in Asia, based on cist oph oroi, an d in Egypt on t et rad rach ms. Th e suggest ion of region al exch an ge syst ems f or coin age is backed up by Dun can -Jon es' d emon st rat ion of d if f eren ces bet ween d en arii con t ain ed in coin h oard s in d if f eren t part s of t h e empire (1989). In t er-region al exch an ge was clearly in suf f icien t t o elimin at e variat ion s creat ed by irregular d espat ch es of coin f rom t h e imperial min t s, but wit h in each region , t h e circulat ion of coin age creat ed a common prof ile. St ud y of t erracot t a lamps suggest s t h at each mark ch aract erist ically h ad a region al d ist ribut ion (Dun can -Jon es 1990: 48-58). Con clusion s Mod els of t h e R oman econ omy, or of t h e impact of R ome on pre-exist en t econ omic syst ems, ough t t o be able t o explain t h e pat t ern in g of mat erial cult ure in d icat ed above. R oman con quest in corporat ed n ew areas in t o syst ems of lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge, but f or t h e most part exch an ge wit h in t h e empire was rarely in t egrat ed above t h e region al level. Some empire-wid e d ist ribut ion s of good s appear in t h e period bet ween t h e secon d Pun ic War an d t h e en d of t h e R epublic, but region al d ist ribut ion s reappeared in t h e last cen t ury BC. R oman imperialism, n ot t h e st able empire, provid ed t h e con t ext f or t h e maximum in t egrat ion ach ieved in lon g-d ist an ce exch an ge syst ems. Various explan at ion s h ave been proposed f or t h e success of cen t ral It alian prod uct s in t h e lat e R epublic. Some see t h ese d evelopmen t s as ref lect in g t h e rise an d f all of t h e slave mod e of prod uct ion (Giard in a an d Sch iavon e 1981; cf . R at h bon e 1983a), wit h It aly even t ually succumbin g t o compet it ion f rom t h e provin ces (Caran d in i 1989a). Provin cial prod uct ion of win e, oil an d t erra sigillat a clearly d id out -compet e It alian prod uce in t h e provin ces, but t h e balan ce of t h e evid en ce suggest s t h at provin cial win e an d sigillat a d id n ot capt ure market s in It aly (Mart in 1985; Purcell 1985; Tch ern ia 1986). But it seems pref erable t o see imperial expan sion as provid in g It alian prod ucers wit h a series of n ew opport un it ies (Hopkin s 1978: 1-98). It alian prod ucers in vest ed t h e prof it s of empire in exploit in g t h e d eman d f or R oman good s creat ed by R oman izat ion , t h e commun icat ion s n et works cen t red on t h e growin g cit y of R ome, t h e presen ce of It alian t roops abroad an d t h e logist ical in f rast ruct ure set up by t h e R oman army. Some of t h ese opport un it ies This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions 290 Greg Woolf remain ed af t er expan sion slowed d own . But t h e rare d egree of in t egrat ion ach ieved by t h e R oman econ omy in t h e last t wo cen t uries BC was creat ed by imperialism, n ot t h e in f rast ruct ure of a st able empire, an d region al d ist ribut ion s reassert ed t h emselves as soon as t h e cult ural gap was closed (Tch ern ia 1989). How f ar t h e region al pat t ern in g d iscussed in t h is paper can be ascribed t o t h e operat ion s of imperial comman d econ omies is a mat t er f or f ierce d ebat e. My own impression is t h at t h e t ribut ary an d red ist ribut ive operat ion s of t h e polit ical econ omy can provid e at best on ly a part ial explan at ion . 2.viii.91 Magd alen College Oxf ord OX] 4A U R ef eren ces Belt ran , M. 1970. Las an f oras R oman as en Espaf a. Zaragoza: Fern an d o et Cat olico. Bemon t , C. an d Jacob, J. -P. (ed s) 1986. La t erre sigillWe gallo-romain e. Lieux d e prod uct ion d u Haut Empire: implan t at ion s, prod uit s, relat ion s. Paris: Ed it ion s d e la Maison d e Scien ce. Blazquez, J. M. an d R emesal, J. (ed s) 1980. Prod uccion y commercio d el aceit e en la an t igued ad s Con gresso I. Mad rid : Un iversid ad Complut en se. Blazquez, J. M. an d R emesal, J. (ed s) 1983. Prod uccion y commercio d el aceit e en la an t igued ad s Con gresso II. 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This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy 293 Will, E. L. 1979. Th e Sest ius Amph oras: a reappraisal. Journ al of Field Arch aeology, 6: 339-50. Will, E. L. 1982. Greco-It alic amph oras. Hesperia, 52: 338-56. Will, E. L. 1989. R elazion i mut ue t ra le an f ore roman e: i rit rovamen t i in orien t e, alla luce d ei d at i ot t en ut i n ell'occid en t e. In Len oir et al. 1989, pp. 297-309. Abst ract Woolf , Greg Imperialism, empire an d t h e in t egrat ion of t h e R oman econ omy Wh ile t h e polit ical econ omy of t h e R oman empire is well un d erst ood , t h e n at ure of t h e econ omy as a wh ole is a mat t er of f ierce d ebat e. A ran ge of compet in g h ypot h eses about t h e n at ure of t h e R oman econ omy are presen t ed , an d t h en d ist ribut ion s of amph orae an d cert ain ot h er art ef act cat egories are used t o suggest some broad pat t ern s wh ich successf ul t h eories of t h e R oman econ omy will h ave t o ad d ress. In part icular, it is argued t h at region al d ist ribut ion s of mat erial usually con st it ut ed t h e h igh est level of in t egrat ion ach ieved in t h e R oman world , an d t h at larger-scale pat t ern in g was on ly creat ed d urin g t h e period of imperial expan sion d urin g t h e last t wo cen t uries BC. This content downloaded from 143.107.8.10 on Thu, 28 Nov 2013 11:36:08 AM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions