the economy; trade, commerce, industries and occupations Flashcards
how did P and H compare in terms of their economic activity?
- H was a quieter fishing/resort town whilst P had evidence to be a bustling commercial centre.
- P largely based on agricultural production. No evidence of H manufacturing as not excavated.
- P had markets, shops, trade, inscriptions to show economic activity.
- P making profit and accumulating wealthy favoured by gods.
3 evidence which reveal commercial life:
- the high no. 600 excavated of privately owned shops, workshops, bars and inns shows the economic activity of selling and renting out places/things in P. Show trade and import/export which may have occurred. retail workforces.
- trade signs depicting various manufacturing processes show P was involved in exports of god from production of local commodity. Made large scale commodities which were later traded. Industrial workforce
- images of Mercury, god of commerce, displayed everywhere to gain blessing, show importance of economy and commerce in Pompeian life. Many ppl had jobs based around commercial life on city ( profit and accumulation of wealth)
The economies of Vesuvian towns were largely based on…
agricultural production and fishing
The Wine and Oil Industry: Why is assumed that only wealthy landowners cultivated vineyards and olive groves?
the cost of the long wait between planting and the first harvest, and cost of wine and olive presses were very expensive an only wealthy landowners could afford it. Pay ppl to help produce these wines.
The Wine and Oil Industry: Explain how wine made?
- winde made pressing grapes (torcularia), fermentation ( cellae vinariae) and storage
- torcular (press) consisted of solid wooden cross bar fixed at one end and pushed downwards by which winch with an arm lever
- wine stored in large jars, often dug and buried
The Wine and Oil Industry: what is the wine storage jars buried half in ground called?
dolium
The Wine and Oil Industry: what was dolium purpose according to Pliny?
- storage jars for wine buried completely or partially in ground, protecting it form weather, spaced out to prevent any tainting of wine to affect another
The Wine and Oil Industry: How do we know that Vesuvian wines were of good quality?
from PLiny’s ‘Natural History’ and evidence from labelled wine jars
The Wine and Oil Industry: what was used to make olive oil?
olive press - trapetum
The Wine and Oil Industry: explain how the trapetum worked?
- presses and storerooms had to be warmed by large fire
- these trapeta 1st pressing, to separate flesh form pip so that oil didn’t get bitter taste
- second pressing used same press as grapes
The Wine and Oil Industry: How was oil use din P and H?
- basic ingredient in perfume
- cooking, particularly in thermopolia (bar serves hot snacks/drinks)
- used in thermae (bath complexes) and palaestra to rub in body
- lighting
Garum: What is garum and how is it made?
- a fish sauce, one of main condiments use for flavouring Roman cuisine (various flavours based on quality and type of fish/method of preparation)
- made form potent mix of guts of fish and other useless parts (grills, intestines, blood) -> finely chopped, pounded, crushed, stirred, mixture left in sun and fermented, 6 weeks evaporate, filter residue = bottle.
- due to stench, likely manufactured outside city walls.
Garum: Why do you think it was such a highly valued item in the Mediterranean world?
- in Mediterranean world, the food would have been bland/plain, so product which gave alot of flavour would have had high demand.
- great product from great product (quality)
- export item
Cloth Manufacture and Treatment: What things were done with wool-based cloth as fulleries (fullonicae)?
- raw wool sent to officina (workshop) lanifricariae where degreased by boiling in leaden boilers
- once carded, taken to spinners and weavers ( in private homes)
- cloth sent to officinae tinctoriae for dyeing
- finish product distributed to cloth merchants
Cloth Manufacture and Treatment: what type of chemicals were used in these processes?
- workers trod on cloth in mixture of fuller’s earth, potash, carbonate of soda and urine (due to ammonia content) (camel urine most prized)
- cloth bleached with sulphur then dyed
- heated vinegar
Cloth Manufacture and Treatment: what do we know about Stephanus?
- fuller, owner of very large fullery of Stephanus
- hung wet clothes over canes on upper floors and in courtyard
- once dried, cloth bleached with sulphur then dyed.
Bakeries: why were having pistrinae in P a luxury?
- most houses didn’t have functioning kitchens usually and could provide quick meals
- saved ppl from buying grain, milling into flour and baking own bread
Bakeries: What is pictured in the photograph on the right? how did they function? (the image shows bakery in P) identify the features of them.
- bakery with grain mills
- lava stone mills to refine grain
- table for kneading dough
- brick oven to bake
Why are bread shaped like rodini? (carbonised)
- bread (loaf of carbonised bread)
- shaped like to to tear off and eat
- bread marked off in 8 sections for easy breaking, dispatched to various shops and stalls in surrounding streets.
Service industries: What type of evidence revel the presence of prostitution in P?
- masonary bed in small room
- cluster of sexual graffiti
- presence of erotic paintings
However, Thomas McGinn questions reliability of these criteria and suggest it wasn’t limited to location but an integral part of P life.
Service industries: Comment on the social acceptance of prostitution in P.
- not stigma attached to visiting brothels and taverns, but those engaged in sex for payment were stigmatised.
- it was an economic enterprise
- ‘normal’ for men only in their time as moral values set by men, part of their everyday sex life
Markets: List the various products that could be bought and sold in Macellum.
- fish/garum/ crustaceans, molluscs.
- meat - lamb, beed, veal, pork, poultry
- fruit
- vegetables
- dried cereal and pulses sold at market ‘olitorium’
- manufactured goods, e.g. shoes
- agricultural and garden products from local farmers and owners of market gardens
Markets: where is the Macellum?
on north eastern side of Forum so pedestrian traffic wont disturb normal life main forum space.
Markets: How were transactions within the market areas regulated and supervised?
- administered by 2 magistrates ‘aediles’
- traders only permitted to bring their goods to the marks at dawn or evening to avoid traffic congestion; no wheeled traffic allowed in forum
- goods measured and priced accurately
- standardized weights and measures
- quality maintainted
- receipts
- currency ( sesterces/denarii)
Markets: What was the mensa ponderaria and how would it have been used?
- a weighting table= marble slab with 9 circular cavities of diff capacities to inspect and measure food stuffs sol by shopkeepers
- to standardise all weights and measure
Shops (Tabernae): Describe the type of shop with bench and little holes on them?
- a thermopolium - hot food snack bars recognised by marble - covered counter with large dolia (holding hot drinks/dishes were encased).
- food take away or eaten standing up
Shops (Tabernae): largest thermopolium found in?
H opposite of paleastra
Shops (Tabernae): Where were the shops located in relation to their owners?
at the front of the house, with entrances into grand residences in the insula behind
Shops (Tabernae): List three other types of shops found within the cities
- wine bars
- tavern/inns
- > in P, concentrated near entrance gates and around amphitheater
- garum seller
Transactions and Money: What was the commercial functions of the Basilica?
an exchange where business man or speculators met clients and signed contracts
Transactions and Money: What were roman coins made from?
sesterces: Bronze coins equal to 4 assess, used for everyday transactions
What is economy?
the wealth and resource of a country or region, in terms of the production and consumption of goods and services
Define the key terms: export, import, industry and manufacture
export: good or commodities which are sold abroad
import: ‘ ‘ brought in from abroad to be sold
Industry: particular form or branch of commercial activity (e.g. wine, garum, pottery)
Manufacture: making of articles on large scale
What is the economy of P and H like?
- mostly based on agricultural production and fishing to create wealth
- proximity of towns to bay of Naples and fertile soil allowed this
- H - quieter fishing town
- P -bustling centre of commercial activity )cosmopolitan
Sources/evidence: wine industry
wine press found on estate outside P, Dolia found at Villa Regina outside P buried to store wine
Sources/evidence: oil industry
wine and oil amphorae used for storage, oil press
Sources/evidence: fishing and garum
mosaic from house of Faun
Sources/evidence: Cloth manufacture
Fullery of Stephanus in P, drawings from Fullery of Hypsaeus
Sources/evidence: bakeries
pistrina of P
Sources/evidence: Markets/Macellum
near temple of Apollo, Mensa Ponderaria
Where did most ppl work?
in their homes, involved in various industries, or in small scale manufacturing workshops
why is there more evidence of economic activity in P than H?
H’s commercial area has not been excavated
Where did residential and commercial exist?
side by side. Evident through various ‘insulae’ which often consisted of large houses/mansions, joined with small residences and workshops, or combination of these
Could suggest that wealthier citizens lived near their clients and tenants, source of economic and social power.
What do some claim from evidence ?
that there was an aconomic decline
Evidence of fishing being main industry in H?
fish hooks, nets, overturned boats found near shoreline
What did volcanic material carbonising many wooden objects reveal?
presence of skilled carpenters - doors, stairs, balconies, window frames
Who said that more skill “needed to produce olive oil than wine.”
Pliny the younger
What was used for 10% of land within walls of P?
market gardens, small orchards and flower gardens, possibly for manufacture of perfume
What was wool also used for? what has been discovered for cloths?
processing of felt to make slippers, hats, blankets and cloaks
clothes press also discovered in H
How many pistrinas found in P? how many types of bread? what did most bakeries not have
30/28 found
10 diff types produced
an adjoining area for selling bread
what the was bread like/
poor quality of flour - bead hard
lack of year - deteriorated quickly
making bread caused little pieces of rock to fall of, hence ppl had poor gum.
What was the commercial activity in H based on?
work of skilled craftsmen, esp carpenters, with high demand.
What happened after earthquake of AD 62?
increase demand for brick and tile rebuilding
how many buildings associated with prostitution found in P? who were the prostitutes?
9
most prostitutes foreigners, judging by names in graffiti and most customers from lower classes as wealthy didn’t need to visit brothel, could invite prostitute to home or household slaves.
Why were P authorities obliged to provide public latrine adjacent to granary?
alot of commercial activity in Forum
where was the main commercial thoroughfare in P?
on road that ran form forum past ampitheatre to Sarnian Gate
Hotels?
visiting traders - close to port or within city. e.g. Hotel of the Muses for wealthy traders
Overseas trade?
- import from Spain, Sicily and Crete
- exports such as amphora/wine, tile or pottery
- Garum major export
- wine production export
- clothing industry and trade in wool evident by archeological and epigraphic evidence about fullers
- pottery thriving local industry
