Agricultural Dynamics in Southwestern Mediterranean France from the End of the Iron Age to the Early Middle Ages

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe north-western Mediterranean rural world underwent major socioeconomic and cultural changes between the Late Iron Age and the beginning of the Middle Ages, with a decisive impact on the evolution of agricultural production, practices and landscapes. Roman expansion led to the spread of villae (2nd–1st c. BC), leading to a new structuration of rural areas and the development of a speculative agriculture that favoured wine production. By the end of the Roman period, new changes are observed: while certain Roman villae are still occupied, the appearance of a new network of rural settlements reveals the emergence of a new form of rural economy. Although these changes are increasingly well documented by archaeology, their impact on the agrarian production and practices remains little explored. The multiplication of archaeobotanical investigations in southwestern Mediterranean France allows us to present a first review of farming practices and their evolution during this key period. The study of 30 rural sites provides new data concerning local agriculture between the 2nd c. BC and the 8th c. AD (cultivated plants, prevalence of certain species, farming practices, exploited landscapes) and attempts to detect potential evolutions over time such as changes in staple crops, diversification, exploitation of new ‘terroirs’.KEYWORDS: Archaeobotanycropsfarming practicesfruit cultivationdiachronic approachsouthern France AcknowledgementsThis work was supported by the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No. 852573). This research could not have been carried out without the work carried out over many years by various institutions, companies and colleagues working in Roussillon, in particular the Departmental Archaeological Service of Pyrénées-Orientales, Inrap, Acter, as well as the many archaeologists whose investment was essential to constitute the archaeobotanical corpus. We would also like to thank I. Figueiral (Inrap) for reviewing the quality of our written English.Disclosure StatementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Notes1 Website : https://www.try-db.org/TryWeb/Home.php2 Late Antique Little Ice Age.3 The status of Vicia lutea is hard to assess; its seeds have been found in great quantities mixed with Vicia sativa seeds. It might have been cultivated for fodder or be present in the sample as a (tolerated/favored?) weed of Vicia sativa.Additional informationFundingThis work was supported by European Research Council: [Grant Number 852573].Notes on contributorsRos JérômeRos Jérôme is a CNRS researcher (ISEM), archaeobotanist, and his work aims at documenting the evolution and dynamics of western Mediterranean agriculture and forestry, in relation to the social, economic and climatic changes that took place during historical periods.Angèle JeantyAngèle Jeanty is a PhD Candidate (ISEM), and her work focuses on the evolution of barley over the last 8 millennia in the north-western Mediterranean basin, using fine morphometric tools (traditional and geometric morphometry).Bouby LaurentBouby Laurent is a CNRS researcher (ISEM), archaeobotanist, and his work focuses on the history of agriculture and the exploitation of plant resources in the north-western Mediterranean, from the last hunter-gatherers to the end of the Roman period.Flora GarciaFlora Garcia is a former University of Montpellier Master student, working on the ecology of crop weeds within archaeobotanical assemblages.Kotarba JérômeKotarba Jérôme is an archaeologist (INRAP), specializing in the study of ancient and medieval archaeological sites in Mediterranean France.Passarrius OlivierPassarrius Olivier is an archaeologist (Service Archéologique du Département des Pyrénées-Orientales), specializing in the medieval archaeology and History of the Pyrénées-Orientales department.Puig CarolePuig Carole is a historian an archaeologist (ACTER archéologie), specializing in the history of rural and urban settlement in the medieval Pyrénées-Orientales department.Bénézet JérômeBénézet Jérôme is an archaeologist (Service Archéologique du Département des Pyrénées-Orientales), who works on Iron Age Roussillon (Pyrénées-Orientales department), particularly through its material culture.Guinaudeau NicolasGuinaudeau Nicolas is an archaeologist (ACTER archéologie), who is particularly interested in the medieval archaeology of southern France.Evin AllowenEvin Allowen is a CNRS research director (ISEM), bioarchaeologist, working on the biological and cultural history of domestic species and more particularly on the evolution of the relationship between human societies and domesticated plants and animals, using fine morphometric tools (traditional and geometric morphometry).