EGU21-9499
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-9499
EGU General Assembly 2021
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

A geoachaeological view on the Roman economy of Baetica – The case study Munigua (Seville, SW-Spain).

André Kirchner1, Nico Herrmann1, Paul Matras1, Iris Müller2, and Julia Meister2
André Kirchner et al.
  • 1Department of Geography, University of Hildesheim, Hildesheim, Germany
  • 2Institute of Geography and Geology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany

The economy of Roman cities in Baetica, was largely diversified and depending on the city for example specialized in olive oil, halieutic or metallurgical production. The economy of the Hispano-Roman city Munigua (municipium Flavium Muniguense) was particularly based on mining and in the 1st and 2nd centuries CE Munigua was the largest producer of copper and iron in the Sierra Morena. This contribution focuses on the evaluation of soil potential for practicing agriculture and evidences for prehistoric and historic land use in the vicinity of Munigua. It aims to provide new information to the food supply strategy of Munigua and furthermore a geoarchaeological few on the diversification debate of the urban economy in the conventus Hispalensis. Applying a pedo-geomorphic approach the present study i) shows that the landscape around Munigua has the potential for an agricultural use in larger areas and would have certainly allowed a production of agricultural goods in Roman times. Additionally, the study ii) provides clear evidence for prehistoric and historic land use in region documented by multi-layered colluvial deposits and a preserved Roman hortic soil. Hence, the results pointing to a local cultivation of agricultural products as an active contribution to the food supply of Munigua. Moreover, the study provides geoarchaeological evidences supporting the concept of an economic diversification of Roman cities in Baetica province and Hispania.

How to cite: Kirchner, A., Herrmann, N., Matras, P., Müller, I., and Meister, J.: A geoachaeological view on the Roman economy of Baetica – The case study Munigua (Seville, SW-Spain)., EGU General Assembly 2021, online, 19–30 Apr 2021, EGU21-9499, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu21-9499, 2021.

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