Woodlands of Antiquity: Roman forest exploitation and timber economy between the Alps and the Atlantic

Antiquity was a formative era for Europe with a lasting cultural impact on the continent. In the densely forested regions north of the Alps, material culture was characterised by the use of wood as a primary raw material. For over half a millennium (ca. 1st century BCE–5th century CE) the Romans dominated large parts of western and central Europe. They introduced numerous innovations and new species like wine (Vitis vinifera), sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa), walnut (Juglans regia) into their north-western provinces. But above all, the Roman presence meant an anthropogenic influence on natural landscapes on an unprecedented scale. In the light of current discussions about limited growth, scarcity of resources and modern concepts of sustainability, the question arises as to how an ancient state apparatus managed to satisfy the increasing demand for the fundamental resource of wood over the course of its several hundred years of existence - and at what price.

In contrast to prehistory, Antiquity is the earliest period for which we have written sources for the areas north of the Alps. However, from the historical record the drivers behind the Roman timber economy and its impact on woodland exploitation and forest dynamics remain poorly understood. To address this, we collected empirical evidence spanning a full millennium (300 BCE–700 CE) to study forest exploitation in Antiquity. Our unique dataset of 20.397 dendrochronologically dated archaeological woods reflects decades of dendroarchaeological work from ca. 30 laboratories in France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands. Our investigations reveal significant increases in woodland exploitation during Roman occupation, with regional differences in onset, intensity, and duration. With improved infrastructure, and organization Roman logging increasingly extended into primary forests. The 3rd century CE marks a tipping point, with sharp declines in wood use and long-distance transport, alongside evidence of overexploitation of old-grown forests. Late Antiquity is characterized by an overall decline in felling activities during the 4th and 5th centuries and a reestablishment of old-grown forests. These findings demonstrate how Roman imperial expansion fundamentally reshaped woodlands north of the Alps and contribute to the environmental and economic history of European Antiquity.