A Stable Isotope Approach to Roman Diet and Its Legacy in Late Antiquity in Hispania and the Western Empire

Abstract

ABSTRACT Whether a Roman diet existed is a constant issue in Classical archaeology, as it is also its persistence in late Antiquity. Here, we review the isotopic composition (δ13Ccol and δ15Ncol ) of 15 (n = 384) necropolis dating to the 1st to 8th centuries AD from Hispania. We worked with human and animal raw data and calculated the human enrichment regarding herbivoreś average. Although diet was not homogeneous, intra-site variability was greater than inter-site variability. The results show a diet characterised by consumption of C3 plants with some intake of meat/eggs/dairy products from terrestrial herbivores fed on C3 plants, with no clear differences between periods. NW Hispanic sites show an exceptional consumption of C4 plants (millet) and marine resources. There is a slight correlation between δ15N and distance from the sea, but marine resource consumption seems to have been mostly absent or low. Most sites studied were rural or located at the coast and this may result in some bias in the interpretation. Therefore, more effort in analysing inland urban sites is needed. The comparison with sites from France, Britain and Italy indicates a slightly higher dependence on millets in Hispania, which can be traced back to the Iron Age. The data suggest the existence of a certain homogeneity in diet that persisted in later centuries while displaying specificities and local adaptations.