The Importance of Rural Sanctuaries in Structuring Non-Urban Society in Ancient Samnium: Approaches from Architectureand Landscape

Abstract

Summary This brief article addresses the potential of the study of rural sanctuaries for understanding the performance and general structure of non-urban society in ancient Samnium. Samnium, a mountainous area in central-southern Italy, is known for its non-urbanized settlement organization in the Classical and Hellenistic periods. This article discusses different methodologies to assess the local and regional significance of rural cult sites in this particular societal structure. In reply to a recent article in this journal, it is argued that strong local variability of rural cult sites cannot be ascertained on the basis of the disparate available architectural evidence. On the other hand, it is shown that a landscape archaeological approach, i.e. applying intensive field surveys around Samnite sanctuaries, adds significantly to our understanding of the social function of these cult sites. The surveys (2004–present) document a clear nucleation of rural settlement around cult sites, probably reflecting farm–village communities, and demonstrating the strong local embeddedness of the rural cult sites. The order of magnitude of the rural communities living around the sanctuaries is broadly comparable, which gives us a tangible sense of the character and general structure of Samnite non-urban society.