Stable Isotope Analysis in Roman Archaeology: Studies of Diet and Migration

Abstract

Stable isotope analysis has been implemented as a tool for archaeologists to investigate the past. Its use in Roman archaeology has primarily been in the examination of diet and migration, and this thesis’ aim is to examine how isotopic analysis has been applied to these research areas. Furthermore, it endeavours to investigate how the results of isotopic analysis compare with other forms of evidence for these areas of Roman life. To do so, the literary and archaeological evidence for Roman diet is considered before then being compared with the results of several isotopic analyses that have been conducted on sites across the Roman world. In the same way, evidence used to study migration is then evaluated against further isotopic studies conducted on other Roman sites. The comparisons between the established evidence and the results of isotopic analyses highlight various parallels and contradictions in interpretations of Roman diet and migration. This thesis demonstrates that the ability to support or contradict these other sources of information is isotopic analysis’ principal contribution to Roman archaeology. However, it also establishes that it is necessary for isotopic analyses to integrate archaeological and literary evidence to achieve the most comprehensive interpretations of the past. Suggestions for how isotopic analysis can reach its full potential are also discussed.