Interdisciplinary studies concerning Roman land use in the environs of the ancient quarries and pottery centre near Mayen

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Thomas Fischer
• Subject Area: Classical, Roman, Christian and Islamic Archaeology
• Term: from 2010 to 2015
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 114667380

When compared to the first proposal, the fundamental goals of the project have not changed. The landscape history, as well as the interdependence between the individual economic entities (millstone and ceramic production) and the development of the settlements is to be studied using interdisciplinary methods. This will be carried out through excavation and prospection of two exemplary settlement complexes ('Im Winkel' and 'Lungenkärchen') and a detailed survey of their immediate surroundings. Preliminary results were presented in front of an international group of peers as part of the conference 'Roman land use in the Eifel - new Excavations and Studies', which was organised by the proposal applicants. Since then, six papers about the Roman Segbachtal are currently in press, which will be included in the conference proceedings that will be published this year. These results are concerned with, among others, the size and appearance of the two villa complexes and their fundamental developmental phases. Both settlement entities can be directly connected to millstone production and the economical upturn. This is especially apparent through the observation that the Segbachtal as a whole contains an exceptionally rich villa landscape. Moreover, preliminary calculations of the cultivated areas from the respective areas of interest have already been completed. The requested third year of the project will build upon these results with the interpretation of the excavations. Archaeological, zoo archaeological, botanical, geophysical and soil science studies will also be concluded. Central questions that remain open include the beginning of Roman land use, the maximum period of expansion, the impact of the crisis in the 3rd century, and the roll of the Segbachtal in the late Antique. After the close connection to the stone industry was already established, the relationship to the Mayen ceramic workshops can also now be put to question. Objective evidence of an intensified use of the forests may be visible in the pollen diagrams. Moreover, provenience studies of the ceramic from both of the villas will provide information about the shift from Weißenthurm to Mayen wares in the regional markets.A comprehensive synthesis of the individual studies will lead to a concluding, chronologically differentiated evaluation of the agricultural and forestry potential of the Segbachtal. An additional step would be to integrate the results of comparable studies from the VAT research institute. Lastly, the question of whether the local agrarian economy could sustain the industrial district will be clarified using calculations of the population of the millstone quarries and the vicus from Mayen.Completion of project is supported by a regional, intraregional and international scholarly network, which came about as the result of the above mentioned conference and cooperation with the research institute VAT.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Persons: Dr. Axel von Berg; Dr. Holger Schaaff