A Terra Sigillata Revolution? Terra sigillata consumption in first-century AD Roman Mediterranean Gaul

Abstract

Although the widespread use of Gallic terra sigillata in first-century AD Gallia Narbonensis represents a dramatic change in relations of production and consumption, anthropological literature on consumption practices suggests that these mass-produced dining vessels would not necessarily have been used in identical ways in different social contexts. This article examines the discarded Gallic terra sigillata assemblages from the Gallic sites of Lattara, Ambrussum, and Carsalade in eastern Languedoc, France, as well as from the Roman colony of Narbo Martius (modern Narbonne) in western Languedoc. Rather than indicating a homogeneous use of Gallic terra sigillata throughout the province, the ceramic data analysed here suggest instead that there were at least three distinctive patterns of terra sigillata use, as can be discerned by the proportions reflected in practices of discard. These patterns do not directly reflect actual dining sets or specific commensal events, but rather long-term, recurring practices among different social groups.