Money and Inequality in Roman Mediterranean Gaul, ca. 125 B.C.–A.D. 100

Author(s): Benjamin Luley

Year: 2018

Summary

The Roman conquest of Mediterranean Gaul between 125-121 B.C. significantly altered the Celtic societies living in the region. Two of these dramatic transformations were the increasing use of coins in economic transactions, and a marked rise in socio-economic inequality within the conquered province. This paper examines the connections in Roman Mediterranean Gaul of the first century B.C. through the first century A.D. between the emergence of a monetized economy, debt, and increased socio-economic hierarchy, concentrating on the ancient settlement of Lattara (today modern Lattes in the région of Occitanie of France). Although coins, mainly from the Greek colony of Massalia (modern Marseille), were already present before the conquest, their use appears to have been limited. After the Roman conquest, the (at least partial) monetization of the local economy at Celtic settlements in Roman Mediterranean Gaul like Lattara significantly transformed notions of wealth and value, with a new interchangeability of wealth emerging. Combined with the colonial trauma of land confiscations and enslavement, this interchangeability of wealth allowed for the increasing concentration of wealth in an increasingly smaller number of individuals, holding ever more social power of others.

Cite this Record

Money and Inequality in Roman Mediterranean Gaul, ca. 125 B.C.–A.D. 100. Benjamin Luley. Presented at The 82nd Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, Washington, DC. 2018 ( tDAR id: 444279)

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Spatial Coverage

min long: -10.151; min lat: 29.459 ; max long: 42.847; max lat: 47.99 ;

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 20761