1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910792071403321

Autore

Esmonde Cleary A. S (A. Simon)

Titolo

The Roman West, AD 200-500 : an archaeological study / / Simon Esmonde Cleary [[electronic resource]]

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cambridge : , : Cambridge University Press, , 2013

ISBN

1-107-23290-2

1-107-32645-1

1-316-62564-8

1-139-04319-6

1-107-33225-7

1-107-33455-1

1-107-33289-3

1-107-33621-X

1-299-25741-0

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (xv, 533 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)

Classificazione

SOC003000

Disciplina

937/.06

Soggetti

Romans - Europe, Western

Archaeology and history - Rome

Archaeology and history - Europe, Western

Rome History Empire, 284-476

Rome History Germanic Invasions, 3rd-6th centuries

Europe, Western Antiquities, Roman

Rome Antiquities

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

1. Prologue: the third-century crisis -- 2. The military response: soldiers and civilians -- 3. Reshaping the cities -- 4. Christianity and the traditional religions -- 5. Emperors and aristocrats in the late Roman West -- 6. Rural settlement and economy in the late Roman West -- 7. The economy of the late Roman West -- 8. Breakdown and barbarians -- 9. The fifth century and the disintegration of the Western Empire -- 10. Epilogue: AD 200-500, a coherent period?



Sommario/riassunto

This book describes and analyses the development of the Roman West from Gibraltar to the Rhine, using primarily the extensive body of published archaeological evidence rather than the textual evidence underlying most other studies. It situates this development within a longer-term process of change, proposing the later second century rather than the 'third-century crisis' as the major turning-point, although the latter had longer-term consequences owing to the rise in importance of military identities. Elsewhere, more 'traditional' forms of settlement and display were sustained, to which was added the vocabulary of Christianity. The longer-term rhythms are also central to assessing the evidence for such aspects as rural settlement and patterns of economic interaction. The collapse of Roman imperial authority emphasised trends such as militarisation and regionalisation along with economic and cultural disintegration. Indicators of 'barbarian/Germanic' presence are reassessed within such contexts and the traditional interpretations questioned and alternatives proposed.