Casting a wide net: Romans, fish, and fishing in the province of “Mauretania Tingitana”

Presentation by Athena Trakadas, visiting scholar, National Museum of Denmark.

The event is part of Research Friday on Archeology and is held via Zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend. Duration: 45-60 min.

Abstract

Previous approaches to marine resource exploitation in the Graeco-Roman world have often focused upon the production and trade of salted fish sauces, such as garum. As a result, the practice of fishing and its potential for supplying seafood to this industry and for fresh consumption can be overlooked or marginalised in studies of the ancient economy. Casting a wide net over archaeological, textual, iconographical, and ethnographical data, however, make it possible to reveal a far more complete picture. Using the Roman North African province of Mauretania Tingitana as an example, this talk will present how analysing such diverse data can assist in determining past human interactions with the marine environment: fishing methods, the areas of fishing effort, and the organisation of littoral communities.

Join Zoom presentation. Passcode: 736717