Supplying the Roman City and Legionary Camp: An Example from Viminacium (Serbia)

Abstract

The legionary camp and city of Viminacium, being the capital of the Upper Moesia province, was the economic, commercial and military centre of the entire region. As such, it was dependent on others in the supply of food and other necessities. Apart from several distributive centers in the the province - mainly turned to the supply of cereals - it is likely that the majority of the city's and camp's needs came from its surroundings. One such potential place of supply can be found in close proximity, at the site called Rit. Here, a residential-economic suburb emerged at the beginning of the III century, consisting of several villas explored so far. Archaeozoological analysis conducted on the material from the said site suggests that its inhabitants did not stop at the level of self-sustainability, but were rather able to produce certain surpluses, that could then be sold at the large market-palce that was Viminacium. Apart from the domestic animals that could have been sold as a surplus themselves, archaeozoological material points to the existence of workshops for skin tanning, horn treatment and wool and textile processing, as well as a workshop for the production of sickles - an essential tool in the cultivation of cereals. Also, since equids are the second most common species in the material, a question will be raised of potential horse breeding, bearing in mind the demand for this animal, as well as the geomorphological characteristics needed for this specialization.