Doing as the Romans did - ancient lessons from the environmental legacy of Romano-British industries

Abstract

Environmental archaeology provides vital, long-term context for modern ecological challenges. This poster showcases how we can investigate ancient human impacts by focusing on the large-scale industrial expansion of Roman Britain, specifically destructive practices like metal extraction and charcoal production. Our core aim is to precisely reconstruct the resulting regional environmental changes through time and space from key industries in Britain.

Existing work within this field has largely focused on the extent of deforestation and atmospheric lead pollution (Breitenlechner et al., 2010; Silva-Sánchez & Armada, 2023) and while informative, do little to reconstruct shifts in floral and faunal biodiversity patterns. Equally, archaeologists have been reluctant to incorporate methodological innovation apparent in other palaeoenvironmental workflows.

The novelty of this work lies in its pioneering methodology. We move beyond singular use of traditional proxies, such as pollen analysis, by integrating the cutting-edge technique of sedimentary ancient DNA (sedaDNA). This powerful combination allows us to reconstruct ancient ecosystems with unparalleled detail, marking the first application of sedaDNA within the context of Romano-British industry.

By uncovering the detailed history of ancient land use and environmental change, this research offers critical insights into ecological resilience, ancient human-environment dynamics, and sustainable resource management, providing lessons that may be applicable to contemporary environmental issues.

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ORCID for Tommie Bloomfield: orcid.org/0009-0000-1416-4987

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