TRAC 2026-27 Webinar: Mining Technologies, Pottery Production and Socioeconomic Change in Hispania
Online
Tuesday 10th November 2026 5:00PM
TRAC 2026-27 Webinar Lecture - Tuesday 10th November 2026, 17:00 GMT
Alicia Hernández Tórtoles and Damián Romero, Spanish National Research Council: 'Between Disruption and Tradition: Mining Technologies, Pottery Production and Socioeconomic Change in Roman Northwestern Hispania'
We will approach the historical trajectories of the north-western Iberian Peninsula during a period of profound political, economic, and social transformation. Particular attention is paid to the impact of the Roman conquest and to the subsequent reconfiguration of landscapes and indigenous communities, from the earliest contacts during the Iron Age to the consolidation of Roman rule in the Early Imperial period.
Rather than approaching this process as a single historical rupture or understanding "Romanisation" as a linear process of cultural replacement, this contribution explores the complex and uneven dynamics that emerged from encounters between local communities and Rome. Within this framework, special consideration is given to the region’s gold-mining exploitation and to the strategic interests that shaped Roman intervention in the north-west. Mining activities, the development of new infrastructures, and the incorporation of territories and populations into broader imperial networks had significant consequences for settlement patterns, economic organization, and local social structures.
At the same time, the archaeological record reveals processes that cannot be adequately explained solely in terms of rupture or cultural substitution. Through the analysis of material culture, and particularly pottery of indigenous tradition, we will debate how local communities negotiated the political and socioeconomic transformations associated with Roman expansion. Ceramic production and consumption provide a particularly valuable perspective from which to identify changing practices alongside persistent technological traditions, forms, and patterns of use.
Ultimately, we aim to argue for an interpretation of the NW Hispania territory as a dynamic space of interaction in which conquest and imperial integration generated multiple and sometimes contradictory responses. Processes of continuity, persistence, adaptation, transformation, and cultural transfer coexisted, reflecting the active role played by local communities in negotiating new political and economic realities while maintaining and reformulating elements of their own material traditions.
If require any further information, or have any questions about the booking process, please email [email protected]
If you might be interested in attending our next webinar, please click this link: https://www.ticketsource.com/theoretical-roman-archaeology-conference/t-rzjmqzd
Alicia Hernández Tórtoles and Damián Romero, Spanish National Research Council: 'Between Disruption and Tradition: Mining Technologies, Pottery Production and Socioeconomic Change in Roman Northwestern Hispania'
We will approach the historical trajectories of the north-western Iberian Peninsula during a period of profound political, economic, and social transformation. Particular attention is paid to the impact of the Roman conquest and to the subsequent reconfiguration of landscapes and indigenous communities, from the earliest contacts during the Iron Age to the consolidation of Roman rule in the Early Imperial period.
Rather than approaching this process as a single historical rupture or understanding "Romanisation" as a linear process of cultural replacement, this contribution explores the complex and uneven dynamics that emerged from encounters between local communities and Rome. Within this framework, special consideration is given to the region’s gold-mining exploitation and to the strategic interests that shaped Roman intervention in the north-west. Mining activities, the development of new infrastructures, and the incorporation of territories and populations into broader imperial networks had significant consequences for settlement patterns, economic organization, and local social structures.
At the same time, the archaeological record reveals processes that cannot be adequately explained solely in terms of rupture or cultural substitution. Through the analysis of material culture, and particularly pottery of indigenous tradition, we will debate how local communities negotiated the political and socioeconomic transformations associated with Roman expansion. Ceramic production and consumption provide a particularly valuable perspective from which to identify changing practices alongside persistent technological traditions, forms, and patterns of use.
Ultimately, we aim to argue for an interpretation of the NW Hispania territory as a dynamic space of interaction in which conquest and imperial integration generated multiple and sometimes contradictory responses. Processes of continuity, persistence, adaptation, transformation, and cultural transfer coexisted, reflecting the active role played by local communities in negotiating new political and economic realities while maintaining and reformulating elements of their own material traditions.
If require any further information, or have any questions about the booking process, please email [email protected]
If you might be interested in attending our next webinar, please click this link: https://www.ticketsource.com/theoretical-roman-archaeology-conference/t-rzjmqzd
Event Details
Starts at 5:00PM
