Circular Economy in the Roman Period and the Early Middle Ages – Methods of Analysis for a Future Agenda

Autor: Bavuso Irene, Furlan Guido, Intagliata Emanuele E., Steding Julia
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2023
Předmět:
Zdroj: Open Archaeology, Vol 9, Iss 1, Pp 4-20 (2023)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2300-6560
DOI: 10.1515/opar-2022-0301
Popis: In recent years, studies on reuse practices in premodern societies have multiplied. Nonetheless, a linear model (production – usage – discard) is still widely employed for describing past economic systems. Integrating it with a circular model, instead of assuming that products were discarded after their usage, would greatly benefit our knowledge of ancient and medieval economies. In this work, we present a model of circular economy and define the terms used in this context. Thereafter, a possible agenda on how to study circularity both through archaeological material and written sources is traced. This covers archaeological fieldwork methods, as well as the process of interpretation and the re-evaluation of old data. It also proposes new strategies to use and read written sources to explore reuse practices. If different theoretical and methodological approaches are combined, a more holistic and vivid picture of premodern economies can be gained and help our understanding of how past societies used the resources available to them.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals