Theme:
Interpreting the archaeological record: artefacts, humans and landscapes
Session format:
Regular session
Title:
Logistics and Natural Resources: Unravelling the Dynamics of Supply and Transportation of Bulk Materials for Construction Purposes
Content:
Research on logistics and distribution is a tool to unravel the organization of ancient economies. Research on logistics is unfortunately often restricted to the distribution of small finds like pottery, glass and metal objects. However the scale of the trade in heavy building goods, such as timber, stone and ceramic building material, has always been way bigger in volume as well as in financial turnover. Because of the bigger impact of this trade, it requires a higher level of organization. Therefore to understand the organization of logistics it is important to look at heavy goods such as stone and timber.
This session will discuss the logistics of heavy goods and the organization of the construction of roads, forts and public buildings. Can we unravel the strategy behind ancient logistics? Can we estimate the volumes of transportation and the impact on society? Can we recognize a division between military and civil trade and transport?
Keywords:
logistics, strategy, (bulk)materials, organization, roman, medieval
Session associated with MERC:
no
Session associated with CIfA:
no
Session associated with SAfA:
no
Session associated with CAA:
no
Session associated with DGUF:
no
Session associated with other:
Main organiser:
Timo Vanderhoeven (Netherlands) 1
Co-organisers:
Eva Kars (Netherlands) 1
Gert Magnusson (Sweden) 2
Affiliations:
1. EARTH Integrated Archaeology
2. Stockholm University
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