First glimpse into the genomic characterization of people from the imperial Roman community of Casal Bertone (Rome, first–third centuries AD)

This paper aims to provide a first glimpse into the genomic characterization of individuals buried in Casal Bertone (Rome, first-third centuries AD) to gain preliminary insight into the genetic makeup of people who lived near a tannery workshop, fullonica. Therefore, we explored the genetic characteristics of individuals who were putatively recruited as fuller workers outside the Roman population. Moreover, we identified the microbial communities associated with humans to detect microbes associated with the unhealthy environment supposed for such a workshop. We examined five individuals from Casal Bertone for ancient DNA analysis through whole-genome sequencing via a shotgun approach. We conducted multiple investigations to unveil the genetic components featured in the samples studied and their associated microbial communities. We generated reliable whole-genome data for three samples surviving the quality controls. The individuals were descendants of people from North African and the Near East, two of the main foci for tannery and dyeing activity in the past. Our evaluation of the microbes associated with the skeletal samples showed microbes growing in soils with waste products used in the tannery process, indicating that people lived, died, and were buried around places where they worked. In that perspective, the results represent the first genomic characterization of fullers from the past. This analysis broadens our knowledge about the presence of multiple ancestries in Imperial Rome, marking a starting point for future data integration as part of interdisciplinary research on human mobility and the bio-cultural characteristics of people employed in dedicated workshops

Reconstructing the Late Pleistocene – Anthropocene interaction between the neotectonic and archaeological landscape evolution in the Apennines (La Sassa cave, Italy)

Caves are one of the most conservative environments on Earth, where archaeological, anthropological,climatic and tectonic data can be well-preserved. Here, we present the results of a multidisciplinarymethod that allowed us to recognize, for thefirst time in this area, the interaction between Late Pleis-tocene to Anthropocene neotectonic and archaeological evolutionary stages of a cave of the Apennines(La Sassa cave), that encompass also its surroundings (Volsci Range and Pontina Plain). Both structuraland 3D survey highlighted a step-wise shape of the cave due to normal fault steps that allowed thelocalized formation of concretions also enveloping archaeological layers. Sixteen14C ages on fauna andhuman bonds and thousands of archaeologicalfinds provided chronological constraints of faulting in theLate Pleistocene and possibly also after the Middle Bronze Age. In the frame of a region that was notpreviously recognized as tectonically active, the structural evidence is relevant for understanding thespeleogenesis of the cave from the Late Pleistocene and its human occupation. Burial and ritual activitiesin the cave from the Copper Age to the Middle Bronze Age have been recognized with implications onpossible settlement pattern schemes with the La Sassa cave as a“persistent place”in the prehistorichuman landscape. The analyses of the ceramic style in a regional framework also suggests the presenceof a cultural boundary near La Sassa, which becomes highly osmotic just after the beginning of theMiddle Bronze Age. The La Sassafindings provide as well implications for the seismic hazard assessmentin a region inhabited by about 0.4 million peopl

Sr isotopic composition as a tool for unraveling human mobility in the Campania area

Recent strontium isotope (87Sr/86Sr) analyses of bones and teeth have provided useful archeological results for reconstructing past human migration and diet. We report 87Sr/86Sr ratios and DNA analyses of tooth enamel from individuals buried in some necropolises in Nola town, near Napoli (Campania, South Italy). These individuals lived in the period between the Avellino (1925 years BCE) and CE 472 Pollena Vesuvian eruptions and are dated on archeological basis to the time span between the sixth and second century BCE. Tooth enamel 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.70788–0.70864) are higher than baseline values in the necropolises (0.70756–0.70792): this can be explained by assuming either that all the analyzed individuals are not local—an unlikely possibility—or that they ate both local and foreign food (within about 50 km), including 87Sr-rich seafood. An explanation for such a varied diet might be that the individuals from Nola were living near the Ancient Appia and Popilia ways and not far from the coastline. Whatever its origin, the 87Sr/86Sr ratios represent the isotopic signature of the local community living on the slopes of Mt. Somma-Vesuvius between the sixth and second centuries BCE. This knowledge will support future isotope studies on volcanic eruptions as possible causes of human migration

Ancient genomes from a rural site in Imperial Rome (1st–3rd cent. CE): a genetic junction in the Roman Empire

Background Rome became the prosperous Capital of the Roman Empire through the political and military conquests of neighbouring areas. People were able to move Romeward modifying the Rome area's demographic structure. However, the genomic evidence for the population of one of the broadest Empires in antiquity has been sparse until recently. Aim The genomic analysis of people buried in Quarto Cappello del Prete (QCP) necropolis was carried out to help elucidate the genomic structure of Imperial Rome inhabitants. Subjects and methods We recruited twenty-five individuals from QCP for ancient DNA analysis through whole-genome sequencing. Multiple investigations were carried out to unveil the genetic components featuring in the studied samples and the community's putative demographic structure. Results We generated reliable whole-genome data for 7 samples surviving quality controls. The distribution of Imperial Romans from QCP partly overlaps with present-day Southern Mediterranean and Southern-Near Eastern populations. Conclusion The genomic legacy with the south-eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea and the Central and Western Northern-African coast funerary influence pave the way for considering people buried in QCP as resembling a Punic-derived human group

Dietary and Weaning Habits of the Roman Community of Quarto Cappello del Prete (Rome, 1st-3rd Century CE)

This paper aims to provide the isotopic characterization of the diet consumed by people buried in a graveyard of the Imperial Rome Suburbium (1st–3rd centuries CE), where numerous children were buried. A sample of 50 human remains from Quarto Cappello del Prete was selected for carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis. Published data related to coeval faunal remains set the baseline of the diet. The results for humans were integrated with previously analyzed data from Quarto Cappello del Prete. The resulting sample of 71 people has been dissected for stratification according to demographics, focusing on the ability to ascertain the weaning process in children. Isotopic data are steady with an overall diet mainly based on terrestrial resources, where C3 plants played a pivotal role in the diet, though the δ13C range suggests that the foodstuff should have been heterogeneous. The remarkable amount of children allows us to evaluate the weaning process. Infants seem to be adequately weaned after 3 years, when they were considered as adults to what concerns the dietary habits. These data represent a valuable enhancement for understanding the weaning practices in ancient Rome, contributing to supporting the hypothesis about lifestyle and health in the Roman Imperial period

Reconstructing the Late Pleistocene – Anthropocene interaction between the neotectonic and archaeological landscape evolution in the Apennines (La Sassa cave, Italy)

Caves are one of the most conservative environments on Earth, where archaeological, anthropological, climatic and tectonic data can be well-preserved. Here, we present the results of a multidisciplinary method that allowed us to recognize, for the first time in this area, the interaction between Late Pleistocene to Anthropocene neotectonic and archaeological evolutionary stages of a cave of the Apennines (La Sassa cave), that encompass also its surroundings (Volsci Range and Pontina Plain). Both structural and 3D survey highlighted a step-wise shape of the cave due to normal fault steps that allowed the localized formation of concretions also enveloping archaeological layers. Sixteen C-14 ages on fauna and human bones and thousands of archaeological finds provided chronological constraints of faulting in the Late Pleistocene and possibly also after the Middle Bronze Age. In the frame of a region that was not previously recognized as tectonically active, the structural evidence is relevant for understanding the speleogenesis of the cave from the Late Pleistocene and its human occupation. Burial and ritual activities in the cave from the Copper Age to the Middle Bronze Age have been recognized with implications on possible settlement pattern schemes with the La Sassa cave as a "persistent place" in the prehistoric human landscape. The analyses of the ceramic style in a regional framework also suggests the presence of a cultural boundary near La Sassa, which becomes highly osmotic just after the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age. The La Sassa findings provide as well implications for the seismic hazard assessment in a region inhabited by about 0.4 million people. (C) 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd

The edge of the Empire: diet characterization of medieval Rome through stable isotope analysis

This paper aims to define the dietary profile of the population of early medieval Rome (fifth–eleventh centuries CE) by carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis. This period was characterized by deep changes in the city’s economic, demographic, and social patterns, probably affecting its inhabitants’ nutritional habits. Carbon and nitrogen stable isotope analysis of bone collagen was used to detect the nutritional profile of 110 humans from six communities inhabiting the city center of Rome and one from the ancient city of Gabii. Thirteen faunal remains were also analyzed to define the ecological baseline of the medieval communities. The isotopic results are consistent with a diet mainly based on the exploitation of C3 plant resources and terrestrial fauna, while the consumption of aquatic resources was detected only among the San Pancrazio population. Animal protein intake proved to be similar both among and within the communities, supporting a qualitatively homogenous dietary landscape in medieval Rome. The comparison with isotopic data from the Imperial Age allowed us to detect a diachronic nutritional transition in ancient Rome, in which the collapse of the Empire, and in particular the crisis of economic power and the trade system, represented a tipping point for its population’s nutritional habits