Roman Rural Settlement in Wales and the Marches: Approaches to settlement and material culture through big data

While the rural settlements of Wales and the Marches have often been used as a backdrop to the study of the military, this book seeks to move beyond a simplistic Roman/native dichotomy to present a more nuanced understanding of the nature and development of rural settlement during the Roman period. It takes advantage of the recent rise of big data approaches to analyse the distribution of settlements and material culture and to explore the regional diversity, economic basis, and social practice of rural settlements. A methodology for the analysis of regional ceramic assemblages is also presented and offers both a new perspective on the distribution of ceramics in the region and a reappraisal of rural engagement in networks of trade and production. The evidence presented demonstrates that, far from being a homogenous region peripheral to Roman Britain, Wales and the Marches were far more diverse and dynamic than previous work has suggested.