La societas Sisaponensis, los lingotes de Doña Rama-Belmez y la explotación minera de los montes de Corduba

Abstract

This article presents new information on the historical and productive context of mining exploration in the mountains of Corduba during Roman times, as well as on the management of resources. For as long as the epigraphic evidence has been known, it has been suggested that the societas Sisaponensis may have been present in the area and that it may have been involved in the production of lead and silver, despite its famous association with cinnabar exploitation, as mentioned in a well-known passage by Pliny the Elder. Our research in the north of Córdoba province and archaeometric analyses carried out on three lead ingots recovered from the site of Los Escoriales de Doña Rama, located in the Sierra de Gata (Belmez-Córdoba), advance our understanding of these problems, as they allow us to propose new questions about the exploitation of these sites and the activity of the societas. The ingots were found in a Roman mine-metallurgical facility, which is exceptional, and bear an inscription, S S, which undoubtedly links them to the societas Sisaponensis.