Tradition, identity, and change beyond the Roman frontier

Abstract

Addresses the use of objects transmitted through intercultural interaction. The cases examined involve a long-lived, relatively stable frontier between distinct cultural groups. Similar instances can be identified in many examples through time and space. The cases examined involved the passing of goods between societies in Roman Europe. Any interaction resulting in the movement of goods between societies involves complex economic, social, and political processes and raises numerous questions. Focusses on the meaning of the trade goods for the recipients on one side of the interactions. Goods play an active, not just a passive, role in defining relationships and in conveying social meanings. They symbolize those relationships that they define. Through study of the goods involved, we can investigate both the material manifestation of the interaction and an essential component of that interaction. -from Author