Roman Industry

  • The Romans had factories manufacturing Pottery, Bricks, Glass, Iron and Metal products and Fish Sauce.
  • They smelted metal ores, operated large tanneries, made wine and ground corn on an industrial scale.

Roman Potteries

Arretine Ware (Red-glazed Pottery)

  • The Pottery Factories were located at Puteoli (Arretium) and on the River Po. They supplied the whole of the Roman Empire. Subsidiaries were later set up in Gaul, where there was also good clay, to be closer to their markets.
  • Some factories had up to 40 craftsmen or designers.
  • Each pottery piece bears the stamp of the manufacturer and sometimes of the individual craftsman.
  • The highly skilled craftsman (designer) was either a Freedman or a Slave (they usually had Greek names).
  • The factory owner was a Roman Citizen, often from parents who were slaves. Some may have been craftsmen who began as slaves, became Freedmen and eventually bought the factory from their master.

Clay Lamps:

  • Produced in molds from cheap clay by unskilled local potters.
  • They were produced by the million each year, and copied from various designs popular in Rome.
  • Local potters also made pots using the hob and potter’s wheel.

Roman Glass Factories

  • Roman Glass manufacture initially copied Greek methods producing colored glass vessels such as cups and vases. By the 1st century CE, the price had dropped and glassware was available in every Roman household.
  • The raw glass was made separately on a large scale in tank-like ceramic containers immersed in huge furnaces, often located near coasts of the eastern Mediterranean where there was plenty of sand.
  • It was then broken off in chunks and sold to the glass working sites, initially in Rome, Campania and the Po valley. Later, sites appeared in Aquileia, Cologne, the Rhine valley and northern Gaul.
  • Free glass-blowing and mould-blown glass began in the second half of the 1st century CE.

Roman Brickyards

  • Brickyards and the mass production of Bricks became a major industry during the 1st century CE, and eventually became an Imperial monopoly. Bricks were used extensively in both Private and Public buildings. Thin layers of bricks were often laid in masonry walls to act as a bonding agent. Bricks were often used to face a concrete wall.
  • Brickyards were often on large Estates of wealthy Romans which had nearby clay deposits. The Dominus was the owner and master, the Officinatore supervised the manufacturing and the Figlina was the slave making the actual bricks.
  • During the 1st century BCE, Brickmakers started using Stamps on their bricks to identify the name of the owner and of the Brickyard.
  • The Roman Legions on the Frontiers, such as the Rhine valley, had their own brick making kilns for building their forts and walls.
  • Roman Roof Tiles were made from the same material as the Roman Bricks.

Roman Water Mill

  • The Romans used water power primarily to grind grain, but also to provide power for some early mechanical forges. Water mills have been found throughout the Roman Empire.
  • The Romans tended to use a vertical wheel with a horizontal shaft, although some horizontal wheels with a vertical shaft resembling a turbine, have also been found.
  • The water wheel was used by the Romans for sawing stone, as described by the Poet Ausonius in his poem ‘Mosella’.
  • Evidence has shown that water wheels powered trip hammers which broke down the ore in the Dolaucothi Gold Mine in Wales.

The Roman Forge

  • This was usually a small shop with only one forge.
  • The forge had a Furnace with a set of bellows, fuel in the form of wood, charcoal, peat or coal, a crucible for the ore to be smelted and a shaped mould to pour the liquid ore into.
  • A hammer and anvil was then used to shape and strengthen the item.
  • Small Forges existed all over the Empire.
  • The Roman Blacksmith could combine molten copper and tin to make Bronze, which could be manufactured into domestic items such as cauldrons, pots and pans.

The Iron Forge

  • There was a manufacturing centre at Puteoli and the Iron came from Elba.
  • Iron was smelted to make Armaments such as swords, knives, spear and lance points, shields, breastplates, chainmail, Lorica Segmentata and helmets for the Roman Army.
  • Iron was also turned into agricultural implements and farm utensils such as ploughshares, hoes and sickles.

Roman Bronze and Copper factories

  • Bronze and Copperware factories with hundreds of employees were based at factories in Santa Maria Capua Vetere (Capua). Every item bore the manufacturer’s stamp.
  • The factories produced statues, wine containers, buckets, platters, ladles, bowls, kitchen pots and pans, bronze lampstands, tables, braziers and tripods.

Roman Lead Pipe making

  • Lead was used in Roman waterpipes
  • Frontinus describes how the Government-owned water board employed 700 slaves.
  • Pipes bore the stamp of their maker (the Government), the water Commissioner and the Roman Emperor.
  • Plumbers were contracted by the Government, and it appears that the plumbers were also the pipe makers.

Roman Jewellers and Goldsmiths

  • The Roman Jewelers, Silversmiths and Goldsmiths were formed into Guilds.
  • Roman Jewelry was mostly manufactured in three cities, Rome, Antioch and Alexandria.
  • During the Republic, Jewelry was mostly made out of Gold.
  • Under the Empire, Roman Jewelry became cheaper and was often made from moulds using Iron, Bronze, Tin, Silver and Gold.
  • Jewelry consisted of Rings, Pins, Pendants, Earrings, Brooches, Bracelets, Necklaces and Tiaras with Precious Stones sometimes being added. In particular, Pearls were the most common
  • Gemstones were set in gold rings to make the Roman Intaglio. The cutters of these intaglios and cameos were Gem-engravers known as the Gemmarii.

Roman Woodworking

  • Roman carpenters and woodworkers operated in workshops to produce furniture. They used various tools and techniques and were members of Guilds who regulated their operations.
  • Roman furniture was initially copied from Greek furniture, but eventually developed its own style for beds, chairs, tables, couches, tripods and chests.

Roman Tanneries

  • Tanning leather and hides in Tanneries was an important part of the economy in Ancient Rome.
  • They were located outside of towns or in poor suburbs of cities because of the powerful smells that they produced. A Tannery has been identified and excavated in Pompeii.

Roman Clothworking

  • The manufacture of cloth and clothing was not industrialised.
  • The Dyeing was done in the Dyers workshops using vats of different coloured dyes. Colours were used on Togas.
  • The Fulling, to strengthen and waterproof the woollen cloth, was done by the Fullers who used slaves to work the cloth whilst standing in tubs of urine. The urine was collected by the State and sold to the fullers who paid a Urine Tax.
  • The Spinning and weaving was done by Roman women who worked from home and spent much of the day spinning and weaving, which was a source of revenue for the household.
  • Weaving was done on a hand powered upright loom which was time consuming.
  • Everyday Tunics and smart Togas were made by artisans who were regulated by Clothing Guilds.

Roman Flour Mills

  • The Romans mostly operated ordinary watermills, but some were huge.
  • In the city of Rome, the grain was ground into flour by the giant Janiculum Hill Watermills.
  • The flour for the city of Arles was ground by millstones turned by sixteen paired waterwheels on the aqueduct at Barbegal.
  • The millers sold their flour to the Bakeries which were small shops having ovens for baking at the rear of their premises.

Roman Grain Production

The Grain Fleets

  • The  Grain was brought to Rome in huge Cargo vessels which sailed in Fleets.
  • The Alexandrian Grain Fleet was a Roman cargo fleet based in Alexandria, Egypt. Every year, the fleet brought 20,000 Modii of grain to Rome, and supplied one third of its grain requirement.
  • The African Grain Fleet supplied Rome’s Grain for 8 months of the year. Africa Proconsularis was the most important source of Rome‘s Grain supply.

Roman Fish Sauce production

  • Garum was a fish sauce which was produced in vats and then transported in Amphorae to Rome, Gaul, Germania and the Roman Empire.
  • The best Garum came from factories in Cadiz and Cartagena in Spain. The ruins of a Garum factory can be seen in Baelo Claudia near Cadiz.

Roman Wine Production

  • Roman Wine was also made on an industrial scale in the large villa estates known as Latifundia.
  • The Latifundia on the slopes surrounding Mount Vesuvius were the most productive wine estates in Italy until the eruption of 79 CE.

 

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