Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Analysis of the Western Late-Roman Cemetery of O Areal: Example of an Atlantic Coastal Funerary Site in the Harbour of Vigo (Spain)

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Maritime Archaeology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The modern city of Vigo (Galicia, Spain) was an important commercial harbour during the Roman and Late-Roman periods, especially as a link between Mediterranean and North Atlantic routes, acting as an entrepôt for maritime trade. This not only brought foreign products and population to this Roman vicus, but also ideas, customs, and traditions which are reflected in its funerary spaces. The Western Cemetery of O Areal, one of Vigo’s major burial areas during the Late Antiquity, is clear evidence of this movement of foreign ideas, presenting much more variety in terms of tomb types and burial customs than other north-western coastal cemeteries, especially as it served the funerary needs of a secondary agglomeration and not a conventual capital of Gallaecia. The study of this area has also revealed some similarities with British funerary customs, a reflection of the connections between this Hispanic territory and the Northern provinces of the Empire.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6

Source: Colección do Museo Municipal de Vigo “Quiñones de León”-Fotografía: Nando Iglesias

Fig. 7

Source: Colección do Museo Municipal de Vigo “Quiñones de León”-Fotografía: Nando Iglesias

Fig. 8
Fig. 9

Source: Colección do Museo Municipal de Vigo “Quiñones de León”-Fotografía: Nando Iglesias

Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12
Fig. 13

Similar content being viewed by others

Data Availability and Materials

Not applicable.

Notes

  1. Mentioned by the local press: La Voz de Galicia (01 July 2007) and Faro de Vigo (28 March 2014).

  2. The only references to some of this are found in the local press: Vida Gallega (10 November 1912); Atlántico (21 April 2010); and La Voz de Galicia (07 February, 2016).

  3. Following the Plan de Ordenación Litoral de Galicia (https://www.xunta.es/litoral/web/).

  4. A complete study of the amphorae assemble of the Western Cemetery of O Areal was presented in the Sixth International Conference on Late Roman Coarse Wares, Cooking Wares and Amphorae in the Mediterranean: Archaeology and Archaeometry and will be published in the corresponding proceedings.

  5. View footnote no. 4.

References

  • Acuña Piñeiro A (1995–96) Informe de Valoración. Excavación arqueológica del solar no5 de la Calle Hospital. Vigo (Pontevedra)

  • Álvarez Blázquez XM (2008) Achado de estelas funerarias romanas en Vigo (Pontevedra). In: Homenaxe a Xosé María Álvarez Blázquez (I), pp 137–150

  • Barber B, Bowsher D (2000) The eastern cemetery of Roman London: excavations 1983–1990. MoLAS Monograph 4

  • Blaizot F (2009) Practiques et espaces funéraires de la Gaule durante l’Antiquité. Gallia 66:1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bonifay M (2004) Etudes sur la céramique romaine tardive d’Afrique. BAR International Series 1301

  • Booth P (2010) The late roman cemetery at Lankhills, Winchester : excavations 2000–2005. Oxford Archaeology, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Braga CM (2010) Rituais funerários em Bracara Augusta: o novo núcleo de necrópole da Via XVII. Universidade do Minho

  • Braga CM (2014) A new sector or Via XVII necropolis in Bracara Augusta: the high empire phase. In: XVIII CIAC: Centro y periferia en el mundo clásico (Mérida), pp 1253–1257

  • Carballo Arceo X, Luaces Anca J, Toscano Novella MC (1998) Catálogo do patrimonio arqueolóxico. Arqueoloxía de Vigo e a súa historia. Departamento de Patrimonio Histórico del Concello de Vigo

  • Casal García R, Paz Lobeiras RM (1997) Un collar de ámbar suévico en Vigo. Gallaecia 16:315–322

    Google Scholar 

  • Coupry J (1969) Circonscription d’Aquitane. Gallia 27(2):343–380

    Google Scholar 

  • Crear B (2014) Contextualising deviancy: a regional approach to decapitated inhumation in late Roman Britain. University of Cambridge, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Crummy N, Crummy P, Crossan C (1993) Excavations of Roman and later cemeteries, churches and monastic sites in Colchester, 1971–88. Colchester Archaeological Trust, Colchester

    Google Scholar 

  • Delgado M, Morais R (2009) Guía das cerâmicas de produção local de Bracara Augusta. CITCEM

  • Dinwiddy KE (2007) A late Roman Cemetery at Little Keep, Dorchester. Dorset, Wessex

    Google Scholar 

  • Duday H (1997) Antropología biológica ‘de campo’, tafonomía y arqueología de la muerte. In: Malvido E, Pereira G, Tiesler V (eds) El cuerpo humano y su tratamiento mortuorio. Centro de estudios mexicanos y centroamericanos, México, pp 91–126

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Esmonde-Cleary S (2000) Putting the dead in their place: burial location in Roman Britain. In: Pearce J, Millett M, Struck M (eds) Burial, society and context in the Roman World, Oxford 2001. Oxbow Books, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Fernández Fernández, A. (2017) El centro alfarero romano de Bueu: el mundo antiguo en el Museo Massó. Xunta de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela

  • Fernández Fernández A (2014) El comercio tardoantiguo (ss. IV-VII) en el noroeste peninsular a través del registro cerámico de la Ría de Vigo. Roman and Late Roman Antique Mediterranean Pottery 5

  • Fernández Fernández A, Barciela Garrido P (2016) Emporium. Mil anos de comercio en Vigo. Concello de Vigo

  • Freijeiro AB, Ara MF, Alén AG (1961) La necrópolis galaico-romana de La Lanzada (Noalla, Pontevedra). Cuad Estudios Gallegos 16:141–158

    Google Scholar 

  • Folgado Lobato MJ (1996) A necrópole romana de Gulpilhares (Vila Nova de Gaia). Portugalia 16:31–72

    Google Scholar 

  • Gerrard J (2004) Bradley Hill, Somerset, and the end of Roman Britain: a study in continuity? Somerset Archaeol Nat Hist 148:1–9

    Google Scholar 

  • González Villaescusa R (2001) El mundo funerario romano en el País Valenciano. Monumentos funerarios y sepulturas entre los siglos I a. de C. - VII d. de C. Casa de Velázquez, Madrid

  • Goudineau C (2009) Rites funéraires à lvgdvnvvm. Éditions Errance, París

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanut F, Henrotay D (2014) Du bûcher à la tombe Les nécropoles gallo-romaines à incinération en Wallonie. Institut du Patrimoine wallon, Namur

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes JW (1972) Late Roman pottery. a catalogue of Roman fine wares. British School at Rome, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Hope VM (2009) Roman death. Continuum, Cornwall

    Google Scholar 

  • Iglesias Darriba MJ (2013) Memoria técnica. Fase II. Evaluación patrimonial de la Unidad de Actuación I-06 Rosalía de Castro II. Vigo (Pontevedra)

  • Iglesias Darriba MJ, Acuña Piñeiro A, Castro Carrera JC, Prieto Robles S, Sartal Lorenzo MA, Rodríguez Sáinz E, Fernández Fernandez A (2017) Estudio preliminar de la salina romana de evaporación solar de O Areal-Vigo (Galicia, España). In: L’exploitation des ressources maritimes de l’Antiquité. Activités protductives et organitsation des territoires. Actes des XXXVII rencontres internationales d’archéologie et d’histoire d’Antibes, pp 213–234

  • Julia D (1971) Étude épigraphique et iconographique des stèles funéraires de Vigo. Deutsches archäologisches institut, Heidelberg

    Google Scholar 

  • López Quiroga J, Martínez Tejera AM (2017) In tempore sueborum. El tiempo de los suevos en la Gallaecia. Deputación de Ourense, pp 411–585

  • Lovell J (2005) Excavation of a Romano–British Farmstead at RNAS Yeovilton. Somerset Archaeol Nat Hist 149:44–47

    Google Scholar 

  • Pearce J (2015) A civilised death? The interpretation of provincial roman grave goods assemblages. In: Borbonus D (ed) Death and changing rituals: function and meaning in ancient funerary practices, pp 223–247

  • Pérez Losada F (2002) Entre a cidade e a aldea. Estudio arqueohistórico dos ‘aglomerados secundarios’ romanos de Galicia. Brigantium 13

  • Petts D (2004) Burial in Western Britain AD 400–800: late antique or early medieval? In debating late antiquity in Britain AD 300–700. BAR British series, pp 77–87

  • Philpott R (1991) Burial practices in Roman Britain : a survey of grave treatment and furnishing, AD 43–410. Tempus Reparatum, Oxford

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Pieri D (2005) Le commerce du vin oriental à l’Époque byzantine (V-VII siècles). Le témoignage des amphores en Gaule. Institut Français d’Archéologie du Proche-Orient, Beyrouth

    Google Scholar 

  • Ribeiro J, Fernandez A, Cunha A, Martins M, Magalhães F, Braga C (2014) A cerâmica romana do balneário da rua D. Afonso Henriques: estudo preliminar da sequenciação cronológica e ocupacional do edifício (Braga, Portugal). In: As Produções cerâmicas de imitação na Hispania (Porto), pp 483–506

  • Sartal Lorenzo MA (2009a) Informe valorativo. Escavación arqueolóxica da Parcela 15 da U. Actuación I-06 Rosalía de Castro II. Vigo (Pontevedra)

  • Sartal Lorenzo MA (2009b) Informe valorativo. Escavación arqueolóxica da Parcela 9 da U. Actuación I-06 Rosalía de Castro II. Vigo (Pontevedra)

  • Simmonds A, Marquez-Grant N, Loe L (2008) Life and death in a Roman City. Oxford Archaeology Monograph 6

  • Torres Rodríguez C (1977) Galicia sueva. Instituto Padre Sarmiento de estudios gallegos

  • Valle Abad P (2017) Necrópolis costeras del noroeste peninsular durante la antigüedad. Primeros resultados. In: (Re)escribindo a historia. Achádegos dos novos investigadores en arqueoloxía e ciencias da antigüidade. Andavira Editora, Santiago de Compostela, pp 299–306

  • Whimster R (1981) Burial Practices in Iron Age Britain: A Discussion and Gazetteer of the Evidence, C.700 B.C-A.D. 43. BAR British series

Download references

Funding

Not applicable.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography and History, Faculty of History, Universidade de Vigo, Ourense, Spain

    Patricia Valle Abad, Adolfo Fernández Fernández & Ángel Acuña Piñeiro

Authors
  1. Patricia Valle Abad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Adolfo Fernández Fernández
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ángel Acuña Piñeiro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by PVA, AFF and ÁAP. The first draft of the manuscript was written by PVA and AFF, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Patricia Valle Abad.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Valle Abad, P., Fernández Fernández, A. & Acuña Piñeiro, Á. Analysis of the Western Late-Roman Cemetery of O Areal: Example of an Atlantic Coastal Funerary Site in the Harbour of Vigo (Spain). J Mari Arch 15, 393–414 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11457-020-09274-w

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11457-020-09274-w

Keywords

Search

Navigation