Cambridge Ancient Hi.. - Index of

546 19. italy, a.d. 425,605
on the fabric of cities. In many places, for example, the practice of intramural
burial became common, and not just for the relics of saints; as a consequence,
one of the traditional divisions between city and surburb came
to be eroded. 99 Yet none of this means that the fifth and sixth century saw
a total break with the Roman past, and while there was a certain amount of
contraction in terms of city populations, there was also a great deal of continuity
throughout late antiquity and into the Middle Ages. In many centres,
particularly in the Po valley, the urban fabric proved remarkably resilient to
change well into the Middle Ages. Indeed, even today, Roman street grids
are well preserved at Cremona, Pavia, Verona and Padua, to name only a
few, reflecting the control exercised by civic authorities over urban construction.
100 Such urban continuity is not altogether surprising: even after
the Lombard invasions, towns and cities remained the centres of commerce
and administration. 101
There was change in the countryside, too. Some form of prosperity in the
south might be expected as a result of the increased economic reliance of
Rome on the region after the loss of Africa. There is abundant evidence in
Cassiodorus’ Variae that southern Italy did indeed flourish. 102 This was not
empty rhetoric, for it is reflected in the archaeological record. Evidence of
increased rural settlement in the survey area around S. Giovanni di Ruoti, the
discovery of pig bones in many late antique sites, and the identification of
amphorae types specifically identified with the region’s wine industry confirm
Cassiodorus’ testimony that the south prospered under the Ostrogoths. 103 It
was not the only region to do so; in the far north-east, Histria – rich in oil,
vines and corn – came to be known as Ravenna’s Campania. 104 Following the
Byzantine invasion of 535, however, this prosperity was severely compromised.
Belisarius’ forces, on crossing from Sicily, ravaged first the rich lands
of Bruttium and Lucania. As the war dragged on, agricultural life throughout
Italy was disrupted, leading in some years to famine. Again, the archaeological
record confirms the picture: in Lucania there is an appreciable decline
in rural settlement from the middle of the sixth century. 105
In some places, such apparent rural decline must be set against the persistence
of activities which stretch back into prehistoric times. This is particularly
so in the mountainous regions of central and southern Italy, where
ancient drove-roads connecting winter and summer pastures continued to
be used throughout late antiquity. 106 Other continuities can be observed. In
99 For Rome: Meneghini and Santangeli Valenzani (1993); cf. Sicilian examples in Wilson (1990)
331–2. 100 Ward-Perkins, Public Building 179–86. 101 Harrison (1993); Ward-Perkins (1988).
102 Notably his eulogy at Var. viii.33.3 of ‘industrious Campania, or wealthy Bruttium, or Calabria
rich in cattle, or prosperous Apulia’.
103 Small and Buck (1993) 22, 28; Barnish (1987); Arthur (1989) 134–9.
104 Cass. Var. xii.22.3; cf.xii.24; xii.26.2–3.
105 Cass. Var. xii.5.3; Procop. Wars vi.20.21; Christie (1996); Small and Buck (1993) 22, 28–9.
106 Gabba (1985) 381–7; but cf. Staffa (1995) 328.
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