Villa rustica

As a villa rustica (plural villae rustica ) is called a country house or estate in the Roman Empire. It was the center of a farm, and was besides the main building of economic and outbuildings, which were usually within a walled courtyard.

Term

The term villa rustica is a modern neologism. In ancient times, probably the name of the fundus or praedium was common. The Romans distinguished between urban buildings ( aedes ) and rural (villa). Similarly, a distinction was made between undeveloped land in the city ( area) and on the land ( ager ). Large estates were ( from latus = wide) also referred to as latifundium.

Construction and equipment

In Italy, the main building of a villa rustica comprised mostly a spacious courtyard, around which the economies clustered, often two-story living quarters was usually on the northern courtyard. In the Gallic and Germanic provinces, where there was a majority of the currently known villae rusticae, the building type was completely different. The main house was often executed with larger systems than Porticusvilla: The front subdivided into the corner projections and the intermediate portico ( a forwardly open portico ). The living and working areas of the landowner and his family confined directly to the portico. Often a central larger space is to be observed, were arranged along the several suites of rooms. The question of whether it is a covered hall or a roofless inner courtyard is largely unknown and may not be answered universally valid. Plants from the portico or Risalittyp are a dominant building type, which is very often found in medium-sized installations up to large palatial main buildings such as Villa Otrang at Fließem.

Larger villas possessed usually have heated bath rooms or bathhouses, often were also some of the rooms by floor heating for heating ( hypocaust ). They pointed usually on a basement, which served either as a storeroom or a home shrine for the Lares and other protective gods. Sometimes found on the premises and a small temple.

The luxurious living conditions but only a small upper class were accessible. In the villae rusticae there, especially in the right bank, a group of smaller farms who did not have such facilities. Main building was in the case often a simple stone building. In many regions such Homesteads even form the majority of the rural settlements. As background for quite some time, the so-called patronage system is presumed that was very common in rural areas and increases sharply to Late Antiquity. But the relative lack of evidence would speak to slaves in Roman villas of the north-western provinces and more frequent evidence of tenant farmers in the archaeological material.

The site of a villa rustica could be fenced with hedges, walls and ditches. This is especially true for military farms in the outlying areas of the empire. In many cases, however, no Hofumwehrung can make. An enclosure closed the residential building, together with farm buildings. Within such an area can be found in the archaeological record in addition to houses and stables still fountain, Druschplätze, garden and pond plants. Burial sites were typically outside, usually on an access road. The fertile Lößebenen of the Rhineland and the Wetterau were covered with a honeycomb-like system of villae rusticae, the distance between the farm buildings is about two to three kilometers. Chance was concluded that a land survey ( centuriation ) was made. But clear evidence is missing so far.

Management

The host ( dominus ) of the villa rustica was often from military service for former veteran who took over supply duties for the nearby towns and garrisons within the provincial infrastructure. Because of the high transport costs, most villas were close to the consumer, which explains the large number of villae rusticae in those border provinces where the Roman troops were mainly stationed. If a villa on average comprised 50 people, this could at best produce food for 20 other townspeople or soldiers; very efficient because these farms, measured at the present, usually were not; the surplus generated was usually low. According to this calculation (which does not do any research ), it can be deduced that around a city like Carnuntum must have existed with 40,000 inhabitants about 2000 villas for their care, even if here by additional food procurement from trade and fishing some relief was for the farmers. The space required 100,000 farmers this was, in any case enormously. The logistical hurdles for transport and storage also. Up to 50 km far provided the villas their goods in the cities and preferably at low water via the rivers.

The management of freight was carried out directly on the master of the house or with the help of an administrator. This decided depending on the season and applicable activity, which the peasants, that is mostly slaves ( servi ), but also freedmen ( freedmen ) or free, had to do.

Even then, the products had to be adapted to market requirements. Thus, the agricultural producers of ancient Apennines were in competition with the Roman provinces. Tarraconensis (Spain) and Gallia ( Gaul ) were known for the export of wines and oils; also in Gaul sheep farming was widespread and associated products such as textiles, cheese and cured meats; Aegyptus (Egypt) and other African provinces for grain.

Special form villa urbana

In addition, possessed senators and other high political office-holders huge estates with correspondingly large country houses, often luxuriously appointed and the summer residence served. A villa of this kind is, as opposed to purely economic villa rustica, a villa urbana called, that is, as one equipped with urban comfort villa. On the right bank area only one such villa has so far been found, in the Baden-Württemberg Heiterheim.

Next use by Germanic

From the second half of the 3rd century there was a steady decline in population in the Germanic provinces ( Germania inferior and Germania superior), with triggered by the escalating number of raids right of the Rhine Germanic tribes (especially the Alamanni and Franks ) on the Roman territory. Many villas were abandoned at this time. A further use by newly colonizing Germanic archeology is difficult to prove because finds from this period can not be sure ethnically rejected in most cases. In addition, the settling near the border Germans often took over the Roman way of life, so that there is little evidence for an association here. In West Germany succeeded in only one case (villa rustica of Wurmlingen ), the secondary use of Roman buildings by the Germans certainly archaeological evidence. In the 4th and 5th centuries there continued still villae rusticae, but in a significantly smaller number than before.

List of Villae Rusticae

• For individual rustic villas see the separate list of rustic villas