Papers & book chapters by Ada Lasheras González
Geomorphology, 2024
Today, anthropic morphologies in river deltas are widespread. The natural morpho-dynamics interac... more Today, anthropic morphologies in river deltas are widespread. The natural morpho-dynamics interact with engineered structures or urbanisation and shape hybrid features not grasped in traditional natural classifications of deltas. However, it is challenging to reconstruct the trajectory of the shifting balance between the natural and the anthropogenic factors over time. This study demonstrates how to systematically integrate human impacts to reconstruct the evolution of deltas at a plurisecular timescale. The approach advocated here is to consider separately the local and global drivers affecting deltaic evolution in using multiscale interdisciplinary chronologies. The high-resolution reconstruction of the evolution of the Francolí Delta in interaction with the city of Tarragona for the last two centuries reveals that the river mouth morpho-dynamics are successively deflected, interacting with an outer harbour and finally fully integrated in modern harbour basins with more significant dredgings at the river mouth. In this last case, the river mouth of the Francolí is no more a delta but a human dominated estuary. Over the past three centuries, the changes affecting the delta of the Francolí are linked to economic globalisation and associated with an increase in ship size.
Geomorphology, 2024
The reconstruction of the human impacts on the morphodynamics of river deltas in the long term is... more The reconstruction of the human impacts on the morphodynamics of river deltas in the long term is challenging. The ternary diagram of Galloway (1975) used to classify morphodynamics of deltas does not include direct human influence which is now affecting most of the deltas of the world. The study of human-dominated deltas requires specific approaches and consideration of human processes and morphologies in interaction with more commonly studied natural processes and morphologies. This study demonstrates how to combine different datasets from natural and social sciences to reconstruct long term temporal trajectories of hybrid urban deltas. The Francolí delta, associated with the UNESCO city of Tarragona, offers a perfect case study to identify the different steps of a wave-dominated delta leading to a human-dominated delta over a long-term perspective. Tarragona emerged in the 1st millennium BCE and became a significant port city in the Roman period. This study identifies the evidence of a semi-protected harbour built 2000 years ago that initiates the evolution of a hybrid urban delta towards a human-dominated delta. Until the end 19th c. CE, cyclical changes at the river mouth are observed due to natural fluvial and coastal dynamics while progradation stages are partly affected by anthropogenic structures over time. The 19th c. CE is a major turning point. Morphodynamics controlled by anthropogenic factors strongly increase while fluvial and coastal sedimentation is partly erased by dredgings. The systematic approach proposed for the Francolí delta can be standardised and applied to other hybrid urban deltas allowing better comparison between urbanised deltas.
C. Godoy Fernández; A. Muñoz Melgar (eds.) El monument tardoromà de Centcelles. Dades – context – propostes. Actes del congrés internacional. Tarragona-Constantí, 28-30 de juny de 2022. Ateneu Universitari Sant Pacià. Barcelona, 2024
Andreu Pintado, Javier; Blanco-Pérez, Aitor; Alguacil Villanúa, Elena (eds.) Pecunia communis: recursos económicos y sostenibilidad de las pequeñas ciudades hispanorromanas, 2023
La ciudad romana era un engranaje complejo, como todo aquello que afecta a la vida de una comunid... more La ciudad romana era un engranaje complejo, como todo aquello que afecta a la vida de una comunidad de personas de unas ciertas dimensiones,dadas las muy diferentes demandas que debían ser cubiertas.No obstante, si bien existe la lectura de un ideal de bienestar al que los historiadores hemos tendido, influidos en ocasiones por los estándares modernos y el tópico del declive urbano tardoantiguo y medieval posterior, no todo en ella eran grandes edificios de representación, amplias calles y cuidadas infraestructuras. Además de ello, existía un amplio conjunto de necesidades de consumo, suministro y de eliminación de residuos, menos conocido, por menos abordado por la investigación.
El proyecto de investigación que a través de este texto se da a conocer está tratando de avanzar en los diferentes aspectos de la logística urbana que permitían que una ciudad romana funcionase de la forma más satisfactoria posible para sus habitantes o, en caso de no hacerlo, buscara las oportunas medidas de resiliencia, ya fueran planificadas o espontáneas.
SAGVNTVM. Papeles del Laboratorio de Arqueología de Valencia , 2022
Presentamos un pequeño conjunto de lucernas argelinas recuperadas en contextos arqueológicos del ... more Presentamos un pequeño conjunto de lucernas argelinas recuperadas en contextos arqueológicos del s. V en Tarragona. La mayor parte del catálogo procede del antiguo témenos de culto imperial del conjunto arquitectónico del Concilium Prouinciae flavio y el resto del área portuaria de la ciudad. Se trata de unas lucernas escasamente documentadas en Hispania y que ponen de manifiesto relaciones comerciales con la Mauritania Caesarensis.
Lasheras, A.; Ruiz de Arbulo, J.; Terrado, P. (eds.) Tarraco Biennal: actes. 5è Congrés Internacional d’Arqueologia i Món Antic. Ports romans. Arqueologia dels Sistemes Portuaris. Tarragona, 24, 25, 26 i 27 de novembre de 2021. ICAC - URV. Tarragona, 2022
Les Actes d'aquest congrés han comptat amb el recolçament econòmic del projecte coordinat d'inves... more Les Actes d'aquest congrés han comptat amb el recolçament econòmic del projecte coordinat d'investigació "Vivere in Urbe" (PID 2019-105376) del Ministerio de Economía y Empresa, i del Projecte Europeu "EuroTech, Tecnologies Europees pel Patrimoni Cultural" (2018-1-IT-02-KA23-048448). © de l'edició, Institut Català d'Arqueologia Clàssica i Universitat Rovira i Virgili © del text, els autors © de les fotografies i il•lustracions, els autors, llevat que s'indiqui el contrari Primera edició: novembre de 2022 Maquetació i impressió:
Baldini, Isabella; Sfameni, Carla (eds.) Abitare nel Mediterraneo tardoantico. Atti del III Convegno Internazionale del Centro Interuniversitario di Studi sull’Edilizia abitativa tardoantica nel Mediterraneo (CISEM) (Bologna 28-31 ottobre 2019). Edipuglia, Bari, 2021
Research interest in the late antique urban housing of Hispania has increased in recent years. Se... more Research interest in the late antique urban housing of Hispania has increased in recent years. Several studies on newly excavated houses but also on already known examples have been published, providing new insights on this topic. At Tarraco, the numerous urban excavations of the last decades uncovered a large quarter linked to the harbour area, known as the 'port suburb'. This paper examines the houses located in this sector, focusing on their architectural layout, constructive techniques and possible functions of the spaces. Based on their different features and chronology, the examples presented fall into two groups: the late Roman houses, which followed the architectural designs of Roman tradition; and the post-Roman houses, showing a much simplified layout and reduced size. The paper finally compares both groups to address the question of the evolution of domestic architecture in Late Antiquity.
Carneiro, André; Christie, Neil; and Diarte-Blasco, Pilar (eds) 2020: Urban Transformations in the Late Antique West. Coimbra University Press, Coimbra, 2020
This paper focuses on the connection between Tarraco’s urban and economic growth during the 5th c... more This paper focuses on the connection between Tarraco’s urban and economic growth during the 5th century AD and the recovery of its geostrategic role as the base for the late Roman army which aimed to regain control over Hispania. Tarraconensis was the last province of Hispania under imperial control after the arrival of the Germanic peoples and the agreed occupation of the most of the Iberian Peninsula. The written sources also refer to the presence of many high officials in the town, both civil and military. This event certaintly marked the historical evolu- tion of the city. The archaeological work of the past decades has indeed emphasized the recovery and development from the 5th century onwards of the main entry gate and economic hub of Tarraco, its harbour and the adjacent area known as the ‘port suburb’, contrasting with the urban and economic recession which characterized the preceding centuries.
López, Jordi (ed.) Tarraco Biennal. Actes del 4t Congrés Internacional d'Arqueologia i Món Antic. VII Reunió d'Arqueologia Cristiana Hispànica. El cristianisme en l'Antiguitat Tardana: noves perspectives. Tarragona, 21-24 novembre de 2018. Universitat Rovira i Virgili – Institut d'Estudis Catalans, 2019
The discovery of the so-called "Necropolis Paleocristiana" in the 1930s opened a new line of rese... more The discovery of the so-called "Necropolis Paleocristiana" in the 1930s opened a new line of research on the late antique suburban areas of Tarraco. The further finding of another Christian basilica in the 1990s completed the picture of the "Francolí early-Christian complex" just as it is known today.
However, the many archaeological excavations carried out also in the 1990s within the framework of the urbanisation of the southern area of the current city, led to the finding of a great suburban sector of the Roman city next to the early-Christian complex. This suburban sector – which was linked to the port and extended more than 2ha – was hitherto only partially known and lacked a joint study.
The thorough study of the late antique phase of this suburban sector allows us now to note the clear correlation between the urban growth of the suburb from the early fifth century onwards and the development of the early-Christian complex at the very same moment. Thus, despite the religious element, it appears evident that the choice of location of the early-Christian complex cannot be detached from the fact that, as the port suburb of the city, this sector was the economic hub of Tarraco, even during the late antique period.
VON CARNAP-BORNHEIM, Claus; DAIM, Falko; ETTEL, Peter; WARNKE, Ursula (eds.) International Conference. Harbours as object of interdisciplinary research - Archaeology + History + Geosciences. Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum. Mainz, 2018
The importance of Tarraco, former capital of Hispania Tarraconensis, largely resided in its condi... more The importance of Tarraco, former capital of Hispania Tarraconensis, largely resided in its condition of port city. This paper gives an account of the progress made in research into this ancient harbour by analysing literary sources and archaeological remains from a broad time period, covering from the third century BC to the eighth century AD. The updated examination of the ancient sources and the study of several recent archaeological discoveries allows us to provide new and precise information about the configuration of the harbour and its evolution. We outline the advances in these fields of study in order to understand not only the harbour’s appearance, but also the economic, urban and social progress of the city. First, we take into account the boost to the city’s economy, bolstered by the arrival of Italic immigrants during the Roman conquest of Hispania and later from other cities, and also the movement of people and the growth of the city as an urban and economic centre. Second, we analyse the urban reality of the port suburb, which clearly reflects the situation of the harbour. After an interval of urban contraction, the fifth century AD sees a new period of urban and economic growth. This development is also attested in the centuries that follow, calling into question previous interpretations that considered the seventh century a period of decline that culminated in the Arab and Berber invasion in 713.
Baldini, Isabella; Sfameni, Carla (eds.) Abitare nel Mediterraneo tardoantico. Atti del II secondo convegno internazionale del Centro Interuniversitario di Studi sull'Edilizia tardoantica nel Mediterraneo (Bologna, 2-5 marzo 2016). Edipuglia. Bari, 2018
Although many archaeological excavations have been carried out in the area of the Roman port of T... more Although many archaeological excavations have been carried out in the area of the Roman port of Tarraco, specific and detailed studies of this large sector of the city are still required. The aim of this paper is to analyse and define the urban evolution of the port suburb, with special regard to the occupancy patterns during Late Antiquity (3rd-8th centuries). In broad terms, after the urban contraction of the 3rd and 4th centuries, the 5th century sees a new period of urban and economic growth a development that is also attested in the centuries that follow, calling into question previous interpretations that considered the 7th century a period of decline that culminated in the Arab and Berber invasion in 713.
Sabine Panzram (Hg.) Oppidum - Civitas - Urbs. Städteforschung auf der Ibersichen Halbinsel zwischen Rom und al-Andalus. LIT Verlag. Münster, 2017
A pesar de las múltiples excavaciones arqueológicas que se han llevado a cabo en el área correspo... more A pesar de las múltiples excavaciones arqueológicas que se han llevado a cabo en el área correspondiente al puerto de Tarraco, son todavía necesarios estudios específicos y de detalle sobre este extenso sector de la ciudad. El objetivo de este artículo es, por tanto, analizar la evolución urbana del suburbio portuario, con especial atención a los modelos de ocupación durante la Antigüedad tardía (ss. III-VIII). A grandes rasgos, después de un período de contracción durante los siglos III y IV, el siglo V se muestra como una etapa de crecimiento urbano y económico. Un desarrollo que se constata a lo largo de los siglos siguientes y que lleva a cuestionar antiguas interpretaciones que consideraban el siglo VII como un período de declive para la ciudad, el cual culminaría con la conquista árabe-bereber del 713.
Trotz der zahlreichen Ausgrabungen in dem Bereich, der dem Hafen von Tarraco entspricht, fehlt es weiterhin an detaillierten Studien zu diesem Teil der Stadt. Das Ziel dieses Beitrages ist es mithin, die städtische Entwicklung des Hafenbereichs zu untersuchen, und zwar unter besonderer Berücksichtigung seiner Belegung in der Spätantike (3.-8. Jahr- hundert). Auf eine Zeit der Schrumpfung im 3. und 4. Jahrhundert folgte im 5. Jahrhundert eine des wirtschaftlichen und städtischen Wachstums. Diese Tendenz setzte sich verstärkt in den folgenden Jahrhunderten fort, was dazu führt, dass die bisherige Sichtweise eines städtischen Niederganges im 7. Jahrhundert, der schließlich in der Eroberung durch Araber respektive Berber im Jahre 713 gipfelte, in Frage zu stellen ist.
Zaragoza Gras, Joana (coord.). Ars Medica. La medicina en època romana. Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, 2017. Págs. 11-37., 2017
Sarmanna, Tecla, Dionisio u otros mas conocidos como Alejandro Severo o Grimoaldo son algunos de ... more Sarmanna, Tecla, Dionisio u otros mas conocidos como Alejandro Severo o Grimoaldo son algunos de los protagonistas de esta aproximación a la disciplina médica durante la Antigüedad tardía. Ésta es una temática que ya tuvimos la ocasión de tratar brevemente en un trabajo anterior (Lasheras, 2015) y que ahora retomamos para trazar un recorrido por algunos de los aspectos mas relevantes de dicha disciplina a través de los testimonios escritos de este período.
Gorostidi, Diana (ed.) (2017) Géza Alföldy. Estudios tarraconenses. Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Institut Català d'Arqueologia Clàssica. Tarragona, 2017
López, Jordi (ed.) Tarraco Biennal. Actes del 3r Congrés Internacional d'Arqueologia i Món Antic. La glòria del circ, curses de carros i competicions circenses. In memoriam Xavier Dupré i Raventós. Fundació Privada Mútua Catalana. Tarragona, 2017
Lasheras, Ada (2015) Pan i el funus romanum. Estudi d'una peça d'os d'un llit funerari trobada al suburbi septentrional de Tarraco. Butlletí Arqueològic, V, 34-35 (2012-2013): 133-151., 2015
The archaeological interventions carried out in 2009 at the “sant Antoni Maria Claret” street, in... more The archaeological interventions carried out in 2009 at the “sant Antoni Maria Claret” street, in the city of Tarragona, discovered an ancient burial area, used for a long period of time (1st to 3rd centuries A.D.). Among the findings, a little bone artefact was recovered (6,1 x 2,7 x 4,7 cm), which represent a human head with some animal features. The iconographic analyses allowed us to identify this character with the Greek god Pan. In functional terms, this artefact should be related to its archaeological context, a burial area used as an ustrinum. Moreover, its morphological characteristics, as well as its iconography, related with the cult of Dionysios, lead us to propose that this artefact was part of the decoration of a burial bed.
Lasheras, Ada (2015) Dos abocadors del començament del segle V dC al suburbi portuari de Tàrraco. Revista d'Arqueologia de Ponent, 25: 103-133., 2015
The interest of the roman port of Tarraco and its suburb have been recently renewed by the archae... more The interest of the roman port of Tarraco and its suburb have been recently renewed by the archaeological investigation, specially since the multiple excavations that took place in this area during the 1990s. Nevertheless, specific and detailed studies of this interesting and large sector are still required. The aim of this paper is to contribute to its knowledge by studying the pottery of two domestic dumps located at the so called "parcel·la 22B" (Av. de Vidal i Barraquer, 44-46 - C. de Felip Pedrell, 12) and chronologically situated in the early fifth century A.D., moment in which, on the other hand, the suburb lived an important socioeconomic and urban increase.
Cuadrada Majó, Coral (coord.). Oikonomía: cuidados, reproducción, producción. Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, 2015. Págs. 85-146, 2015
El capítulo «Mujeres del occidente tardorromano (siglos III-V d.C.). Cuidado, reproducción y prod... more El capítulo «Mujeres del occidente tardorromano (siglos III-V d.C.). Cuidado, reproducción y producción» es una aproximación a la realidad femenina durante los últimos siglos del Imperio romano de Occidente, desde una óptica feminista y marxista. Así, las tareas de cuidado y mantenimiento se analizan como trabajos, extrayéndole el halo de naturalidad que el patriarcado les confirió también durante este período y dotándoles de su eminente e imprescindible valor material para la continuación de la vida social. Sin embargo, son escasos los datos de los que disponemos sobre estas actividades, evidenciando todavía la necesidad de subvertir los esquemas tradicionales para incorporar estudios que permitan visualizar a las mujeres. En cambio, el segundo apartado, dedicado al trabajo reproductivo, cuenta con un mayor número de investigaciones que ha permitido analizarlo en todas sus facetas. Especial hincapié, no obstante, merece la institución que legitimó y conformó la familia, el matrimonio, a pesar de que éste no estaba al alcance de todos los grupos sociales. Finalmente, se dedica un último apartado a varios oficios que, sobre todo gracias a la información epigráfica, hemos podido constatar que fueron igualmente desempeñados por mujeres. A pesar de ello, y como sucede al tratar de examinar otras facetas de la realidad femenina en esta época, nos encontramos con una significativa escasez de información. Aunque en definitiva, tanto éste como los estudios que ahora presentamos, no hacen sino demostrar que una revisión de las fuentes y nuevos planteamientos al abordar las investigaciones posibilitan el avance en el conocimiento de una historia donde las mujeres también tengamos cabida.
Saéz de la Fuente, I.; Tejerizo García, C.; Elorza González de Alaiza, L.; Hernández Beloqui, B. y Hernando Álvarez, C. (coords.) (2015) Arqueologías sociales. Arqueología en sociedad. Actas de las VII Jornadas de Jóvenes en Investigación Arqueológica. Vitoria-Gasteiz. Arkeogazte-JAS Arqueología., 2015
The transformation of the urban landscape of Tarraco has been often analyzed from an architectura... more The transformation of the urban landscape of Tarraco has been often analyzed from an architectural, political or economic perspective, but there are few cases in which these changes arise as a process carried out by the society of the period itself. This article aims to place such society as the central element of the analysis and to make a briefly study on the urban landscape of Tarraco from Late Antiquity to the Medieval and Post-medieval consolidation period, based on the different instruments available.
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Papers & book chapters by Ada Lasheras González
El proyecto de investigación que a través de este texto se da a conocer está tratando de avanzar en los diferentes aspectos de la logística urbana que permitían que una ciudad romana funcionase de la forma más satisfactoria posible para sus habitantes o, en caso de no hacerlo, buscara las oportunas medidas de resiliencia, ya fueran planificadas o espontáneas.
However, the many archaeological excavations carried out also in the 1990s within the framework of the urbanisation of the southern area of the current city, led to the finding of a great suburban sector of the Roman city next to the early-Christian complex. This suburban sector – which was linked to the port and extended more than 2ha – was hitherto only partially known and lacked a joint study.
The thorough study of the late antique phase of this suburban sector allows us now to note the clear correlation between the urban growth of the suburb from the early fifth century onwards and the development of the early-Christian complex at the very same moment. Thus, despite the religious element, it appears evident that the choice of location of the early-Christian complex cannot be detached from the fact that, as the port suburb of the city, this sector was the economic hub of Tarraco, even during the late antique period.
Trotz der zahlreichen Ausgrabungen in dem Bereich, der dem Hafen von Tarraco entspricht, fehlt es weiterhin an detaillierten Studien zu diesem Teil der Stadt. Das Ziel dieses Beitrages ist es mithin, die städtische Entwicklung des Hafenbereichs zu untersuchen, und zwar unter besonderer Berücksichtigung seiner Belegung in der Spätantike (3.-8. Jahr- hundert). Auf eine Zeit der Schrumpfung im 3. und 4. Jahrhundert folgte im 5. Jahrhundert eine des wirtschaftlichen und städtischen Wachstums. Diese Tendenz setzte sich verstärkt in den folgenden Jahrhunderten fort, was dazu führt, dass die bisherige Sichtweise eines städtischen Niederganges im 7. Jahrhundert, der schließlich in der Eroberung durch Araber respektive Berber im Jahre 713 gipfelte, in Frage zu stellen ist.
El proyecto de investigación que a través de este texto se da a conocer está tratando de avanzar en los diferentes aspectos de la logística urbana que permitían que una ciudad romana funcionase de la forma más satisfactoria posible para sus habitantes o, en caso de no hacerlo, buscara las oportunas medidas de resiliencia, ya fueran planificadas o espontáneas.
However, the many archaeological excavations carried out also in the 1990s within the framework of the urbanisation of the southern area of the current city, led to the finding of a great suburban sector of the Roman city next to the early-Christian complex. This suburban sector – which was linked to the port and extended more than 2ha – was hitherto only partially known and lacked a joint study.
The thorough study of the late antique phase of this suburban sector allows us now to note the clear correlation between the urban growth of the suburb from the early fifth century onwards and the development of the early-Christian complex at the very same moment. Thus, despite the religious element, it appears evident that the choice of location of the early-Christian complex cannot be detached from the fact that, as the port suburb of the city, this sector was the economic hub of Tarraco, even during the late antique period.
Trotz der zahlreichen Ausgrabungen in dem Bereich, der dem Hafen von Tarraco entspricht, fehlt es weiterhin an detaillierten Studien zu diesem Teil der Stadt. Das Ziel dieses Beitrages ist es mithin, die städtische Entwicklung des Hafenbereichs zu untersuchen, und zwar unter besonderer Berücksichtigung seiner Belegung in der Spätantike (3.-8. Jahr- hundert). Auf eine Zeit der Schrumpfung im 3. und 4. Jahrhundert folgte im 5. Jahrhundert eine des wirtschaftlichen und städtischen Wachstums. Diese Tendenz setzte sich verstärkt in den folgenden Jahrhunderten fort, was dazu führt, dass die bisherige Sichtweise eines städtischen Niederganges im 7. Jahrhundert, der schließlich in der Eroberung durch Araber respektive Berber im Jahre 713 gipfelte, in Frage zu stellen ist.