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Contextualizing the Lex Metilia dicta fullonibus and Other Laws Legislating Material Quality

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Abstract

A series of laws regulated Roman commerce by prescribing material expectations for fullers and other craftsmen and their customers. Three laws bear examination. The Lex Metilia has been thought to be an austerity measure limiting expense of aristocratic clothing but such interpretations lack support, and a different interpretation, one which regulates the fulling materials that can be used for particular fabrics, parallels the attention to material quality evidenced in two other laws, one regulating the aging of slaked lime and the other regarding certain premium pigments. Legal, textual, and archaeological evidence, as well as chemistry, are utilized to explore Roman commercial transactions related to color and related industries.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)282-311
Number of pages30
JournalHistoria - Zeitschrift fur Alte Geschichte
Volume71
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2022

Keywords

  • Pliny the Elder
  • censors
  • fullers
  • lex Metilia
  • pigments
  • slaked lime

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