Athena Review Image Archive ™
Vienne: Roman river boat with casks and amphorae
Life-sized model of Roman riverboat at Vienne (Musee archeologique; photo: Athena Review).
In
the Musée archéologique de St.Romain en Gal-Vienne is a full scale
replica of a Roman river boat filled with a cargo of amphorae and
barrels or casks used to transport wine, olive oil, and other cargo
between towns.
Amphorae (named for their pair of ear-like
handles) had long been used in the Graeco-Roman world of Mediterranean
trade, while casks were native inventions of the Gauls. Their combined
use in the busy Rhône port of Vienne illustrates the cultural mixture
of Gallo-Roman commerce and society in the 1st-4th centuries AD.
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