SHOPPING AND MARKETS IN ANCIENT ROME
An important part of Roman society was its shops and markets. Roman cities were lined with marketplaces where craftsmen created and sold their goods. These shops were small rooms on the lower floor of a house that the craftsmen either owned themselves or rented as a space to sell their goods. In early Roman history, most of the goods sold in these shops were made by the person selling them, however, this changed as Rome grew. Over time, a class of “middlemen” began to sell the products of others and acted as a wholesaler for many types of goods.
Wealthy roman citizens would send their slaves to the markets in order to do the shopping. Poorer Roman citizens would have to do their own shopping and were often most concerned with purchasing food. The poor focused on buying bread (straight from the oven), porridge and vegetables such as beans and lentils.
Wealthy roman citizens would send their slaves to the markets in order to do the shopping. Poorer Roman citizens would have to do their own shopping and were often most concerned with purchasing food. The poor focused on buying bread (straight from the oven), porridge and vegetables such as beans and lentils.
Ancient Rome had many bakeries and these bakeries used a more course type of flour than we use today. This caused Roman bread to be chewy and it did not rise as high as bread does today. Finally, for those who could afford it, meat was an important part of the Roman diet. Butchers sold a wide variety of different types of meat, such as: pork, beef, goat, wild boar, rabbit, geese, etc.
The biggest shopping complex in Ancient Rome was the Market of Trajan which was built around 110 AD. It had five stories of shops and contained many different types of goods, including: fresh fish, herbs and spices, wine and oil and much more. |