Connecting Ships

Using Dendrochronological Network Analysis to Determine the Wood Provenance of Roman-Period River Barges Found in the Lower Rhine Region and Visualise Wood Use Patterns

Datos Bibliográficos

ID22360299
AutoresR M Visser (0000-0001-6966-1729, Saxion), Yardeni Vorst (0009-0001-5471-8697, Stichting Hout Research (Netherlands))
Año2022
Volumen3
Número1-3
Páginas123-151
Fecha de publicación2022-12-23
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaInternational Journal of Wood Culture (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2772-3186 • E-ISSN: 2772-3194
EditorialWalter de Gruyter GmbH (PUBLISHER • DE)
DOI10.1163/27723194-bja10014
OpenAlexW4313555972
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas2
Referencias citadas7

This study combines standard dendrochronological analyses with network science and spatial analysis to determine the provenance of wood used to build river barges in the Roman period. The river barges studied were found in the Lower Rhine region and would have carried bulk goods, such as grain, military supplies, and building materials. The importance of these vessels in the supply of the local economy and military units is evident since many were found in the area, including some in the vicinity of military complexes. However, it remains unknown where these ships were built and how and where the raw materials for their construction were obtained. To better understand the provenance of the wood, network science was applied to visualise and understand the complex patterns of similarity between the tree-ring curves. For the interpretation of the networks we have studied the context, the position of the trees in the network and the use of these trees in shipbuilding. In addition, the shape of the converted timber was used to visualise the wood use patterns in this type of Roman-period shipbuilding. For the river barges, we were able to determine several possible regions for wood procurement. Based on the analysed material, we assume that there was at least one shipyard in the Lower Rhine region where two ships, found in separate excavations, were most likely produced at the same time

Agriculture · Archaeology · Geography · Paleoethnobotany · Procurement · Provenance · Shipbuilding · Shipyard · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Cultural Heritage Materials Analysis · Tree-ring climate responses · Geology · Paleontology