On Eye Level: Labor Unions and Burial Practices in Augustan Rome

Emma S. Crutchfield
Dr. Josh Nudell, Faculty Mentor

This paper looks at the Vigni Condini Columbaria, an underground burial site along one of the main roads in Rome that stored the cremated remains of 1st-century Roman citizens. The purpose of my research is to investigate the social groups that the buried chose to associate with through the framework of archaeological evidence, mortuary law and records, and social history. The current research on this columbaria focuses on the slaves and freedmen buried in the site, but does not examine who else was buried here or what jobs they performed. I look at the members of social unions, or collegium funeraticium, to create a broader understanding of how death acts as a social equalizer. I build off of Dr. Sarah Bond’s research on labor to argue that the people and purpose of this burial site reflect the importance of Labor and Social Unions to citizens in early 1st-century Rome.

Keywords: Ancient History, Archeology , Ancient Rome, Labor Unions, Burial Practice, Columbaria

Topic(s):Classics
Anthropology
History

Presentation Type: Oral Presentation

Session: TBA
Location: TBA
Time: TBA