Analyzing Low-Density Assemblages from Fieldwalking Surveys: Hellenistic and Roman Land Use in the Sibaritide (Calabria, Italy)

Intensive fieldwalking surveys in the Mediterranean have produced rich datasets, documenting the locations and attributes of finds and sites. Although the presence and potential significance for the reconstruction of past land use practices of off-site scatters are generally recognized, subsequent analysis, interpretation, and publication tend to emphasize the sites. Moreover, methodological differences between projects impede direct comparison, and large-scale, regional comparisons of survey data therefore focus exclusively on sites. In this paper, we explore the Hellenistic and Roman low-density scatters produced by two adjoining survey projects with distinct methodologies in the hinterland of the colony of Thurii/Copia (Calabria, Italy). After assessing potential biases, we present an integrated analysis of density, fragmentation, and composition of the assemblages to test their interpretation as traces of manuring activities. The results highlight differences between Hellenistic and Roman land management systems and contribute to current debates about field survey comparison and the information potential of off-site scatters.