A luxury food market or control mechanism in a complex Roman economy: a new interpretation of the <i>macellum</i> in the Roman world

Abstract Macella , specialized market structures built in various urban centers in Roman Italy and the provinces between the Middle Republic and the Late Antique period, have been interpreted widely as urban symbols of elite prestige and conspicuous consumption. While it is true that elites often acted as benefactors of these buildings and written sources emphasize the sale of luxury foods, documentary and archaeological evidence suggest that bureaucratic incentives played a crucial role in their initial establishment. This article presents a new interpretation of the development of macella and argues, in contrast to traditional views, that these markets were not primarily designed as spaces of luxury consumption catering exclusively to elite customers. Rather, they were conceived as physical and permanent institutional control mechanisms over urban food trade in an increasingly complex and integrated Roman economy.