The women of Gangivecchio: investigating gender, wealth, and work in the agricultural economy of Roman Sicily

As part of the Gangivecchio Archaeological Project the purpose of this dissertation is to analyze and interpret the material record and space of Parcel 19, a 10x10 meter pit at the archaeological site of Gangivecchio, Sicily, Italy. Artifacts recovered within this parcel during the 2012, 2015, 2017, and 2019 field seasons argues for a wealthy Roman villa dating to the first to fourth centuries CE. Mixed within levels of collapse and disposal excavators recovered and identified three categories of objects that are the focus of this research: 1) Roman “feminine” objects consisting of items used for female adornment and wool-working implements; 2) various stamped ceramics depicting scenes or figures associated with sex, fertility, and childbirth; and 3) a collection of medical instruments including those used for bone surgery. Drawing upon contemporaneous Roman texts, epigraphy, burial practices, iconography, as well as comparable archaeological sites, the dissertation argues for the presence of a female medical practitioner (medica) working out of the Roman villa at Gangivecchio within the dates of its occupation and likely destruction sometime in the fourth century CE. The significance of this research is that it establishes a better understanding of the role women had in ancient rural economy of Sicily as proprietors, practitioners, and laborers. Furthermore, the analysis offers new insights into women’s roles in ancient medicine in order to turn a critical eye on the long history of the gender gap in health and medicine, where males and the male body have long been the sole archetype.