Marble provenance studies in archaeology have become increasingly popular in recent decades. This has resulted in a large quantity of analytical data becoming available for archaeological marbles. This article presents the results of a quantitative study of the distribution of white marble in the Mediterranean based on an analysis of the available provenance data for the Roman period. The study shows increased distribution of white marble between the late 1st c. BCE and the end of the 2nd c. CE. A decline in distribution from the 3rd c. CE was less abrupt than traditionally believed and shows object-, material-, and region-specific trajectories. The marble distribution data is finally evaluated within a wider socio-economic frame, considering factors such as the marble trade system and broader Roman economy, changes in cultural practices related to statue erection, importance of reuse and recycling, growing ruralization, and reduced interest of the elite in urban capital investment in the later Roman periods.

This paper reports the results of a quantitative and qualitative study of the imported architectural decorative stone of the Roman town of Ammaia (São Salvador da Aramenha, Portugal), located centrally in the province of Lusitania. All studied ornamental stones were counted, weighed, classified and their provenance was determined. Six types of stone were used for the architectural decoration at Ammaia: white marble, pink–purple limestone, grey– white marble, two marble breccias and granite. Granite was the most widely used building stone and was used for the production of columns and capitals. Previous studies have established a local source for the Ammaia granite (Taelman et alii in press). The provenance of the remaining ornamental stones is primarily regional (the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula). Only the two marble breccia varieties were imported from the Mediterranean: africano from Teos (Turkey) and breccia di Sciro from the island of Skyros also (Greece). The predominant use of regionally available stones is observed in other Roman towns located in the interior of the Iberian Peninsula, such as Emerita Augusta, Asturica Augusta and Munigua, and results mainly from the geographic location of the sites, remote from any seaport and/or navigable river