From Above and Below: Non-Invasive Exploration and Field Survey on the Roman Rural Estate of La Mata/La Tejera (Villadiego, Spain)

Roman rural sites are among the most noticeable archaeological sites in the Duero Valley of the Iberian Peninsula, often interpreted as villae. Nevertheless, most of these sites were excavated in the latter half of the 20th century a.d. Very few examples have undergone open-area excavations, and they are rarely related to scientific archaeological projects. This article presents long-term research on the La Mata/La Tejera Roman rural site, referred as La Mata here. Investigation began in 2012 with an intrasite survey combining point-differentiation methods (intensive GPS and block survey) and has evolved over time through the introduction of new methodologies and datasets—chiefly aerial coverage (airborne, drone, and multispectral) and geophysics (magnetometry). The work presented here stresses the role of surface pottery assemblages in approaching both chronology and functional use throughout the site and its immediate surroundings, considering landscape as a key element in the study of Roman rural estates, and discusses the role of villae as aristocratic residences or as the centers of rural exploitation.