Nourishing urban development: A palaeodietary study of Archaic Gabii, Italy (6th–5th c BCE)

Abstract Gabii was established around the 8th century BCE in the province of Latium and was considered to be a sister city to Rome. In an effort to learn more about its settlers and their dietary patterns, stable isotope analysis was conducted using skeletal remains from eight individuals found in chamber tomb burials dating to the Archaic period (6th–5th centuries BCE). The δ15N (9.3‰ to 11.5‰) and δ13Cco (−20.5‰ to −18.9‰) from bone collagen as well as the δ13Cap (−13.2‰ to −9.5‰) from the bone apatite demonstrate that Archaic Gabines' diet consisted mainly of terrestrial protein in conjunction with C3 plants. In comparing the Archaic diet with the earlier Iron Age and later Imperial diets, a shift towards more positive carbon and nitrogen values is seen through time, suggesting both the introduction of new foods and the correlative relationship between foodways and the rise of urbanism in Latium.