Economic Conditions

In the early years of the archaic period the city of Rome occupied an area that did not exceed the sixty square miles. But by the close of the sixth century BC the Roman territory had increased to about four hundred square miles.

ownership. But there is little agreement among historians as to the scope of the institution of private property, or the process by which it was established in early Roman society. According to one theory, initially only moveables, such as domestic animals, farm implements etc., could be privately owned, whereas immovables were subject to collective ownership by the members of the Roman gentes^ Considering the etymology of certain terms of the Roman law of property may be of some assistance here. For example, the derivation of the term mancipatio^ from the phrase manu capere, which meant holding or seizing by hand, might be taken to suggest that, initially, only objects which could be delivered by hand, i.e. moveables, could be privately transferred.

Under the influence of the Etruscans the Romans began to take an interest in commerce and industry, a development precipitated by the transformation of their settlements into a city-state. Archaeological evidence from the seventh and sixth centuries BC has confirmed the presence of a ceramic industry as well as the working of bronze, copper and other materials in the area of Rome. Moreover, the growth of trade in the sixth century BC is evidenced by the fragments of Greek pottery and other artefacts found on the site of the city. It is believed that payment for the various imports was made in kind (probably in timber, salt, cattle etc.), as coinage was not introduced in Rome until the later part of the fourth century BC. Instead of coins the early Romans used in their transactions pieces or ingots of bronze (aes), whose value was determined according to their weight.^[136] [137] [138] After the introduction of a written alphabet at the end of the sixth century BC the Romans began to record their customary rules relating to property and to draft legal documents for certain economic transactions, such as contracts and wills.