No abstract

Even though the importance of salt has diminished in current day society, researchers still contemplate its role and function in ancient societies and their economies. This shouldn't come as a surprise given its multifaceted and essential use in cooking, in craft industries (e.g. metallurgical processes, tannery…) and even in ritual practices. More importantly, salt was the preferred preservative of pre-modern societies enabling them to stuck up on provisions for the winter or military campaigns and to transport perishable products over longer distances. The ubiquitous and vital character salt represents paradoxically opposes the limited accessibility of the resource as salt only occurs in seawater, inland brine springs or geological layers. Its limited access made salt a highly sought after commodity of which the exploitation and trade were often controlled by the state, elites or specific groups within society to ensure not only a local supply for its inhabitants and the military apparatus but also to acquire and maintain wealth and status.