A Roman Fish-Processing Facility at Tel Dor, Israel: Reinterpreting the Roman ‘Purple Dye Factory’

Jackson T. Reece; Thomas Levy; Anthony Tamberino; Alexandra Ratzlaff; Marko Runjajić; Assaf Yasur-Landau

doi:10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959

A Roman Fish-Processing Facility at Tel Dor, Israel: Reinterpreting the Roman ‘Purple Dye Factory’

Jackson T. Reece, Thomas Levy, Anthony Tamberino, Alexandra Ratzlaff, Marko Runjajić, Assaf Yasur-Landau

Department of Maritime Civilizations

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

In this article we suggest that the Roman industrial complex on the coast of Tel Dor in Israel, previously interpreted as a purple dye factory, should be reinterpreted as a cetaria of similar scale to those in the western Mediterranean. We use analogous evidence from cetariae in Spain and Morocco to support this new interpretation. The identification of the Tel Dor fish-processing facility sheds new light on the participation of Dor in the globalisation of the Roman Mediterranean economy.

Translated title of the contribution	منشأة رومانية لتجهيز الأسماك في تل دور، إسرائيل: إعادة تفسير “مصنع الصبغة الأرجوانية” الروماني
Original language	English
Journal	International Journal of Nautical Archaeology
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959
State	Accepted/In press - 2025

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Keywords

Roman coastal industry
chaîne opératoire
eastern Mediterranean
murex purple dye
salsamenta

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Oceanography
History
Archaeology
Paleontology

Access to Document

10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959

Cite this

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title = "A Roman Fish-Processing Facility at Tel Dor, Israel: Reinterpreting the Roman {\textquoteleft}Purple Dye Factory{\textquoteright}",

abstract = "In this article we suggest that the Roman industrial complex on the coast of Tel Dor in Israel, previously interpreted as a purple dye factory, should be reinterpreted as a cetaria of similar scale to those in the western Mediterranean. We use analogous evidence from cetariae in Spain and Morocco to support this new interpretation. The identification of the Tel Dor fish-processing facility sheds new light on the participation of Dor in the globalisation of the Roman Mediterranean economy.",

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author = "Reece, \{Jackson T.\} and Thomas Levy and Anthony Tamberino and Alexandra Ratzlaff and Marko Runjaji{\'c} and Assaf Yasur-Landau",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor \& Francis Group.",

year = "2025",

doi = "10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959",

language = "English",

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T2 - Reinterpreting the Roman ‘Purple Dye Factory’

AU - Reece, Jackson T.

AU - Levy, Thomas

AU - Tamberino, Anthony

AU - Ratzlaff, Alexandra

AU - Runjajić, Marko

AU - Yasur-Landau, Assaf

PY - 2025

Y1 - 2025

N2 - In this article we suggest that the Roman industrial complex on the coast of Tel Dor in Israel, previously interpreted as a purple dye factory, should be reinterpreted as a cetaria of similar scale to those in the western Mediterranean. We use analogous evidence from cetariae in Spain and Morocco to support this new interpretation. The identification of the Tel Dor fish-processing facility sheds new light on the participation of Dor in the globalisation of the Roman Mediterranean economy.

AB - In this article we suggest that the Roman industrial complex on the coast of Tel Dor in Israel, previously interpreted as a purple dye factory, should be reinterpreted as a cetaria of similar scale to those in the western Mediterranean. We use analogous evidence from cetariae in Spain and Morocco to support this new interpretation. The identification of the Tel Dor fish-processing facility sheds new light on the participation of Dor in the globalisation of the Roman Mediterranean economy.

KW - Roman coastal industry

KW - chaîne opératoire

KW - eastern Mediterranean

KW - murex purple dye

KW - salsamenta

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105010702176

U2 - 10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959

DO - 10.1080/10572414.2025.2518959

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:105010702176

SN - 1057-2414

JO - International Journal of Nautical Archaeology

JF - International Journal of Nautical Archaeology

ER -

A Roman Fish-Processing Facility at Tel Dor, Israel: Reinterpreting the Roman ‘Purple Dye Factory’

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Access to Document

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