Salinae
Attested: (1) Ptolemy 2,3,21 Σαλιναι, a πολις of the Κατουελλαυνοι; (2) Salinis at position 65 in the Ravenna Cosmography; (3) Salinis at 93 in the Cosmography
Where: (1) Somewhere near March, Cambridgeshire, TL420980, where the Roman road known as the Fen Causeway met the old course of the river Nene, and the ground changed from peat to silt, as discussed here.
(2) Droitwich, Worcestershire, SO895632, produced salt from its brine pits since at least Roman times.
(3) Northwich, SJ651733, is one of several salt-producing towns in Cheshire, to be slightly preferred to its neighbours Middlewich (Condate) and Nantwich, to give the smoothest track across the map for the Cosmography's sequence of names.
Name origin: Latin salinae ‘salt works’.
Notes: In the ancient world, before there was refrigeration, salt had massive economic importance. Its availability sometimes became the limiting factor for population survival and growth.
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Last edited 9 June 2023 To main Menu