I cosiddddetti oscilla e l'economia della lana di Taranto: nuove prospettive d'indagine

Among the thousands remain from the Hellenistic layers of Taranto, there are hundreds of small, flat terracotta disks with two holes for the suspension, generally referred to as oscilla. These objects are characterized by the presence of stamps and decorations, and have been interpreted either as ex voto or as loom-weights. The analysis of all the items retained in the National Archaeological Museum of Taranto spreads new light on the function of these artifacts that, made primarily as loom-weights for the production of some special wool tissues, in Taranto were also used to record two main types of data: the name of men and women involved in the production/selling of wool and tissues, and the payment of a tribute called 'half-an-obol' (hemiodélion), a tax imposed and collected by the polis on producers/sellers of wool and woven tissues. So the stamps on the discoid loom-weights reveal a complex and structured system of fiscal administration of the wool industry in one of the most important wool producing-cities of that time. Wool production was probably the dominant industry of the Tarantine economy, providing revenues for both the city and the citizens. A city of Spartan tradition, where women participated actively and at different levels in the economic life