Agriculture and agricultural practice in Roman law

This examination is based on the Digests, the Institutions, the Code of Justinian and the Theodosian Code. Roman law deals with reality in farming and does not advocate any particular agricultural theories and from this point of view has no biases. The biases it has, such as those in favour of the Imperial authority and the large landowners, and their interests and problems, are examined. The material is discussed in a series of separate topics. First, the legal terms for farms require clarification. Then follow discussions of farm equipment, including machinery, of farm personnel, free and otherwise, of livestock, plants and farm produce, all in their agricultural as well as legal contexts. Garbage and manure merit legal scrutiny, and so are studied here, as are woodlands and hunting. The types of buildings and their furnishings are looked at, and the legal rights and obligations that bear on agricultural practice including taxes. Finally there is a discussion of vacant lands.