The workshop of a tanner was key to life in Rome as this is where animal hides were prepared to produce leather. An amazing ornamented table was discovered in the tannery garden of Pompeii and shown here. It depicts a skull with a butterfly symbolising the fluttering of the disembodied soul and the flight of time. On the right side of a scale/level is a beggars tattered robe and on the left is a mantle of royal purple. The plumb line on the level hangs straight down showing that fate sooner or later equalises the lots of all mankind. Nearby in the tannery is etched the phrase: Mors Orem villeins, Vivite, alt, venio. Death plucks my ear and says Live for I come.

Casal Bertone was in Roman times, like today, a suburb just outside the Aurelian walls of Rome. The Porta Maggiore shown here was a key gate into the city and just 1.2 km from our archaeological site. There was a villa, a Roman road, a nymphaeum and cemetery with mausoleum - but what stands out the most was a huge 1055 square meter tannery complex - three times larger than any other near Rome. Key to the tannery operations was water - the nearby ditch provided the necessary water and was fed by the spring waters of the Fosso della Marranella - the only natural lake in Rome which in ancient times flowed directly into the Tiber.

With Rome being one of the most complex and advanced civilisations in history, there were highly efficient social structures in place that allowed for specialised and high production of items. Leather was critical for the Roman army as it was needed for sandals, boots, armour, chariots and horse equipment. Hides for leather came from butchers and the tanning process produced some very unpleasant smells - this is why the tannery in Casal Bertone was located outside the city walls. This tannery was vast with 97 tubs up to 1 meter in diameter. Workers were buried in a nearby necropolis. The bodies show signs of heavy labor and trauma and these individuals appear to be from different ethnic backgrounds around the empire.

The process of the Chouara Tannery in Fez Morocco remains the same as that in Ancient Rome. The vats and layout remain unchanged as does the process and materials. Hides of cows, sheep, goats and camels are processing by soaking in a series of white liquids made of cow urine, pigeon faces, quicklime, salt and water. This softens the skins for a few days before they are placed into dyes. Poppy is used for red, indigo for blue, henna for orange. Emperors would wear Roman Tyrian purple which was produced from secretions of predatory sea snails. Once dyeing was complete, the skins would be dried in the sun.