These twenty-seven papers result from a conference held in Rome in 2002, organised by the American Academy in Rome and the Ecole Francaise de Rome. The conference brought together prehistorians, classical archaeologists and medievalists with the aim of discussing the archaeological methodology behind the analysis of industry and commerce in ancient Italy. Arranged thematically, the papers discuss: textile production, the supply of foodstuffs, commercial systems, the production and exchange of pottery, the production of glass and metal, the organisation of the building industry and historiographic studies. The temporal scope of the volume is large, covering the 2nd millennium BC to the medieval period. The case studies are well-illustrated and all begin with an English abstract. One paper in English, six in French, the rest in Italian. The introduction is in English.