Villa

Land was a major commodity in the Roman world. The elite were quick to realise its value and began investing in farmland, hiring and exploiting slave labour to run their enterprises. New farms grew on the outskirts of Rome, with villas for landowners when they wished to visit. These 'villa rustica' and their surrounding farmlands were the origins of the large agricultural estates or 'latifundia' that came about when wealthy landowners took over peasant farms on a large scale. The idea of villa rustica also appealed to a Roman's idea of a simple, virtuous lifestyle.