Dataset of oxygen, carbon, and strontium isotope values from the Imperial Roman site of Velia (ca. 1st-2nd c. CE), Italy

The oxygen (δ(18)O(carbonate)), strontium ((87)Sr/(86)Sr), and previously unpublished carbon (δ(13)C(carbonate)) isotope data presented herein from the Imperial Roman site of Velia (ca. 1st to 2nd c. CE) were obtained from the dental enamel of human permanent second molars (M2). In total, the permanent M2s of 20 individuals (10 male and 10 female) were sampled at the Museo delle Civiltà in Rome (formerly the Museo Nazionale Preistorico Etnografico “L. Pigorini”) and were subsequently processed and analysed at McMaster University. A subsample of teeth (n=5) was initially subjected to Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis to assess for diagenetic alteration through calculation of crystallinity index (CI) values. Subsequently, tooth enamel was analysed for δ(13)C(carbonate) and δ(18)O(carbonate) (VPDB) using a VG OPTIMA Isocarb isotope ratio mass spectrometer (IRMS) at McMaster Research for Stable Isotopologues (MRSI), and (87)Sr/(86)Sr was measured by dynamic multi-collection using a thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS) in the School of Geography and Earth Sciences. The dental enamel isotope data presented represent the first δ(18)O, δ(13)C(carbonate), and (87)Sr/(86)Sr values analysed from Imperial Roman Campania to date, providing data of use for comparative analyses of δ(18)O, δ(13)C, and (87)Sr/(86)Sr values within the region and for assisting in documenting human mobility in archaeological contexts. Full interpretation of the δ(18)O and (87)Sr/(86)Sr data presented here is provided in “Imperial Roman mobility and migration at Velia (1(st) to 2(nd) c. CE) in southern Italy” [1].