Image search results - "Pompeii" |
Italy- Pompeii- The BasilacaBASILICA
Forum of Pompeii c. 120 B.C. These more massive columns are from the basilica, the most important public building in Pompeii. Constructed prior to the Roman period, the basilica had three aisles and five entrance doors onto the forum. In the rear we see a two-tiered colonnade which has columns in the Doric style on the bottom and slender Ionic columns on top of a cross beam. In Pompeii many columns were made of brick and covered with stucco.
BASILICA (VIII,1,1)
Built in the second half of the 2nd cent. BC, as part of the plan to create monuments throughout the city. It has a rectangular layout, with three naves, with a ceiling sloping straight down in both directions from the central columns and half columns at the top of the walls, where there are still remains of decorations in ‘first style’: at the back is the tribunal, where the magistrates sat, reached by a wooden staircase. The building was dedicated to administering justice and for business negotiations.
Peter Wissing
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Pompeii Temple of Jupiter StepsSteps leading up to the temple of JupiterJay GT4
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090 Vespasian"Looks like Vespasian, first issue of 71 with full name VESPASIANVS:
IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG P M T P P P COS III, bust laureate r. resting on globe and with aegis on shoulder
FIDES EXERCITVVM, S C in ex. , clasped hands before legionary eagle on prow.
The obverse die is A23 in Colin Kraay's unpublished Oxford dissertation, the rev. die P75. Kraay didn't know this die combination, but it is recorded by RIC 70 from a single specimen in the Termopolio Hoard from Pompeii, published in 1997.
These are rare types: only one other obv. die of the issue shows this combination of aegis and globe for the bust, and this is the only rev. die of the FIDES EXERCITVVM type used in the issue, though a second such die was used later in the year with Vespasian's name abbreviated VESPASIAN (no -VS).
To see what your dies looked like before the corrosion, see RIC pl. 18, 117 and pl. 16, 71 for the obv. and rev. respectively! These are the same two dies on well preserved specimens in other die combinations."
thanks for the help Curtislclay !
New picRandygeki(h2)
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Cr 465/8b C. Considius Paetus AR Sestertius Rome 46 b.c.e
o: [C·CON]SID[IVS] Winged bust of Cupid r.
r: Double cornucopiae set on globe.
10 mm, 0.78 gm Considia 11. Syd. 997b. CRI 81a.
Paetus may have been a Pompeiian general, or a non-entity (more likely current consensus)
These tiny sestertii are very rare, issued for uncertain purpose, almost all poorly struck and in weak preservation. See RBW Collection lots 407 and 408.PMah
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Fresco fragment from PompeiiPlease click the pic for full size version the information card will then be readable.Philoromaos
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Gladiators on Funerary tombPainting depicting two gladiators on a Funerary tomb in PompeiiJay GT4
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Greece, Thera - Akrotiri Minoan settelment was destroyed by the great Thera eruption around 1628 BC which caused the end of Neopalatial period on Crete. People managed to evacuate Thera before eruption unlike Pompeii but probably they were killed by tsunami on Crete coast.
wikipedia:"Minoans possessed advanced engineering knowledge enabling the construction of three- and four-story buildings with intricate water piping systems, advanced air-flow management, and earthquake-resistant wood and masonry walls."J. B.
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Italy, PompeiiA well-known mosaic in an entryway of an affluent household, but it still never fails to please :-) July 2008Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - Alcove mosaicA mosaic in an alcove.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Altar of the Temple to VespasianA stunning relief on the face of the Altar to Vespasian.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - AmphitheatreJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - AmphitheatreExterior of the Amphitheatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - AmphitheatreInterior of the Amphitheatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - AmphitheatreInterior of the Amphitheatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - AmphitheatreInterior of the Amphitheatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - bakeryHere's a bakery, complete with oven. When this was unearthed, there were several loaves of bread inside, intact, but a little overdone ;-) July 2008Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - bathInside the public bathhouse. Much like the "Occulus" in the Pantheon, the window to the upper left is the only light source in the room.Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - cemetaryJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - Column in the BasilicaA column in the Basilica
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Doric TheatreThe Doric theatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Floor mozaicDetail of one of the many floor mozaics around Pompeii.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - ForumJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - ForumJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - FrescoFresco from the Porto Marina sector.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - graffitiAncient graffiti (gladiator standing left) on a wall. Visitors can walk right up and touch it. July 2008Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - House of Menander House of Menander .
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Large TheatreThe large theatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Large Theatre (statue)One of a pair of statues that flank the entrance to the large theatre
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Marble tripod table legs A marble tripod table legs decorated with lion heads .
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - modest villaInside one of the more modest villas in Pompeii, although you'd never know it by the still-beautiful murals on the walls and the fountain there to the right.Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - OdeonJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - Plastered wallA fantastic plastered wall
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Puteal decorated with lion headsA terracotta puteal deorated with lion heads
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - residential streetOne of the numerous residential streets in Pompeii. July 2008Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - Selfie with VesuviusI am not part of the Selfie generation. My first ever (and possibly last) attempt at a selfie. Me in Pompeii with Vesuvius in the background.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - storage at forumJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - Stored artefactsA selection of the items found and stored in Pompeii.
Of primary interest in this one is the large box.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Stored artefactsA selection of the items found and stored in Pompeii.
Of primary interest in this one are the statue and sculptures.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Stored artefactsA selection of the items found and stored in Pompei.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Stored artefactsA selection of the items found and stored in Pompei.
Of primary interest in this one is the wooden cart.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - streetAnother great shot of another street in Pompeii. The stepping stones in the foreground can be found all around the city. As I'm sure you know, water ran constantly through the streets, and pedestrians used these stepping stones to keep their feet dry.Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - temple of ApolloJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - The BasilicaA view of the Basilica
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - The ForumThe Forum
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - The Forum end of the BasilicaThe Forum end of the Basilica
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - The Forum end of the BasilicaThe Forum end of the Basilica
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - Vesuv in the backgroundJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - Vesuvius still looms largeA view from the inside of one of themany buildings, through the doorway with Vesuvius in the background still looming large over Pompeii
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii - victims of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD.One of the unfortunate victims of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD.Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - villa This is one of the more fashionable villas in town. Note the private garden area to the rear. The small pool in the foreground was for catching rainwater falling through a specially made hole in the roof. July 2008Mark Z
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Italy, Pompeii - villa of MeneanderJ. B.
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Italy, Pompeii - Wall moulding detailA cupid sitting on a half lion, half fish. Part of a wall moulding.
From my visit to Pompeii in August 2015 maridvnvm
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Italy, Pompeii, July 2008A picture high up on the wall of the brothel, depicting what the paying customer could expect in the room beneath it.Mark Z
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Italy- Napoli Museum- Sacrofaq and a woman from PompeiiPeter Wissing
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Italy- Napoli Museum- Small Bronze figures from PompeiiPeter Wissing
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Italy- Napoli Museum- The famous couple Paquio and wife from PompeiiPortrait of Paquio and His Wife
Pompeii, Wall Painting, c. A.D. 70
Another relevante contribution to the Naples Museum, and under many aspects a peculiar one, derived from the excavations of the cities buried by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A.D. , mainly Herculaneum and Pompeii.
It was a sudden catastrophe which buried the cities under a layer of volcanic material, so that buildings, art works and often also remains of organic material have been miraculously preserved underground much better than on any other archaeological site, where gradual abandonment destruction have deprived us of most documents of its culture.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Napoli- Mount_vesuviusOn August 24 of 79 A.D., the area around Mount Vesuvius shook with a huge earthquake. The mountain's top split open and a monstrous cloud raced upward. The inhabitants of Pompeii were showered with ash, stones, and pumice. A river of mud was beginning to bury the city of Herculaneum. The uncle of Pliny the Younger, known as Pliny the Elder, was a commander of a fleet of war ships at Misenum (see map). He decided to use his ships to rescue people close to the volcano. The nephew describes the huge cloud towering over the area (Radice, 1969):
. . . its general appearance can best be expressed as being like a pine rather than any other tree, for it rose to a great height on a sort of trunk and then split off into branches, I imagine because it was thrust upwards by the first blast and then left unsupported as the pressure subsided, or else it was borne down by its own weight so that it spread out and gradually dispersed. Sometimes it looked white, sometimes blotched and dirty, according to the amount of soil and ashes it carried with it. (p. 427)
Pliny the Elder's ship approached the shore near Pompeii.
Ashes were already falling, hotter and thicker as the ships drew near, followed by bits of pumice and blackened stones, charred and cracked by the flames . . . Meanwhile on Mount Vesuvius broad sheets of fire and leaping flames blazed at several points, their bright glare emphasized by the darkness of night. (pp. 429, 431)
But they could not land because the shore was blocked by volcanic debris, so they sailed south and landed at Stabiae. Hoping to quiet the frightened people, the uncle asked to be carried to the bath house. Afterward he lay down and ate. Next, hoping to quiet the inhabitants, he went to bed. The volcano did not do likewise, however.
By this time the courtyard giving access to his room was full of ashes mixed with pumice-stones, so that its level had risen, and if he had stayed in the room any longer he would never had got out. . . . They debated whether to stay indoors or take their chance in the open, for the buildings were now shaking with violent shocks, and seemed to be swaying to and fro as if they were torn from their foundations. Outside on the other hand, there was the danger of falling pumice-stones, even though these were light and porous. . . . As a protection against falling objects they put pillows on their heads tied down with cloths. (pp. 431, 433)
Finally, the uncle decided to leave. The level of ash and pumice-stone had risen to the point that a hasty departure seemed the best option.
. . . the flames and smell of sulphur which gave warning of the approaching fire drove the others to take flight and roused him to stand up . . . then [he] suddenly collapsed, I imagine because the dense fumes choked his breathing by blocking his windpipe which was constitutionally weak and narrow and often inflamed . . . his body was found intact and uninjured, still fully clothed and looking more like sleep than death. (p. 433)
Later, Pliny the Younger and his mother leave Misenam to escape from the approaching volcanic conflagration. They travel across country to avoid being trampled by the crowds of people on the road.
We also saw the sea sucked away and apparently forced back by the earthquake: at any rate it receded from the shore so that quantities of sea creatures were left stranded on dry sand. On the landward side a fearful black cloud was rent by forked and quivering bursts of flame, and parted to reveal great tongues of fire, like flashes of lightning magnified in size. . . . We had scarcely sat down to rest when darkness fell, not the dark of a moonless or cloudy night, but as if the lamp had been put out in a closed room. You could hear the shrieks of women, the wailing of infants, and the shouting of men; some were calling their parents, others their children or their wives, trying to recognize them by their voices. People bewailed their own fate or that of their relatives, and there were some who prayed for death in their terror of dying
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- a barFOOD AND WINE SHOP Via dell'Abbondanza Pompeii
The thermopolium was a shop selling wine and warm food. At this busy corner on the Via dell'Abbondanza, the food was kept in terra-cotta pots sunk in the serving counter. It could be eaten at the shop or taken out.Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Bakery with its grain millBAKERY Strada Stabiana Pompeii
These are some mill-wheels which ground the flour in the bakery or pistrinum. The top part rotates around the bottom stationary stone.
HOUSE OF THE BAKER (VI,3,3)
This dates from the 2nd cent. BC, but the remodelling after the 62 AD earthquake converted the ground floor of the house into workrooms, while the residential function moved to the top floor, reached by the stairs to the right of the atrium entrance: it appears that work was not yet complete at the time of the eruption (79 AD). For a long time this was the only large bakery brought to light in Pompeii, among the 35 now known. The hortus (garden) contained the machinery for grinding wheat and for preparing and baking bread: the water basins, the vaulted oven, four millstones of lava rock on a base in opus incertum. In the open room on the right, two stone blocks supported the table on which the bread rested before baking, while the room to the left of the tablinum was the kitchen. The feed bin was against the wall of the stalls, which open onto the garden and Vico di Modesto: here it seems that a fully harnessed mule skeleton was found.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Big House and house with drain in the cornerWhat strikes you most about Pompeii - and also Herculaneum for that matter - is that they are both very neatly laid-out cities, very elegant and very orderly. There was running water in the houses, as the numerous indoor fountains would testify. There were public baths - Roman style - with separate entrances for men and women; while the walls of both were decorated with terracotta statues, the women's baths were much more elegant with exquisite floral mosaics. There were separate dressing rooms called apodyterium, cold bath - frigidairium - warm bath - tepidarium - and hot bath - calidarium. The calidarium was heated by a system of double walls and a hollow floor, which provided circulation for hot air and steam. The large cold water basin has inscriptions with names of the donors who funded its construction. There was also the palaestra or the gymnasium and separate areas for ablutions. There were public latrines with running water channels. In fact, the baths take up quite a bit of space in Pompeii and Herculaneum, pointing to the fastidiousness of early Romans when it came to personal hygiene. In Herculaneum, there is even a bronze bath-tub that is still intact.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- BrothelSome of the most fascinating clues about the lives of the ancient peoples who made their lives in Pompeii can be found in the numerous brothels in the city. It is an indication of the prosperity of the city -- people had money to burn. Here is one example of the Pompeian "houses of ill repute". I chose this one because of its unusual architecture and fine frescoes.
Ancient Pompeii was full of erotic or pornographic frescoes, symbols, inscriptions, and even household items. The ancient Roman culture of the time was much more sexually permissive than most present-day cultures.
When the serious excavation of Pompeii began in the 18th century, a clash of the cultures was the result. A fresco on a wall that showed the ancient god of sex and fertility, Priapus with his extremely enlarged penis, was covered with plaster and only rediscovered because of rainfall in 1998.[1] In 1819, when king Francis I of Naples visited the exhibition at the National Museum with his wife and daughter, he was so embarrassed by the erotic artwork that he decided to have it locked away in a secret cabinet, accessible only to "people of mature age and respected morals." Re-opened, closed, re-opened again and then closed again for nearly 100 years, it was made briefly accessible again at the end of the 1960s (the time of the sexual revolution) and has finally been re-opened in the year 2000. Minors are not allowed entry to the once secret cabinet without a guardian or a written permission.As previously mentioned, some of the paintings and frescoes became immediately famous because they represented erotic, sometimes explicit, sexual scenes. One of the most curious buildings recovered was in fact a Lupanare (brothel), which had many erotic paintings and graffiti indicating the services available -- patrons only had to point to what they wanted. The Lupanare had 10 rooms (cubicula, 5 per floor), a balcony, and a latrina. It was one of the larger houses, perhaps the largest, but not the only brothel. The town seems to have been oriented to a warm consideration of sensual matters: on a wall of the Basilica (sort of a civil tribunal, thus frequented by many Roman tourists and travelers), an immortal inscription tells the foreigner, If anyone is looking for some tender love in this town, keep in mind that here all the girls are very friendly (loose translation).
The function of these pictures is not yet clear: some authors say that they indicate that the services of prostitutes were available on the upper floor of the house and could perhaps be a sort of advertising, while others prefer the hypothesis that their only purpose was to decorate the walls with joyful scenes (as these were in Roman culture). The Termae were, however, used in common by males and females, although baths in other areas (even within Pompeii) were often segregated by sex.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Entrance 1AUGUST 23, A.D. 79. The day dawned bright and sunny as usual and seemed full of promise. The citizens of Pompeii went about their daily business, blissfully unaware of what destiny had in store for them. They were totally unprepared when late in the evening their world erupted in a pyroclastic flow - of molten lava, pumice, ash, hot stones and debris, suffocating, singeing, charring and melting everything that lay in its path as a river of fire gushed out in primordial fury down the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. Pompeii and its 20,000 inhabitants were buried alive in an instant.
"Ashes were already falling, hotter and thicker as the ships drew near, followed by bits of pumice and blackened stones, charred and cracked by the flames . . . Meanwhile on Mount Vesuvius broad sheets of fire and leaping flames blazed at several points, their bright glare emphasised by the darkness of night."
This is an excerpt from a live account of the events of that fateful day, recorded for posterity by Pliny the Younger, a Roman historian. At the time of the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, the Roman fleet under the command of Pliny the Elder was stationed across the Bay of Naples. A foolhardy Pliny the Elder launched ships and sailed toward the erupting volcano for a closer look only to be suffocated to death. Pliny's nephew, known as Pliny the Younger, was with him on that day, but had stayed back at Misenum. He had witnessed the eruption and also received first-hand reports from those who were with his uncle in the latter's last moments.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Entrance PORTA MARINA AND THE CITY WALLSPORTA MARINA AND THE CITY WALLS
Similar to a bastion, facing west, together with Porta Ercolano it is the most imposing of the seven gates of Pompeii. It takes its name from the fact that its road led to the sea. It has two barrel arches (round arch opening), later combined into a single, large barrel vault in opus caementicium. The ring of the walls visible today, already present in the 6th cent. BC, is over 3200 m long: it is generally a solid ring of wall, protected on the outside by a moat and inside by an embankment, atop which runs the patrol walkway. Twelve towers to the north, where the flat ground made Pompeii most vulnerable, also ensured its defense. Pompeii's definitive entry into the Roman orbit (with the Sullan colonization: 80 BC) reduced the importance of the walls, which were occasionally reused or destroyed to make room for houses and baths.
THE CITY WALLS
Pompeii rests on a plateau of Vesuvian lava, whose walls represented a solid natural protection, just the wall to the north were more vulnerable.
The ring of walls was 3220 m. long. Seven identified gates opened in the walls, while the existence of an eighth (Porta Capua) one was uncertain.
The materials used for the walls were mostly: Sarno stone and grey Nucerian tufo. At the beginning the walls were made of Vesuvian lava or ‘pappamonte’ blocks, later made of a double parallel row, than filled with stones and ground.
During the Samnite wars were built the fortifications with the ‘ad aggere’ system, with an embankment inner the city.
During the 3rd century B.C. was probably built an inner calcareous and tufo row, with buttresses and round the top of the walls ran a patrol walkway.
The last phase of construction of the fortifications was dated about the age before Sulla’s conquest: on the more vulnerable side of the walls guard towers in opus incertum were built, with regular distance.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Entrance to the house of FaunoHOUSE OF THE FAUN (VI,12,2)
With its 3000m² it is the largest house in Pompeii: built over a previous dwelling at the beginning of the 2nd century BC, its current form is the result of subsequent alterations. The entrance on the left leads directly into the public section, the door on the right to the private rooms: an atrium whose roof is supported by four columns, stalls, latrine, baths, kitchen. In the entrance is the Latin message HAVE. The ‘first style’ decoration, the floors of sectile opus, and the mosaic threshold (now at the Naples Museum) highlight the dignity of this house, more similar to the aristocratic Roman domus than local upper class dwellings. In the center of the impluvium is a bronze statue of the ‘faun’ (2nd cent. BC: original in Naples); around it are rooms that held mosaic paintings on the floor and ‘first style’ decorations on the walls. Between the two porticoed gardens is the exedra, the core of the dwelling, with Corinthian columns, stuccoed and painted capitals, a splendid mosaic (now at the N
aples Museum) depicting the victory of Alexander the Great over Darius, King of Persia, which has helped to suggest a connection between the Macedonian ruler and the unknown, educated, and wealthy owner of the
FLOOR PLAN OF THE HOUSE OF THE FAUN Pompeii 2nd Century Courtesy of Professor Barbette Spaeth, Tulane University (Excerpted from Professor Spaeth's accompanying text) This house was among the largest and most elegant of the houses of Pompeii. It took up an entire city block (c. 80 m. long by 35 m. wide or 315 by 115 ft.) and was filled with beautiful works of art, including the famous mosaic depicting Alexander the Great at the Battle of Issus, and wall paintings of the First, Second and Fourth Styles. The decoration of the house is heavily influenced by Hellenistic models. The House of the Faun was originally built in the early second century. In this period, the house was focused around two atria, one a large Tuscan atrium (3), and the other a smaller tetrastyle atrium (10), while the back of the house had a large kitchen garden. The two-atria plan represented an attempt to separate the formal functions of the atrium, i.e., the reception of clients and conduct of business by the patron of the house, from its private functions, i.e., the course of everyday family life. This type of plan is an intermediate step between the simple atrium house, with a single atrium complex, and the atrium and peristyle house. Apparently, the two-atria plan did not prove ultimately satisfactory for the owners of the House of the Faun. In the late second century B.C. they added a peristyle (8) to the north of the original two-atria nucleus, along with a service quarter to the eastern side (12-16), and reception rooms to the north. The rear of the house contained the kitchen garden. To this later period of the house belong its wall decorations in First Style and its famous mosaics. Finally, another peristyle was added around the time of the Early Roman Colony (20), that is, in the early first century B.C. This peristyle included more reception rooms along the south side (17 & 18), and smaller rooms, perhaps for servants, to the north (22) . The center of the new peristyle was occupied by the kitchen garden (19). With these renovations, the house acquired a new focus around the peristyles. The peristyles represented a private retreat for the family, a place where they could relax and entertain special guests. The front part of the house was kept for more formal occasions. The addition of service quarters reflects a further differentiation of function in the house, again separating the daily life of the family from the more public reception areas. The House of the Faun, with its elaborate decoration and extensive plan, represents one of the most important examples of Roman domus architecture of the second to first century B.C.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Entrance to the house of Fauno 1House of the Faun. Fauces
FLOOR PLAN OF THE HOUSE OF THE FAUN Pompeii 2nd Century Courtesy of Professor Barbette Spaeth, Tulane University (Excerpted from Professor Spaeth's accompanying text) This house was among the largest and most elegant of the houses of Pompeii. It took up an entire city block (c. 80 m. long by 35 m. wide or 315 by 115 ft.) and was filled with beautiful works of art, including the famous mosaic depicting Alexander the Great at the Battle of Issus, and wall paintings of the First, Second and Fourth Styles. The decoration of the house is heavily influenced by Hellenistic models. The House of the Faun was originally built in the early second century. In this period, the house was focused around two atria, one a large Tuscan atrium (3), and the other a smaller tetrastyle atrium (10), while the back of the house had a large kitchen garden. The two-atria plan represented an attempt to separate the formal functions of the atrium, i.e., the reception of clients and conduct of business by the patron of the house, from its private functions, i.e., the course of everyday family life. This type of plan is an intermediate step between the simple atrium house, with a single atrium complex, and the atrium and peristyle house. Apparently, the two-atria plan did not prove ultimately satisfactory for the owners of the House of the Faun. In the late second century B.C. they added a peristyle (8) to the north of the original two-atria nucleus, along with a service quarter to the eastern side (12-16), and reception rooms to the north. The rear of the house contained the kitchen garden. To this later period of the house belong its wall decorations in First Style and its famous mosaics. Finally, another peristyle was added around the time of the Early Roman Colony (20), that is, in the early first century B.C. This peristyle included more reception rooms along the south side (17 & 18), and smaller rooms, perhaps for servants, to the north (22) . The center of the new peristyle was occupied by the kitchen garden (19). With these renovations, the house acquired a new focus around the peristyles. The peristyles represented a private retreat for the family, a place where they could relax and entertain special guests. The front part of the house was kept for more formal occasions. The addition of service quarters reflects a further differentiation of function in the house, again separating the daily life of the family from the more public reception areas. The House of the Faun, with its elaborate decoration and extensive plan, represents one of the most important examples of Roman domus architecture of the second to first century B.C.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- ExitAUGUST 23, A.D. 79. The day dawned bright and sunny as usual and seemed full of promise. The citizens of Pompeii went about their daily business, blissfully unaware of what destiny had in store for them. They were totally unprepared when late in the evening their world erupted in a pyroclastic flow - of molten lava, pumice, ash, hot stones and debris, suffocating, singeing, charring and melting everything that lay in its path as a river of fire gushed out in primordial fury down the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. Pompeii and its 20,000 inhabitants were buried alive in an instant.
"Ashes were already falling, hotter and thicker as the ships drew near, followed by bits of pumice and blackened stones, charred and cracked by the flames . . . Meanwhile on Mount Vesuvius broad sheets of fire and leaping flames blazed at several points, their bright glare emphasised by the darkness of night."
This is an excerpt from a live account of the events of that fateful day, recorded for posterity by Pliny the Younger, a Roman historian. At the time of the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius, the Roman fleet under the command of Pliny the Elder was stationed across the Bay of Naples. A foolhardy Pliny the Elder launched ships and sailed toward the erupting volcano for a closer look only to be suffocated to death. Pliny's nephew, known as Pliny the Younger, was with him on that day, but had stayed back at Misenum. He had witnessed the eruption and also received first-hand reports from those who were with his uncle in the latter's last moments.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- House of Fauno with bronze statuette of Fauno and nice mosaic floorFLOOR PLAN OF THE HOUSE OF THE FAUN Pompeii 2nd Century Courtesy of Professor Barbette Spaeth, Tulane University (Excerpted from Professor Spaeth's accompanying text) This house was among the largest and most elegant of the houses of Pompeii. It took up an entire city block (c. 80 m. long by 35 m. wide or 315 by 115 ft.) and was filled with beautiful works of art, including the famous mosaic depicting Alexander the Great at the Battle of Issus, and wall paintings of the First, Second and Fourth Styles. The decoration of the house is heavily influenced by Hellenistic models. The House of the Faun was originally built in the early second century. In this period, the house was focused around two atria, one a large Tuscan atrium (3), and the other a smaller tetrastyle atrium (10), while the back of the house had a large kitchen garden. The two-atria plan represented an attempt to separate the formal functions of the atrium, i.e., the reception of clients and conduct of business by the patron of the house, from its private functions, i.e., the course of everyday family life. This type of plan is an intermediate step between the simple atrium house, with a single atrium complex, and the atrium and peristyle house. Apparently, the two-atria plan did not prove ultimately satisfactory for the owners of the House of the Faun. In the late second century B.C. they added a peristyle (8) to the north of the original two-atria nucleus, along with a service quarter to the eastern side (12-16), and reception rooms to the north. The rear of the house contained the kitchen garden. To this later period of the house belong its wall decorations in First Style and its famous mosaics. Finally, another peristyle was added around the time of the Early Roman Colony (20), that is, in the early first century B.C. This peristyle included more reception rooms along the south side (17 & 18), and smaller rooms, perhaps for servants, to the north (22) . The center of the new peristyle was occupied by the kitchen garden (19). With these renovations, the house acquired a new focus around the peristyles. The peristyles represented a private retreat for the family, a place where they could relax and entertain special guests. The front part of the house was kept for more formal occasions. The addition of service quarters reflects a further differentiation of function in the house, again separating the daily life of the family from the more public reception areas. The House of the Faun, with its elaborate decoration and extensive plan, represents one of the most important examples of Roman domus architecture of the second to first century B.CPeter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- House of Fauno with nice mosaic floorFLOOR PLAN OF THE HOUSE OF THE FAUN Pompeii 2nd Century Courtesy of Professor Barbette Spaeth, Tulane University (Excerpted from Professor Spaeth's accompanying text) This house was among the largest and most elegant of the houses of Pompeii. It took up an entire city block (c. 80 m. long by 35 m. wide or 315 by 115 ft.) and was filled with beautiful works of art, including the famous mosaic depicting Alexander the Great at the Battle of Issus, and wall paintings of the First, Second and Fourth Styles. The decoration of the house is heavily influenced by Hellenistic models. The House of the Faun was originally built in the early second century. In this period, the house was focused around two atria, one a large Tuscan atrium (3), and the other a smaller tetrastyle atrium (10), while the back of the house had a large kitchen garden. The two-atria plan represented an attempt to separate the formal functions of the atrium, i.e., the reception of clients and conduct of business by the patron of the house, from its private functions, i.e., the course of everyday family life. This type of plan is an intermediate step between the simple atrium house, with a single atrium complex, and the atrium and peristyle house. Apparently, the two-atria plan did not prove ultimately satisfactory for the owners of the House of the Faun. In the late second century B.C. they added a peristyle (8) to the north of the original two-atria nucleus, along with a service quarter to the eastern side (12-16), and reception rooms to the north. The rear of the house contained the kitchen garden. To this later period of the house belong its wall decorations in First Style and its famous mosaics. Finally, another peristyle was added around the time of the Early Roman Colony (20), that is, in the early first century B.C. This peristyle included more reception rooms along the south side (17 & 18), and smaller rooms, perhaps for servants, to the north (22) . The center of the new peristyle was occupied by the kitchen garden (19). With these renovations, the house acquired a new focus around the peristyles. The peristyles represented a private retreat for the family, a place where they could relax and entertain special guests. The front part of the house was kept for more formal occasions. The addition of service quarters reflects a further differentiation of function in the house, again separating the daily life of the family from the more public reception areas. The House of the Faun, with its elaborate decoration and extensive plan, represents one of the most important examples of Roman domus architecture of the second to first century B.CPeter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- House with nice mosaic and fountain 1FOUNTAIN
House of the Small Fountain Pompeii Another fountain with mosaic decorations, including abstract and geometric designs, fish, shells, and other sea life.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- House with remains of painting and streetPeter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Human body and artefactsThis plaster cast shows a man when disaster struck in Pompeii. The fascinating story of the last days of Pompeii lives on in plaster casts obtained by pouring plaster into human-shaped empty spaces that a 19th century archaeologist found among the ruins.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Human body and artefacts 1Jars used for holding wines and olive oil found in Pompeii, still intact.
This plaster cast shows a prone man when disaster struck in Pompeii. The fascinating story of the last days of Pompeii lives on in plaster casts obtained by pouring plaster into human-shaped empty spaces that a 19th century archaeologist found among the ruins.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Human body of a kid praying before dieing and artefacts 1This plaster cast shows a man huddled up in his shop when disaster struck in Pompeii. The fascinating story of the last days of Pompeii lives on in plaster casts obtained by pouring plaster into human-shaped empty spaces that a 19th century archaeologist found among the ruins.
Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Mensa Ponderaria marbel tabel to weigh grainCorrect units of measurementPeter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Street and a housesINTERSECTION Pompeii After 80 B.C.
This is a typical intersection. Wheeled traffic passed over and around the pedestrian stepping stones.Peter Wissing
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Italy- Pompeii- Street and a wall with a fallos in the top leftINTERSECTION Pompeii After 80 B.C.
This is a typical intersection. Wheeled traffic passed over and around the pedestrian stepping stones.
House with a fallos in the top left cornerPeter Wissing
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