Stopped in its tracks by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, Pompeii offers the best look anywhere at what life in Rome must have been like 2,000 years ago. An entire city of well-preserved ruins is ours to explore.
The city of Pompeii was born on this hill, and this is what it looks like to approach the original town gate. Founded around 600 BD, from Greek and Etruscan roots, Pompeii eventually became a booming Roman trading city. Not rich, not poor, it was middle class – a fine example of typical Roman life. By the 1st century AD, Rome controlled the entire Mediterranean – making it a kind of free-trade zone – and Pompeii was a bustling port town. In fact, before Vesuvius blew and changed the landscape, the sea came right up to the town.
Notice that the gate has two opening. Both were left open by day to admit major traffic. At night, the larger one was closed for better security.
Pompeii’s Streets – We’ve entered Pompeii on the same main street that the ancients used. The basalt stones are the original Roman pavement. The sidewalks – where were elevated to hide plumbing underneath – were paved with bits of broken pots. It was an ancient form of recylcling. They were also studded with bits of reflective white marble. These so-called “cats’ eyes” helped people get around after dark, either by moonlight or with the help of help of lamps.
The three raised stones in the middle of the road were a kind of ancient crosswalk. Every day, Pompeiians flooded the streets with gushing water to clean them out. These stepping stones let pedestrians cross without getting their sandals wet. Chariots traveling in either direction could straddle the stones. Roman chariots all had standard-size axles. A street with a single stepping stone in a road meant it was a one-way street; a pair of stones indicates an ordinary two-way lane; and three stones (like above) signifies a major thoroughfare.
The Forum – Pompeii’s commercial, religious, and political center – the Forum – stands at the intersection of the city’s two main streets. While this main square is the most ruined part of Pompeii, it’s grand nevertheless.
Picture Pompeii in its 1st-century heyday, population 20,000. Pompeii’s citizens – wearing togas and tunics – gathered here in the main square to shop, do business, and socialize. The piazza was surrounded by two-story buildings on all sides. The pedestals that line the square once held statues, now safely displayed in the museum in Naples.
At the far end of the square stands the Temple of Jupiter, king of all the gods. It’s marked by a half-dozen ruined columns atop a stair-step base. People came here to make offerings. Yo might be able to make out Jupiter’s little white marble head at the center-rear of the temple. At the near end of the square is the curia, or city hall. Like many Roman buildings, it was built with brick and mortar, then covered with a marble veneer.
Since Pompeii was a typical Roman town, it has the same layout and components that you’d find in any Roman city – basilica, curia, temples, shops, an axis of roads, and commercial buildings – all centered on its main square, or forum. Even the power of the people was expressed right here, since this is where they gathered to vote.
With 20,000 prosperous citizens and brilliant white buildings of ground-marble stucco, Pompeii was an impressive town with a bright future. At least, so it seemed as the sun rose on August 24th, AD 79…
Mount Vesuvius – Five miles to the north of Pompeii looms the ominous back-story to this site: Mount Vesuvius. Mentally draw a triangle up from the two remaining peaks to reconstruct the original cone-shape of the mountain before it literally blew its top.
At about noon on August 24, AD 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted, sending a mushroom cloud of ash, dust, cinders, and rocks 12 miles into the air. Pompeiians were astounded. Despite the rumblings they’d heard for several days, they had no idea they were living under a volcano, since Vesuvius hadn’t erupted for 1,200 years. Imagine the wonder – then the horror – as the column of smoke roared upward. It spewed for 18 hours straight, as winds blew the could southward. The white-grew ash began to fall over Pompeii – some like hailstones, some like rain, some falling softly like snow. As the debris accumulated, it collapsed roofs and wooden floors, but left the walls standing. In a few hours, everything was buried under a suffocating blanket of fine powder. Many Pompeiians escaped in time, but the eruption left 2,000 of the city’s 20,000 residents entombed.
The next morning, Vesuvius struck again, its rising plume became a deadly torrent, falling to earth, picking up speed as it went, creating a cloud of ash, pumice, and gas. The red-hot avalanche – a “pyroclastic flow” – sped down the side of the mountain at nearly 100 miles an hour. While fortunately it missed Pompeii this time, it engulfed the city of Herculaneum, four miles away, burying it in nearly 60 feet of hot mud, which cooled into stone.
For archaeologists, the eruption was a shake-and-bake windfall. Pompeii lay buried and forgotten until it was rediscovered in the 1600s. Excavations began in 1748, unearthing a ghost town unchanged since that day in August of 79 when Pompeii was frozen in time.
By the way, Mount Vesuvius is still an active volcano, having last erupted in 1944.
The Basilica – Pompeii’s basilica was a first-century palace of justice. This ancient law court has the same floor plan later adopted by many Christian churches – which are also called basilicas. The big central hall (or nave) is flanked by rows of columns marking off narrower side aisles. Notice that the column stumps are all about the same height. These were not ruined by the volcano. Rather, they were left unfinished at this height when Vesuvius blew. In AD 79, the basilica was in the midst of a rebuilding project, having been damaged 17 years earlier, when Pompeii was rattled by a severe earthquake.
The half-built columns show off the technology of the day. Uniform bricks were stacked around a cylindrical core. Once finished, they would have been coated not with pure marble, but with stucco made of marble dust designed to simulate marble columns. This was a cost-cutting method found throughout the Roman Empire. On the other hand, the basilica’s side walls did have real marble panels – you can still see some traces today.
Besides the earthquake and the eruption, Pompeii’s buildings have suffered other ravages over the years. There were Spanish plunderers around 1800, 19th-century souvenir hunters, WWII bombs, destructive vegetation, and another earthquake in 1980. The fact that the entire city was covered by the eruption of AD 79 actually helped preserve it, saving it from the sixth-century barbarians who plundered many other Roman towns into literal oblivion.
Via Abbondanza – Pompeii’s main street – lined with shops, bars, and restaurants – was a lively pedestrian zone. The streets were jammed with customers from sunup to sundown. Pompeii was not a quiet bedroom community – it was a place for action and shopping. It was tacky and gritty. There were no posh neighborhoods. Rich and poor mixed it up, as elegant houses existed side by side with simple homes. The city served its 20,000 residents with some 40 bakeries, 30 brothels, and 130 bars, restaurants, and hotels.
These “beaver-teeth” stones are traffic barriers that kept chariots from entering the pedestrian-only street. On most of Pompeii’s streets, chariots vied with shoppers, but here the emphasis was on making a pedestrian mall for shoppers and nightlife. Ancient Romans, like modern-day Italians, knew the beauties of making their towns pedestrian-friendly.
Notice the travertine column standing next to a white one. Notice that the marble drums of the white column are not chiseled entirely round – another construction project left unfinished when Vesuvius messed up everyone’s plans.
The Forum Granary – A substantial stretch of the west side of the forum was the granary and ancient produce market. Today this warehouse thousands of artifacts excavated from Pompeii. One would normally see lots of crockery, pots, pans, jugs, containers used for transporting oil and wine. I say normally… because it was closed during our visit. 🙁
This was a bummer.. for it also is the area that holds the casts of victims of the eruption. These casts show Pompeiians, eerily captured in their last moments – in fetal position, hands covering their mouths as they gasped for air. They were quickly suffocated by a superheated avalanche of gas and ash, and their bodies were encased in volcanic debris. While excavating, modern archaeologists detected hollow spaces underfoot, created when the victims’ bodies decomposed. By gently filling these holes with plaster, the archaeologists were able to create molds of the Pompeiians who were caught by the disaster.
Luckily and thankfully, there are many shows/videos that show and document the closed area. I believe it is being renovated. It didn’t “ruin” the trip, but like I said above… it was a bummer.
The Baths of the Forum – Pompeii had six public baths, each with a men’s and a women’s section. Stepping inside, we enter the men’s zone. The leafy courtyard at the entrance was the gymnasium. After working out, clients could relax with a hot bath (Caldarium), warm bath (tepidarium), or cold plunge (frigidarium).
After the courtyard, the first big, plain room you enter served as the dressing rooms. Holes on the wall were pegs to hang clothing. The window, (with Neptune underneath) was originally covered with a less-translucent Roman glass. Walk over the non-slip mosaics into the next room.
This was the tepidarium. It’s ringed by mini-statues of male figures used as supporting pillars. These divided the lockers. Clients would warm up here, perhaps stretching out on one of the bronze benches near the bronze heater for a message. Looking up at the ceiling – although it’s half-crushed by the eruption and half-intact, notice the fine blue-and-white stucco work.
This is the steam room, or caldarium. Take a second to appreciate the engineering. The double floor is heated from below – so nice with bare feet. If you look through the grate, you can see the brick support towers of the double floor). The double walls with their terra-cotta tiles held the heat. Romans soaked in the big tub, which was filled with hot water. Opposite the big tub is a fountain. It spilled water onto the hot floor, creating steam. Lettering on the fountain reminded those enjoying the room which politicians paid for it. You can actually read how much they paid: 5,250 sestertii.
Looking up at the ceiling, notice the grooves. To keep condensation from dripping annoyingly on patrons, fluting (or ribbing) was added to carry the water down the walls.
A Fast-Food Joint – After a bath, it was only natural to want a little snack. So, just across the street is a fast-food joint, marked by a series of rectangular marble counters. Most ancient Romans didn’t cook for themselves in their tiny apartments, so to-go places like this were common. The holes in the counters held pots filled with food. Each container was like a thermos, with a wooden lid to keep the soup hot, the wine cool, and the rodents out of Caesar’s McNuggets. 🙂
Looking at the front doorstep above – the groove was for the shop’s folding accordion-style doors.
These wheel grooves in the pavement were worn down through centuries of chariot traffic.
The House of the Tragic Poet – This house has a typical Roman floorplan. The entry is flanked by two family-owned shops. In the entryway is the famous mosaic reading “Cave Canem” – “Beware of the Dog”.
Aquaduct Arch – Ancient Plumbing – Water was critical for this city of 20,000, and this arch was part of Pompeii’s water-delivery system. A long aqueduct carried fresh water down from the hillsides to a big reservoir perched at the highest point of the city wall. Since overall water pressure was disappointing, Pompeiians built arches like this one as substations. This brick arch (originally covered in marble) had a water tank hidden at the top. Water from the main reservoir flowed downhill into the arch’s tank, which in turn provided the neighborhood with reliable water pressure.
The House of the Faun – Marvel at the grand entry with its welcome reading “HAVE” – Latin for “Hail” or “Be Well.”
We’re standing in Pompeii’s largest home. With 40 rooms and 27,000 square feet, it covers an entire city block. In the courtyard stands the delightful (if small) statue of the Dancing Faun. The bronze statue is famous for its realistic movement and fine proportion, but this is only a copy. The original we saw in Naples’ Archaeological Museum, as are so many of Pompeii’s statues, frescoes and mosaics.
Moving further into the home, we next come upon an intricate diamond-like mosaic, which decorated the homeowner’s office. Beyond that is the famous floor mosaic of the Battle of Alexander (once again, the original
I wish I had taken a better picture of this… but imagine it’s 333 BC, and the great Greek conqueror Alexander the Great is facing off against Darius and the Persians. Alexander is on the left side of the scene, the one with curly hair and sideburns. Darius is in the center, in a chariot, wearing a turban and a beard. Notice that Alexander is the only one without a helmet… he’s the confident master of the battlefield while everyone else is fighting for their lives, eyes bulging with fear. Alexander defeated Darius in this pivotal battle, establishing the great Greek empire that the Romans would later inherit. Educated Romans decorated their homes with Greek motifs. This historic mosaic (and the Dancing Faun statue) show that – while most of Pompeii’s nouveau riche may have had notoriously bad taste – the owner of this house had class.
Original Lead Pipe – Another bad picture… I must have been distracted! 🙂
These 2,000-year-old pipes were part of the city’s elaborate water system. They’re made of lead imported from Britannia (or Roman Britain). The aqueduct-fed water tank at the high end of town fed water to three independent systems: one was for the bath houses, one was for private homes of the wealthy, and one for neighborhood wells. If there was a water storage, democratic priorities prevailed: First the baths were cut off, then the private homes. The last water supply to go was the public fountains, where all citizens could get water for cooking and drinking.
The House of the Vetti – This is Pompeii’s best-preserved home, retaining many of its mosaics and frescoes. The House of the Vetti was the bachelor pad of two wealthy merchant brothers. In the entryway there is a sculpture of a huge erection. This is not pornography. There’s a meaning here: The penis and the sack of money balance each other on the goldsmith scale above a fine bowl of fruit. Translation? On with a balance of fertility (the erection) and money (the gold) can you enjoy true abundance (the fruit).
The atrium has its ceiling open to the sky to collect light and rainwater. The pool, while nice-looking, was a functional water-supply tank. It’s flanked by large money boxes anchored to the floor. The brothers were certainly successful merchants, and possibly moneylenders, too.
There are several rooms that you can explore. There is the tight servant quarters. You spill into the kitchen, with its bronze cooking pots. In the kitchen you’ll also see an exposed original lead pipe on the back wall. The passage dead-ends in the little Venus Room, which features erotic frescoes behind glass.
In the big colonnaded garden, you can see the plants (replanted in modern times) that archaeologists found evidence of in the volcanic ash. Ringing the courtyard are rooms the brothers used for entertaining.
The dining room is frescoed in black and red – the distinctive color known as “Pompeiian red,” made from iron rust pigments. Between the wall and the floor, notice the humidity seal, designed to keep the moisture-sensitive frescoes dry.
The floors are inlaid with square white stones. These are more of those “cat eyes.” Imagine these reflecting like little eyes as the brothers and their friends wandered around by oil lamp late at night. In the yellow room (above), more frescoes show off ancient Rome’s mastery of perspective, which would not be matched elsewhere in Europe for nearly 1,500 years.
They had an erotic room too… 🙂
This intersection is marked by a stone fountain with a bull’s head for a spout. Intersections like this were busy neighborhood centers, where the rent was highest and people gathered.
The Bakery and Mill – The stubby stone towers are flour grinders. Grain was poured into the top, and donkeys or slaves tread in a circle, pushing wooden bars that turned the stones. The powdered grain dropped out of the bottom as flour – flavored with tiny bits of rock. Nearby, the thing that looks like a modern day pizza oven was… a brick oven. Each neighborhood had a bakery just like this.
Continuing down the curving road to the next intersection – that’s Via degli Augustali – we can see the destructive power of all the plants and vines that we see around us. Also, note how deep the chariot grooves have worn into the pavement. Deep grooves like these could break wagon wheels.
The Brothel (Lupanare) – Some of the largest crowds in Pompeii at a place that was also popular 2,000 years ago – the brothel. Back then, a prostitute was nicknamed lupa (or she-wolf), alluding to the call they made when trying to attract business.
Stepping inside, we see that the brothel was a simple place, with a few cell-like bedrooms, and beds and pillows made of stone. Notice that the bed legs came with little disk-like barriers to keep critters from crawling up.
The ancient graffiti on the walls include tallies and exotic names of the women, indicating that prostitutes came from all corners of the Mediterranean. The graffiti also served as feedback from satisfied customers).
The faded frescoes above the cells may have been a kind of menu for services offered. One woman is depicted wearing an early bra. The woman are idealized, always shown with white skin, which was considered beautiful and contrasted with the darker skin of their horny customers.
The Theater – Pompeii’s theater is built in the Greek style – that is, built into the curve of a hillside. It’s built that way because it actually was a Greek theater back when Pompeii was a Greek port, founded in 470 BC. By Roman times, the theater could seat 5,000 people in three sets of seat, all with different prices. Closest to the stage was the five marble terraces which were filled with romantic wooden seats for two. Next was the main section. And finally, the cheap nosebleed section (surviving only up on the right – which were outside my view spot. The theater used to be covered by a canvas awning.
Also, from this perch, we can see beyond the theater to see the colonnaded courtyard nearby that housed the gladiator barracks. Gladiators lived in tiny rooms, trained in the courtyard, and fought in the nearby amphitheater, or gladiator arena.
There is so much more of Pompeii to explore. We’ve really only scratched the surface – I felt like I saw about 30% of it. But I saw the highlights – the homes, shops, and temples of those people whose busy lives were suddenly stopped and preserved forever by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius 2,000 years ago.