Pompeii - Part Due

Hello friends!

My last blog (Pompeii - Part Uno) covered a lot of information about the roads and set up/organization of Pompeii. Romans are famous for building long-lasting roads that connected the villages and cities of their empire as it grew larger and larger.

Perhaps we take our roads for granted now, but if you think about it, the” paths” we travel over and over again to get to school, the market, to see family/friends, and so on have become the roads of our lives. Not really "paths" at all, but modernized and fortified with strong materials like stone, asphalt, and concrete. They allow us to feel connected to one another and to travel easily from place to place. They also enable us to share our stories, ideas, plans, and concerns throughout our communities. The stories, ideas, and values of the Romans were shared and passed on over time by way of the people who traveled the ancient roads that still exist in Italian cities today. This is just one way they united an empire that was constantly growing in size.

But…enough about roads!

Here is a brief history about the eruption of Vesuvius in 79AD and how Pompeii came to be the time capsule it is today. Frozen in time and buried under layers and layers of volcanic ash, pumice stone, toxic gas, and rubble, Pompeii is arguably one of the most important archeological finds of all time.

When Vesuvius erupted, there was an explosion of gas, rock, and debris that shot about twelve miles straight into the air. Based on the direction the wind was blowing that day, this material was carried to Pompeii and effectively covered the whole city. The people who were there likely tried to escape, but were unable. Their town, along with their individual stories were buried and forgotten for quite some time until archaeologists began digging in the area in the year 1748. What they uncovered were the remains of the city and its inhabitants.

The day after Pompeii was covered with some eight to ten feet of stone and ash, the second phase of the eruption focused its direction on a different Roman city called Herculaneum. At this point, the material spouting from Vesuvius was of a different make up. On the second day of the eruption lava, mud, and liquid ash drifted a different direction and covered the city of Herculaneum. 

There are many important differences between the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, but

something they both have in common is that they are still being discovered and excavated today. So, there is even more to find out!


Here is the question of today. As an archaeologist, when you uncover an ancient town, how do you know what you are looking at?

The answer to this question is what I find so fascinating about studying ancient history. You really have to look carefully at the small parts of the remains (a home or shop) while always comparing them to the whole picture (the entire city) in order to make educated guesses about how the people lived.

It’s true that when you walk through Pompeii, you can imagine it a bustling city of people - talking, selling, buying, walking, etc. Mothers scolding their children, politicians gathering a crowd to share their opinions, and merchants selling their wares. The reason you can imagine it is because there is evidence of life everywhere you turn…

Here are some pictures I took that help tell the story of life in Pompeii in 79AD.

                    Look at this image. It looks like a small room. Big enough for a home?

If you guessed that this was not a home, you are right! It was likely a shop that could have been flanked on either side by homes of the Pompeiians. A few giveaways...1. There is no floor! 2. You can see a ridge in the ground where a sliding wooden door would have been placed to open and close during the shop's working hours.

Look at the images below that came from inside a fairly large building in the city. What kind of function do you think this place would have had? Imagine you are the archaeologist discovering the area!

If you guessed that this was a Roman bathhouse, then you are correct! The Romans/Pompeiians loved to go to the baths not only to get clean, but also to exercise, have a massage, go to the sauna, and meet friends to chat and do business. The top picture shows that the Pompeiian people built themselves "lockers" to store their clothing and towels!



Look at the picture below. It shows a large fresco painting. It is hard to tell what images appear on this fresco, but close up, the artwork offers clues to the purpose of this open air part of the city.

Hard to see, but the fresco shows loaves of bread, baskets of fish, and chickens. This space was a large market where the people of Pompeii came to bargain for their food. There were stalls for each different type of produce available. Without these frescoes, it would have been hard to figure out the purpose of this structure!

                   How about this place? What do you think it could have been used for?

If you guessed a bakery, then you guessed right! The first picture is of the oven that would have cooked the bread. The second is of the millstones that would grind the wheat into flour! Not too far off from how we do it today!

Okay - here are the last few...

Look at the picture below. It was taken right next to the first picture of a merchant's shop. What do you think?

That's right! This was a family's home! You can tell by the larger entrance and the cistern in the front room.

       The last photos for you to look at takes up the largest amount of space in Pompeii.

This was the forum! The open air meeting space where people came daily to meet, catch up, pray, buy and sell their wares, and exchange ideas. It is likely that politicians and intellectuals alike gave speeches and presentations here to large gatherings of people. Overall, it was a place where the entire city could get together.

Tomorrow is my last day and now we are on the Amalfi coast. I plan to hike a trail at the tippy top of some tall cliffs. The trail is called "The Path of the Gods." Do you think I'll run into anyone we know...like ZEUS? I can't wait!

Hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as I am!

Mrs. B.