Welcome to Pompeii: What to see in Pompeii (Part 1)

On 24 August 79 AD, a terrible eruption occurred in the area surrounding the Bay of Naples. The culprit was Mount Vesuvius. Cloud of black fume covered the sky, wiping out the daylight, and ash and acid rained down on the city of Pompeii. Against such force of nature, the city stood no chance. Its fate along with that of its inhabitants was sealed. For centuries, it remained hidden underneath the gloomy debris, unknown and neglected, until 1748, when its existence became known. With its excavation, a remarkable insight into the life of Roman people and the Empire is finally revealed, and a long-forgotten story once again retold.

I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to visit this ancient town myself in July 2016. Accompanied by a professional tour guide, we learnt a lot about the secret of this charming town, through which we will be leading you shortly (based on the actual route we took)! We also took considerable photos for the purpose of this ‘show and tell’.

The Marina Gate

We began our journey around Pompeii through the Marina Gate, which is situated at the western of the city on the Via Marina. Its steep paved ramp leads past the baths to the Gate’s two archways.

The Basilica

Basilicas are essential in any Roman town. The oldest and most important building in ancient Rome, people gathered in this building everyday to discuss business and legal matters. The basilica of Pompeii is the oldest of example of its kind. Situated in the southwestern corner of the Forum, it was built around 130-120 BC. The basilicas are an evolution from its earlier Greek counterpart, stoas, which is an open-air markets where people trading and business were conducted. The Pompeii Basilica is in the shape of a long rectangle measuring 226 by 86 feet and composed of an inner portico or nave which is surrounded by a 12-by-four row of columns and an outer walkway or ambulatory. The entire structure was covered with a roof until 63 AD when an earthquake caused the roof to cave in. Since then (until 79 AD) the basilica continued to function without its roof.

The Forum *(recommended)

The centre of any public life in a Roman town. The Forum of Pompeii was where all the political, economic and religious activities took place. The area was quite large, measuring 15 x 38 metres, and was designed in the 2^nd century BC. The columns were originally built in local dark volcanic stone, but were later replaced by white limestone columns. The capitals of the columns were designed both according to the Doric order (lower row) and Ionian order (upper row).

The Lupanar *(recommended)

Every Roman man loved a good brothel, the most famous one in Pompeii being “Lupanar”. Literally a “wolf’s den”, the Lupanar is one of the possible 35 “houses of pleasure” in Pompeii. This leaves approximately one brothel per every 71 adult males. The lupanar has two storeys and ten rooms and a latrine under the stairs. Each room contained a (rather hard!) stone bed and a mattress for the prostitute and her client. It was surmised that the hardness of the hard bed would considerably the length of service and allow prostitutes to receive more clients! This theory certainly seems to ring true given a very low price for the service, which is 2 asses on average (the cost of a loaf of bread!). This suggested that the brothel was frequented by the lower level of society including slaves. The lives of the prostitutes were indeed grim, being forced to cramp into windowless and uncomfortable spaces. Also, it seems that most prostitutes in Pompeii were slaves from Greece or Asia, who had no choice but were compelled to engage in the profession.

But how can you find a brothel in Pompeii? Simple. The front of every brothel in Pompeii is marked by a sign engraved onto the street of a rather large genital. Furthermore, the inside is full of erotic wall paintings showing all the positions on offer! Putting it simply, it’s like a food menu you see at a restaurant. Patrons often wrote graffiti on the wall to mark their appreciation for the service…or sometimes simply to show off their feats to the rest of the world.

The Public Baths *(recommended)

After spending an entire day in the forum, a Roman patron would probably visit the baths to wash away all the weariness and of course….dirt. Here is a step-by-step guide of how to navigate this very Roman facility:

Apodyterium:

First, a Roman patron would undress in the Apodyterium or changing room.

Tepidarium:

Then they would go to the warm room called the Tepidarium.

Caldarium:

….Then to the hot room called the Caldarium.

Laconicum:

…Then the hot, dry room or sauna in modern tongue.

Afterwards, it is common for a Roman patron to be attended to by slaves, acting as masseurs, who would rub the patron with olive oil and then scraped the oil and dirt back off with a strigil (a scraper made of bone or metal).

Frigidarium:

Lastly, a final plunge into cold water of the Frigidarium would seal the pores and complete the cleaning process.

Lastly, in the women's section of the bahts, a lovely graffiti of a peacock (left) was found inscribed onto the wall of the baths. The lady or ladies responsible for such graffiti must have been a cheerful and lively bunch looking at the nature of the message she or they were trying to convey to posterity! This proves text message has indeed existed since antiquity!

The Thermopolium

The equivalent of a modern-day café or bar. Here, hot and cold foods were served or sold from a usually ‘L’ shaped counter containing terracotta vessels. In one of the terracotta vessels located in one of the Thermopolia, a huge amount of coins was discovered. It was surmised that the seller was attempting to hide his spoils shortly after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

Come back to explore more of Pompeii with us in the next episode where we look at some of the amazing works of art within the villas….

To be continued in the next blog