Pompeii and Public Architecture

Pompeii was rediscovered and excavated in the eighteenth century as one of the finest and most preserved examples of Roman architecture. Combined with the Roman influence was a pattern of development from several of the contemporaneous Mediterranean cultures of the time, which gave Pompeii a unique architectural flavor. It is this uniqueness that will become the central focus of this paper on the cultural history of Pompeii as reflected in the town's domestic architecture. The paper will begin with a brief history of the city of Pompeii, and then overview the different cultural influences which shaped the city itself. Then, the domestic architecture will be described, with a more detailed look at the influences of the Oscans, Greeks, Etruscans, Samnites, and Carthaginians. Of special note will be the influences of Rome on the city prior to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D. The paper will conclude with a brief look at other aspects of public architecture, not necessarily domestic.

Geographically, Pompeii lies close to the modern city of Naples. Naples itself was founded by the Greeks around 650 B.C., calling it Neapolis or "New City." The Greeks colonized the entire region, and settled at Pompeii as well. Subsequently, Pompeii fell under the influence of several of the powerful Etruscan citystates which were more powerful, at that time, than Rome. By the fifth century B.C., the dominant power in Pompeii became the Samnites who were aggressive Italian hill

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Naples, in the late 1700s. From 1860 to 1875, Giuseppe Fiorelli began a systematic excavation that has continued to the present day. Fiorelli's desire was to preserve as much of the city and its objects as possible.6 ______________________ 5 Cited in Grant, 10. 6 Editors, Pompeii, A.D. 79, Volumes 1 & 2, (Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1978), passim. The domestic art and architecture of Pompeii was exceptionally, even by modern standards. One of the most vivid descriptors of the cultural life of the city, particularly showing the broad and varied influences of other cultures, is the paintings and inscriptions on Pompeiian walls. The paintings include both serious and sarcastic messages, but the strongest impact if probably the mass of graffiti on the walls of the city. In fact, there is a huge range of human activities represented in the graffiti politics, literature, religion, humor, and diversified sexual messages.7 Architecturally, the city's amphitheater is one of the central examples of the type of construction popular with the Pompeiian bureaucracy. Like many of its Roman counterparts, the amphitheater has large external arches and a spacious auditorium. This is noteworthy since Pompeii was such a small down

Category: Arts - P