Italian POMPEI, ancient city of Campania, Italy, 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Naples, near Mount Vesuvius. It was built on a spur formed by a prehistoric lava flow to the north of the mouth of the Sarnus (modern Sarno) River. Pompeii was destroyed, together with Herculaneum and Stabiae (qq.v.), by the violent eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79; the circumstances of their preservation make their remains a unique document of Greco-Roman life. The modern town (comune) of Pompei (pop. [1981 prelim.] 22,896) lies to the east; it contains the Basilica of Santa Maria del Rosario, a pilgrimage centre.
It seems certain that Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae were first settled by the Oscans, who were descendants of the Neolithic inhabitants of Campania. Archaeological evidence indicates that the Oscan village of Pompeii, strategically located near the mouth of the Sarnus River, soon came under the influence of the cultured Greeks who had settled across the bay in the 8th century BC. Greek influence was challenged, however, when the Etruscans came into Campania in the 7th century. The Etruscans' influence remained strong until their sea power was destroyed by King Hieron I of Syracuse in a naval battle off Cumae, in 474 BC. A second period of Greek hegemony followed.
Then, toward the end of the 5th century, the warlike Samnites, an Italic tribe, conquered Campania, and Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Stabiae became Samnite towns.
Pompeii is first mentioned in history in 310 BC, when, during the Second Samnite War, a Roman fleet landed at the Sarnus port of Pompeii and from there made an unsuccessful attack on the neighbouring city of Nuceria. At the end of the Samnite wars, Campania became a part of the Roman confederation, and the cities became "allies" of Rome. But they were not completely subjugated and Romanized until the time of the Social War. Pompeii joined the Italians in their revolt against Rome in this war and was besieged by the Roman general Lucius Cornelius Sulla in 89 BC. After the war, Pompeii, along with the rest of Italy south of the Po River, received Roman citizenship. As a punishment for Pompeii's part in the war, a colony of Roman veterans was established there under Publius Sulla, the nephew of the Roman general. Latin now replaced Oscan as the official language, and the city soon became Romanized in institutions, architecture, and culture. (see also Index: Roman Republic and Empire)
A riot in the amphitheatre at Pompeii between the Pompeians and the Nucerians, in AD 59, is reported by the Roman historian Tacitus. An earthquake in AD 62 did great damage in both Pompeii and Herculaneum. The cities had not yet recovered from this catastrophe when final destruction overcame them 17 years later. (see also Index: Roman Republic and Empire)
Mount Vesuvius erupted on Aug. 24, AD 79. A vivid eyewitness report is preserved in two letters written by Pliny the Younger to the historian Tacitus, who had inquired about the death of Pliny the Elder, commander of the Roman fleet at Misenum. Pliny the Elder had rushed from Misenum to help the stricken population and to get a close view of the volcanic phenomena, and he died at Stabiae. Falling fragments of lava, pumice, and other volcanic debris covered Pompeii to a depth of more than 9 feet (3 m), causing the roofs of the houses to fall in. A rain of ashes followed, reaching a depth of another 9 feet and preserving in a pall of ash the bodies of the inhabitants who perished sheltering in their houses or trying to escape toward the coast or by the roads leading to Stabiae or Nuceria; many were suffocated by the ash. Thus Pompeii remained buried under a layer of pumice stones and ash 19 to 23 feet (6 to 7 m) deep. The city's sudden burial would serve to protect it for the next 17 centuries from vandalism, looting, and the destructive effects of climate and weather.
The ruins at Pompeii were first discovered late in the 16th century by the architect Domenico Fontana. Excavation of the buried cities began first at Herculaneum, in 1709, during Austrian occupation. Work did not begin at Pompeii until 1748, and in 1763 an inscription ("rei publicae Pompeianorum") was found that identified the site as Pompeii.
Excavations have continued intermittently until the present. Earlier digging was haphazard and often irresponsible; excavators were primarily treasure seekers, hunting for imposing buildings or museum objects. Haphazard digging was brought to a stop in 1860, when the Italian archaeologist Giuseppe Fiorelli became director of the excavations. Areas lying between excavated sites were cleared and carefully documented. Pompeii was divided into nine Regions; the insulae (blocks) in each Region were numbered, and each door on the street was given a number so that each house could be conveniently located by three numbers (see plan). Fiorelli also developed the technique of making casts of bodies by pouring cement into the hollows formed in the volcanic ash when the bodies disintegrated.
In 1951, after the interruption caused by World War II, intensive excavation was resumed under Amedeo Maiuri, who was in charge of the excavations from 1924 to 1961. Large areas to the south of the Via dell'Abbondanza in Regions I and II were uncovered, and the debris piled outside the city walls was cleared away. This revealed the Porta (Gate) di Nocera and an impressive stretch of cemetery lining each side of the road leading from the gate to Nuceria. By the late 20th century, about three-fourths of the city had been excavated.
In the vicinity of Stabiae and Gragnano, excavations initiated by Charles IV discovered 12 villas between 1749 and 1782. Work was not resumed again until the present century, and it is still in progress. The Villa of San Marco, with its two large peristyle gardens and bath, is the best preserved. Other villas have been found near Gragnano, in the vicinity of Pompeii, and at nearby Scafati, Domicella, Torre Annunziata, and on the lower slopes of Vesuvius near Boscoreale and Boscotrecase. Many of these villas were reburied after excavation, but a few can be seen, notably the Villa of the Mysteries.
The city of Pompeii was shaped irregularly because of the prehistoric lava flow on which it was built. Excavations indicate that the southwestern part of the town was the oldest, but scholars are not agreed as to the stages by which the walls were expanded, or by whom. The walls are 2 miles (3 km) in circumference, and they enclose an area of about 155 acres (63 hectares). Seven city gates have been excavated. The chief street running in a southeast-northwest direction was the Via Stabiana; it connected the Porta Vesuvio (144 feet [44 m] above sea level), in the highest part of the city, with the Porta di Stabia (26 feet [8 m]), in the lowest part of town. Through this gate came traffic from the Sarnus River and Stabiae. This street was crossed by two other main streets, the Via dell'Abbondanza and the Via di Nola.
The public buildings are for the most part grouped in three areas: the Forum (elevation 110 feet [34 m]), located in the large level area on the southwest; the Triangular Forum (82 feet [25 m]), standing on a height at the edge of the south wall overlooking the bay; and the Amphitheatre and Palaestra, in the east.
The Forum was the centre of the city's religious, economic, and municipal life; it was a large rectangular area surrounded by a two-storied colonnaded portico. Dominating the Forum on the north was the temple dedicated to the Capitoline triad of deities: Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva. To the east was the Macellum, or large provision market; to the south were the small sanctuary of the city Lares (guardian deities), built after the earthquake in AD 62; the Temple of Vespasian; and the imposing headquarters of the woollen industry, erected by the wealthy patroness Eumachia. Opposite the Capitolium on the southern end of the Forum were the meeting place of the city council and the offices of the magistrates of the city. The large basilica, with its main room surrounded on four sides by a corridor, is the most architecturally significant building in the city and of considerable importance in studying the origin and development of the Christian basilica. It served as a covered exchange and as a place for the administration of justice. To the west was the Temple of Venus Pompeiana, patron deity of Pompeii. Across from the basilica was the Temple of Apollo, one of the oldest in the city.
The Triangular Forum is the site of the Doric Temple, the oldest temple in the city. Between the 3rd and the 1st century, a theatre, a palaestra, and a small covered theatre were built to the east of the Triangular Forum. The temples of Zeus Meilichios and of Isis, and the old Samnite palaestra, were nearby. In the east corner of Pompeii was the Amphitheatre; the oldest so far known, it was built after the Roman colony was established at Pompeii. To the west a large palaestra was built to replace the old Samnite palaestra. Baths were scattered throughout the town: the Stabian Baths (which date before the Roman period), the Forum Baths, the Central Baths--still under construction at the time of the eruption--and many baths in luxurious private homes.
But more significant than the public buildings, which have been excavated at other sites, are the hundreds of private homes. These are unique, for only at Pompeii is it possible to trace the history of Italic and Roman domestic architecture for at least four centuries. The earliest houses date from the First Samnite period (4th-3rd century BC). The House of the Surgeon is the best-known example of the early atrium house built during this period.
The most luxurious houses were built during the Second Samnite period (200-80 BC), when increased trade and cultural contacts resulted in the introduction of Hellenistic refinements. The House of the Faun occupies an entire city block, has two atria (chief rooms), four triclinia (dining rooms), and two large peristyle gardens. Its facade is built of fine-grained gray tufa from Nuceria, the chief building material of this period. The walls are decorated in the Incrustation, or First Pompeian, style of painting, which imitates marble-veneered walls by means of painted stucco. The famous Alexander the Great mosaic found in the House of the Faun is probably a copy of a lost Hellenistic painting. Many of the houses from this period were decorated with elaborate floor mosaics. The House of the Silver Wedding, with its imposing high-columned atrium, was also built during this period, but it underwent later alterations. The handsome banquet hall and the exedra, which served as a schoolroom for children of the family, were decorated in the Second Pompeian, or Architectural, style, which was popular from 80 BC to AD 14.
The large number of houses built during the Samnite period made it necessary to build fewer houses in the Roman period. Those that were built were usually less imposing, with lower atria, but with more elaborate decoration. The House of Lucretius Fronto is a small but elegant house of the Roman Imperial period. The tablinum (master's office) is decorated in especially fine Third Pompeian, or Egyptianizing, style, usually dated from the early empire to the earthquake. The House of the Vettii is typical of the homes of the prosperous merchant class of the Roman period. Some of its rooms are decorated in the Fourth Pompeian, or Ornamental, style.
The atrium-peristyle house, with its handsome paintings, elegant furniture, beautiful gardens with fountains and bronze and marble sculptures, is not as typical as has generally been supposed. There are also numerous small homes throughout the city, many of them shop houses. Excavators now preserve as completely as possible all aspects of ancient life. The homes of the humble are as informative as those of the wealthy. Roofs, second stories, and balconies can now be restored.
The discoveries at Pompeii and other sites buried by the Vesuvian eruption had a profound influence on European taste. News of the excavations kindled a wave of enthusiasm for antiquity that spread throughout Europe. The laudatory pronouncements of the eminent German classicist Johann Joachim Winckelmann, who made his first trip to Naples in 1755, and the etchings of Giambattista Piranesi did much to popularize the excavations. Naples, Pompeii, and Herculaneum became important stops on the European Grand Tour made by English visitors.
Artists, architects, potters, and even furniture makers drew much inspiration from Pompeii. Contemporary painted interiors were inspired by the frescoed walls found in the excavations. The stucco work popularized in England by the 18th-century architects Robert and James Adam used the same motifs. In France, the Louis XVI style incorporated Pompeian motifs, and the apartment of Louis's queen, Marie Antoinette, at Fontainebleau was decorated in this style, which became popular throughout Europe. Jacques-Louis David and his student J.-A.-D. Ingres drew inspiration for their paintings from the excavations. Indeed, the Neoclassic style stimulated by the discoveries at Pompeii completely replaced the Rococo and became the artistic style of the French Revolution and of the Napoleonic period. (see also Index: Neoclassicism)
The extent of the archaeological sites makes them of the greatest importance, for they provide a unique source of information about so many aspects of social, economic, religious, and political life of the ancient world. The many well-preserved house shrines give a hitherto unexpected picture of the vitality of religion in the family. The bakeries, complete with mills, kneading machines, and ovens, some still containing loaves of bread, show how this staple of everyday life was produced. Numerous fulleries (processing and cleaning plants for wool) make it possible to study this important industry. The shops of the sculptor, toolmaker, and gem cutter, as well as the garum (fish sauce) and the lamp factories and the many wine and food shops, document other aspects of ancient life. Pompeii was a busy port town that exported products throughout the Mediterranean. Merchants and tradesmen found food and lodging near the city gates and the Forum. Some restaurants and inns were quite attractive and served food to guests who reclined in the garden; in the cheaper places, the rooms were small and dark and customers sat on stools.
Inscriptions provide further information. They include monumental inscriptions on public buildings, tombs, and statue bases; the business transactions recorded in the famous wax tablets of the banker Lucius Caecilius Jucundus; announcements of gladiatorial combats; and many election notices, echoes of hotly fought contests. Preserved in the graffiti are accounts, lists of market days, the exchanges of lovers, quotations from Virgil, and even the scratched alphabets of children. Epigraphical and archaeological evidence makes it possible to study the stratification of society and learn more of the freedmen, slaves, small businessmen, and aristocrats of the ancient Roman world.
Further, Pompeii offers the best opportunity for the study of city planning and land use in an ancient city. Recent excavations have revealed an unexpected amount of open land. The large insula across from the Amphitheatre was not the Foro Boario (Cattle Market), as had been long supposed, but a vineyard. Many vineyards, fruit trees, and gardens have been found, indicating less intensive land use and a smaller population than had been thought.
Unfortunately, the excavations are constantly endangered by the ravages of weather and destructive vegetation. Of first importance is the preservation, restoration, and study of the valuable evidence already uncovered before it is lost forever.
August Mau, Pompeji in Leben und Kunst (1900; rev. Eng. trans. by F.W. Kelsey, Pompeii: Its Life and Art, 2nd ed., 1902), still the most comprehensive treatment, but now outdated; Matteo Della Corte, Case ed abitanti di Pompei, 3rd ed. (1965), a thorough, scholarly treatment of the houses and places of business, and their owners as identified from the inscriptions and the graffiti; Robert Etienne, La Vie quotidienne à Pompéi (1966), a good discussion of daily life; H.H. Tanzer, The Common People of Pompeii: A Study of the Graffiti (1939), brief but interesting; Wilhemina Jashemski, Letters from Pompeii (1963), actual letters written from Pompeii, with descriptions of new excavations, coloured photos of excavated sites, and paintings by M. Sasek showing how the sites looked in antiquity, and her Gardens of Pompeii: Herculaneum and the Villas Destroyed by Vesuvius (1979), a comprehensive discussion of these sites, for almost every house and many public buildings had gardens; Amedeo Maiuri, Pompeii, 14th ed. (1970), the best brief treatment available.