pompeii & herculaneum Flashcards
pompeii’s geographic location
- built on a volcanic plateau located betw Sarno River (south) and fertile slopes of Mt V (north)
- USE Sarno River to transport goods, onland through Bay of Naples
-
9km south of V
Strategically imp bc only route link north & south & connected seaside area w/ fertile agricultural region of inland
Surrounded by defensive wall
H’erculaneum’s geographic location
directly under mt vesuvius on a promontory betw 2 streams
what are decumani & cardo/cardines?
decumani: roads east to west (horizontal)
cardines: roads north to south (vertical)
meet at right angles
often nymphaea (water fountains & shrines) at crossroads
campania
unstable volcanic area prone to earth tremors, fluctuating watertable lvls, thermal spring s
pyroclastic flows & surges
Pyroclastic surge low density, turbulent cloud of hot ash & rock billows over terrain barely touching ground travels up to 300km per hour
Pyroclastic flows more denser, hotter, dry avalanche of pumice, ash &gases up to 50km/hr
pliny the younger’s eyewitness account
- Staying at Misenum 30km from pompeii w/ uncle pliny the elder admiral of the fleet
- During eruption Elder sailed to Stabiae 5km south P to assist, stayed overnight
- Pty stayed behind to gave eyewitness acc of eruption
- Records earth tremors, receding sea, fiery cloud above volcano
what are the issues of pliny’s account reliability
- Wrote description in form of 2 letters to friend Tacitus (roman historian) 25 yrs after event
- Some exaggeration of elder’s role in events during eruption
- Failed to mention yr of eruption (sig omission)
- description of what occurred at Stabiar based on what slaves & sailors told him
contested date of eruption
- 24 august AD 79 based on 11th century summary of Cassius Dio Roman from 3rd century AD
- Flawed bc factual errors but at least provides yr
scholars debate autumn or summer
In favour of summer:
- Discovered leaves of deciduous trees
- Evidence of summer-flowering herbs found at Oplontis
- The last batch of garum from P made w/ type of fish plentiful in summer
- autumn bc discovered late autumn ripening fruits eg. pomegranates
Most convincing evidence is hoard of coins found in House of Golden Bracelet 1974, contained silver denarius of Titus recording his 7th consulship, coin dates AD 79
impact of eruption on pompeii
- Completely buried
- Distance from volcano → escaped 1st 2 surges and 3rd stopped at Herculaneum Gate
- 4th surge reached temp 400 deg
- Maybe toxic gases penetrate entire town
- Amt ash deposited 1.8m in north to 60cm in south
- covered in 5m of volcanic debris –> easier to excavate
impact of eruption on herculaneum
- Completely buried
- Suffered more horrific fate than pompeii
- 1st stage : Initial explosion, shock waves, earth tremors
- 1st surge arrived 5 mins after collapse of the eruption column dumped 3m hot ash on town
- next surges & flows destroyed buildings, carbonised remains eg. wooden window frames, bread loaves
- Final phase city buried 23m (solidified rock-like) & coastline extended 400m
- much harder to excavate, & bc below water table –> need to pump 24/7 to prevent flooding
causes of inhabitant deaths on pompeii
- 600/+ perished when roofs collapsed under weight of pumice & rock rained from eruption
- if abandoned buildings & climbed onto roofs caught in 4th pyroclastic surge (which overwhelmed city)
- Some died of asphyxiation, others thermal shock (large, rapid change temp can have dangerous effects on living)
- Majority of pop prob escaped city but couldve died in countryside if didnt realise hwo far to escape surges & flows
cause of inhabitant deaths in herculaneum
300 remains sheltering beach & possible boathouses in area
* Killed by thermal/fulminant shock (intense heat)
phases of eruption
- PLINIAN PHASE
- named after pliny the younger bc coincided ‘mushroom cloud’ witnessed
- 18 hrs rain of pumice (pompeii)
- Plume dispersed for umbrella shape, wind pushed towards Herculaneum, instant deaths for habitants phase/flow
- Only 4th surge went over pompeii city walls
- deposits showed 50-80 000 tonnes of pumice per sec discharged by V
- PELEAN PHASE
- pyrclastic flows & surges
- due to direction wind blowing, P mostly affected by ash & pumcie fall(upwind)
- 6 surges & flows
- H hit by both surges & flows, column collapsed under own weight
- travelling ~200km/h, surge of billowing volcanic ash & superheated gases wouldve killed msot immediately
features of Herculaneum town
- Some see more seaside fishing village or town, main industry fishing bc Rich waters of bay supported thriving fishing & shellfish industry
- Salt pans formed near Herculaneum
- Oily fish eg. tuna, mackerel, anchovies, moray eels → raw materials for garum
- Holiday homes, rich & wealthy
- Rich traders from Rome , many high status Romans had permanent/seasonal residences
- early , waterfront fortified by wall to protect from invaders & waves → dismantled when no longer need defence, built luxurious Suburban Baths
- ‘Marcus’ Nonius Balbus considered patron of H, 30 statues of him,** inscriptions that he paid → popularity**
- Calpurnius Caesonius Piso (Caesar’s father in law) owned Villa of the Papyri
- limited landform but on the coast of Bay of Naples
volcanic or pyroclastic eruption:?
pyrcolastic
ancient sources available
Fresco of Bacchus, Pliny the Elder, Martial
Animal bones survived → ate meat
Carbonised loaf of bread survived → had wheat, barley
Strabo
Dio Cassius
natural resources/features of pompeii
- Very fertile soil → grow crops, fruits, vegs, olive trees, vines, timber
- Sarno River imp for trade, source of water & Bay of Naples also bottles of garum (fermented fish sauce) & fish/sesafood in mosaics
- used volcanic rock for buildings & paving streets
- oil presses forextracting oil from green olives found in houses in P&H and villas in fields around Mt Vesuvius
- Whole campanian region famous for perfume, basic ingredient of olive oil
- pumice stone exported, lava usedi n stone millstones to grind grain & press olives
- volcanic materia eg. tufa
crops in P&H
- Mediterranean climate for agriculture
- Wheat, barley,
- Veg (cabbage, onions, corn, olives)
- Fruits (figs, olives, Peaches, apricots, lemons, cherries, plums, pears)
- Vineyards grow grapes (eat/ferment for wine)
- Olives grow on trees (oil)
- Material spewed from volcano weathered into deep fertile soils Rich in phosphorus & potash supporting natural vegetation
- Soil spongy nature retained enough of winter rains to produce crops
- Slopes of Vesuvius covered w/ grape vines
- Wine exported to Rome, Spain, North Africa
- Southern end of Bay of Naples, flocks of sheep for fleeces & textile production
our knowledge today of the effects of the V eruption come mainly from..
- writings of PtY
- stratigraphic study of the V towns by vulcanologist Professor Sigurdsson
vulcanologist Sigurdsson
conducted 1st systematic examination of V deposits & reached conclusions matching Pliny’s account
- studied stratigraphy of P, H, Oplontis & Stabiae
- identified diff types deposits from eruption
- according to ash & pumice deposits & own ovservations at Mt St Helens verified Pliny’s statement on an enormous column rising above V resembling an Italian umbrella-shaped pine tree
summary of surges
1. hit H
- killed most inhabitants
- flow hit H moments later, containing larger fragments of volcanic material
2. hit H
- more powerful than 1
- hit H
- reached town wall of P
4. hit H
- covered whole P
- msot lethal surge, killed inhabitants by asphyxiation/thermal shock
5 &6. hit P&H
- surge 6 most destructive, took tops off buildings in P
what is a pugilistic pose? what happened to the bodies?
boxer
- some plaster casts at P
- contracted muscles due to intense temps
- shattered teeth, fractured bones
positive & neg
Giuseppe fiorelli
- 1863-75
- Funded by King of Italy
- Uncovered 2 town blocks at H but worked slow bc diff to work around modern houses & cutting into hardened volcanic deposits
POSITIVE
- 1st systematic excavation: worked methodically top to bottom
- Shored up walls to prevent collapse
- Before, it was ‘HAPHAZARD excavations’–> unsystematic, a lot at the same time
- Whole site carefully mapped (9 regions → town blocks (insulae) → each building entrance
- Developed numbering system to indicate building location, used today
- recorded excavations w/ detail using photography, diaries, daily reports
- Encouraged tourism → entrance fees → funds to preserve/excavate further
Created 1st successful plaster casts of P’s victims but controversial
- scholars believe vital info abt vitcims of V at moment of death (how they died)
- argue casts disrespected dead
- Archaeologists cant access skeletal remains within casts eg. DNA testing w/o breaking
- rcent yrs discovered some casts contained metal rods → fabrications to attract tourism to site → contort them into shapes he wanted, more sensational
what is provenance?
history of H excavations
- 1711 workers constructing well in Resina discovered pieces of marble, sold to guy and bought the land and sponsored 1st excavations, more than treasure hunts & only antiquarians interested in objects old & beautiful, guy used marble from H to decorate his villa
- damage from workers tunnelling through hard volcanic material at site (Prince d’Elkboeuf)
- 1738 Charles 3 sponsored treasure hunting at H using tunnels to excavate,
- Karl Weber 1st systematic excavations, meticulous plans of theatre, basilica and Villa of the Papyri also at P and Stabiae
- Patronage: Charles 3rd was his patron and funded excavations to Karl Weber
- Provenance: context where fthings found to understand what they were (KW)
history of P excavations
found by chance, didnt know
until found inscription
- 1592 Domenico Fontana cut large irrigation channel through P
- 1689 inscription found name ‘pompeii’
- 1748 Roque de Alcubierre began formal excavations
- 1806-15 French Bourbon (royal family living in area) excavations asap–> werent interested in preserving the site, quickly to find treasures
- 1815-60 Neapolitan (from Naples region) excavations, attempts to preserve & restore site for 1st time to display to increasing no. visitors (frescoes in situ (left it situation where they were found) under shelters to display) –>
- Preserve for visitors to come to attract tourists
Excavations by Michele Ruggiero & Giulio de Petra
- 1875-1901
- Rebuild ancient walls, roofs –> Good to visualise but not authentic and couldve reconstructed wrong,
- Sculptures left in new replanted garden –> warps perception of sites → to attract tourists
- used Iron and asbestos concrete to reinforce buildings for 1st time (asbestos are carcinogenic → cause cancer, didnt know back then very harmful) (Iron corrodes, today use steel)
MAOI
AUGUST MAU
- great, painstaking work studied frescoes and developed styles
- Contributed to excavations at P for many years
- Msot well known contribution was his categorisation of wall paintings into 4 styles
- masonry style characterised by simulation of marble (look like), made to look like stonework
- architectural style ‘illusionism’
- ornate style mroefigurative & colourful
- intricate style less ornamented than its predecessor but more complex
VITTORIO SPINAZZOLA
- 1911-1923, superintendent (in charge, oversaw excavations) of Archaeological works
- Major contribution to rediscovery of P was exploration of ~600m of Via dell’ Abbondanza (main street of Pompeii) aka road of abundance
- Excavations utilised new techniques to reconstruct structures from top down
- He restored the facades of buildings → save inscriptions & graffiti
- Preserved & restored 2nd storeys of buildings as he excavated
- criticised for basing recreations on imagination → forever influenced perceptions of facades
- Once restore, ppl cant visualise other way,
If evaluate his work, some good on road & working top down but restoration work based on his fanciful thinking highly wrong!!!