Pompeii tours - guided tours in Pompeii- Archaeologist in Pompeii - Pompeii ruins
THE GARDENS OF POMPEII
The internal areas designated as gardens occupied a prime place in the Pompeiian house, and developed continuously during all periods of the city’s evolution. In the older dwellings, built in the third and fourth centuries B.C., the open space was reserved for growing fruit and vegetables, necessary produce for day-to-day life. In the centuries that followed, it was transformed into the viridarium (garden), with an essentially ornamental character, which eventually became the focal point of the house with the creation of the columned portico (peristilium or peristyle). Where there was not sufficient space for a complete peristilium, the private side of the portico had walls decorated with pictures of natural scenes, often framed by false colonnades to give the illusion of enlarging the actual dimensions of the green space. Hunting scenes, fights between wild animals and exotic landscapes also appeared, expanding the limited domestic dimension into an apparently unconfined natural space.
The architectonic design of the garden was completed by the widespread use of sculptures, decorative masks, oscillae (large hanging discs which oscillated in the wind), ponds and fountains with water games. Pollens, seeds, roots and the remains of carbonised fruit help us to understand which kinds of plants were cultivated; those which filled the gardens were not only ornamental such as oleanders, hedges and box-trees, but many were also used for cosmetic and medicinal purposes in everyday life. Pomegranates, figs, vines, cherries and a few rare limes often shadowed the triclinia during the hot summer days. A short walk through the gardens of Pompeii, recently restored, can be made by visiting some of the houses in which there is a good view of the viridaria.
HAVE A GREAT PRIVATE EXCURSION FROM THE PORT OF NAPLES TO NAPLES CENTER, POMPEII, SORRENTO AND AMALFI COAST IN ONE DAY AT A REASONABLE PRICE !!!
Why do not you arrange with us an amazing day in the Gulf of Naples - a private tour (just for you) with a comfortable limousine or minivan with driver and an English-speaking tour guide? We have organized for you a great guided tour to Naples-Pompeii-Sorrento-Amalfi Coast (Positano). Contact us by e-mail info@pompeii.org.uk for further info.
POMPEII MONUMENT OF THE DAY
This house dates back to the Samnite period and was being restored when the volcano erupted. It is built around two atriums and a section of peristyle with a garden. The main atrium is tetrastyle in form, i.e. it has four Corinthian columns supporting the open roof. There is a table on a pedestal (cartibulum) in front of the entrance, between the impluvium and the large tablinum, whereas the lararium is situated in the first right-hand corner. A bronze safe – a clear sign of the family’s wealth – is solidly anchored to the ground near the living room (alae) on the right-hand side of the house. In addition to the fact that it has a tablinum, the importance of the h ... continue
RECIPE OF THE DAY OF THE ANCIENT POMPEII
(Apic. 3, 4, 3) Ingredients:
- 1 gourd (or courgette, small pumpkin or squash)
- peppercorns
- cumin
- coriander seeds
- 3 - 4 mint leaves, shredded
- 1 garlic
- 3 tbsp vinegar
- 50 g dates, finely chopped
- 50 g blanched almonds, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp clear honey
- 60 ml Liquamen (or, in this case, vegetable stock)
- 4 tbsp Defritum (or Wine or Grape Juice reduced by two thirds)
- 20 ml olive oil (or 25g butter)
- Sea salt to taste
Instructions:
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FORBIDDEN POMPEII: IMAGES AND NEWS
Love was a common topic of conversation in Pompeii. Feelings, passions, poetic love, sex, homosexuality, prostitution and so forth were all part of daily life and not a source of prejudice. The concept of “obscenity” seems to have been unknown. Love and sex were considered earthly practices of a man’s life that were encouraged by the benevolence of Venus. The thousands of examples of graffiti found on the town’s walls are unequivocal proof of what the people of Pompeii thought about love and sex.