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Pompeii: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Pompeii
The first stable settlements on the site date to the 8th century BC when the Oscans, a population of central Italy, founded five villages in the area. With the arrival of the Greeks in Campania from around 740 BC, Pompeii entered the orbit of the Hellenic people. The most important building of this period is the Doric Temple, built away from the centre in what would later become the Triangular Forum. At the same time the cult of Apollo was introduced. Greek and Phoenician sailors used the location as a safe port. In the early 6th century BC, the settlement merged into a single community centred on the important crossroad between Cumae, Nola, and Stabiae and was surrounded by a tufa city wall known as the pappamonte wall. That such an impressive wall was built at this time indicates that the settlement was already important and wealthy. By 524 BC the Etruscans had settled in the area, including Pompeii, finding in the river Sarno a communication route between the sea and the interior. Under the Etruscans, a primitive forum or simple market square was built, as well as the Temple of Apollo. Excavations in 1980, 1981 have shown the presence of Etruscan inscriptions and a 6th-century BC necropolis.
Roman Prosperity And Architecture
In 474 BC, the Greek city of Cumae, allied with Syracuse, defeated the Etruscans at the Battle of Cumae and gained control of the area. The Samnites, people from the areas of Abruzzo and Molise, conquered Greek Cumae between 423 and 420 BC. It is likely that all of the surrounding territory, including Pompeii, was already conquered around 424 BC. From 343 to 341 BC in the Samnite Wars, the first Roman army entered the Campanian plain bringing with it the customs and traditions of Rome. In the late 4th century BC, the city began expanding from its nucleus into the open-walled area. The street plan of the new areas was more regular and more conformal to Hippodamus's street plan. The city walls were reinforced in Sarno stone in the early 3rd century BC. After the Samnite Wars from 290 BC, Pompeii was forced to accept the status of socii of Rome, maintaining, however, linguistic and administrative autonomy. In 89 BC it was besieged by Sulla, who targeted the strategically vulnerable Porta Ercolano with his artillery as can still be seen by the impact craters of thousands of ballista shots in the walls. Many nearby buildings inside the walls were also destroyed. The result was that Pompeii became a Roman colony named Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum. Under Augustus, from about 30 BC, a major expansion in new public buildings included the Eumachia Building, the Sanctuary of Augustus and the Macellum. From about 20 BC, Pompeii was fed with running water by a spur from the Serino Aqueduct, built by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa.
When did the first stable settlements on Pompeii begin?
The first stable settlements on the site date to the 8th century BC when the Oscans founded five villages in the area. The settlement merged into a single community by the early 6th century BC and was surrounded by a tufa city wall known as the pappamonte wall.
Who defeated the Etruscans at the Battle of Cumae in 474 BC?
The Greek city of Cumae, allied with Syracuse, defeated the Etruscans at the Battle of Cumae in 474 BC. This victory allowed them to gain control of the area that included Pompeii before the Samnites conquered Greek Cumae between 423 and 420 BC.
What happened to Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius on the 5th of February 62?
A severe earthquake caused considerable damage around the bay and particularly to Pompeii on the 5th of February 62. It is believed that the earthquake registered between 5 and 6 on the Richter magnitude scale and triggered chaos including fires from fallen oil lamps.
When did excavations officially identify the city as Pompeii?
On the 20th of August 1763 an inscription Rei Publicae Pompeianorum was found which identified the city as Pompeii. Karl Weber directed the first scientific excavations following this discovery while Giuseppe Fiorelli took charge in 1863.
How many bakeries existed within the town of Pompeii?
There were at least 31 bakeries in the town each with wood-burning ovens millstones and a sales counter. The Modestus bakery or House of the Oven was the largest in the city and Sotericus's bakery also among the largest preserves the room for kneading bread.
On the 5th of February 62 a severe earthquake did considerable damage around the bay, and particularly to Pompeii. It is believed that the earthquake would have registered between 5 and 6 on the Richter magnitude scale. Chaos followed the earthquake; fires caused by oil lamps that had fallen during the quake added to the panic. By 79, Pompeii had a population of 20,000, which had prospered from the region's renowned agricultural fertility and favourable location. The eruption lasted for two days. The first phase was of pumice rain lasting about 18 hours, allowing most inhabitants to escape. Only approximately 1,150 bodies have so far been found on site, which seems to confirm this theory. At some time in the night or early the next day, pyroclastic flows began near the volcano, consisting of high speed, dense, and scorching ash clouds, knocking down wholly or partly all structures in their path, incinerating or suffocating the remaining population and altering the landscape, including the coastline. A multidisciplinary volcanological and bio-anthropological study published in 2010 shows that exposure to at least 243 degrees Celsius hot pyroclastic flows at a distance of 8 kilometers from the vent was sufficient to cause instant death, even if people were sheltered within buildings. Pliny the Younger provided a first-hand account of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius from his position across the Bay of Naples at Misenum, but it was written approximately 27 or 28 years after the event. His uncle, Pliny the Elder, with whom he had a close relationship, died while attempting to rescue stranded victims.
Rediscovery And Excavation History
The next known date that any part was unearthed was in 1592, when architect Domenico Fontana, while digging an underground aqueduct to the mills of Torre Annunziata, ran into ancient walls covered with paintings and inscriptions. However, he kept the finding secret. In 1689, Francesco Picchetti saw a wall inscription mentioning decurio Pompeiis, but he associated it with a villa of Pompey. Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1738 by workers digging for the foundations of a summer palace for the King of Naples, Charles of Bourbon. Roque Joaquín de Alcubierre made excavations to find further remains at the site of Pompeii in 1748, even if the city was not identified. On the 20th of August 1763, an inscription Rei Publicae Pompeianorum was found and the city was identified as Pompeii. Karl Weber directed the first scientific excavations. He was followed in 1764 by military engineer Franscisco la Vega, who was succeeded by his brother, Pietro, in 1804. Giuseppe Fiorelli took charge of the excavations in 1863 and made greater progress. During early excavations of the site, occasional voids in the ash layer had been found that contained human remains. Fiorelli realised these were spaces left by the decomposed bodies, and so devised the technique of injecting plaster into them to recreate the forms of Vesuvius's victims. This technique is still in use today, with a clear resin now used instead of plaster because it is more durable and does not destroy the bones, allowing further analysis.
Daily Life And Social Structure
There were at least 31 bakeries in the town, each with wood-burning ovens, millstones and a sales counter. The Modestus bakery, or House of the Oven, was the largest in the city and Sotericus's bakery, also among the largest, preserves the room for kneading bread. Thermopolia were inns or snack-bars in which hot food and drinks were sold and in Pompeii there were nearly 100. The thermopolium of Vetutius Placidus overlooked the street directly, had a counter and several dolia, as well as a room behind the shop where customers could eat their meals. Wool processing was well developed with 13 workshops that worked the raw material, seven that did the spinning, nine the dyeing, and 18 the washing. The garum workshop made the sauce obtained from the fermentation of the entrails of fish. In the building some containers were found, closed by lids, with the sauce inside while in the nearby garden was a large deposit of amphorae. Evidence of wine imported nationally from Pompeii in its most prosperous years can be found from recovered artefacts such as wine bottles in Rome. For this reason, vineyards were of utmost importance to Pompeii's economy. Carbonised food plant remains, roots, seeds and pollens have been found in gardens in Pompeii, Herculaneum, and a Roman villa at Torre Annunziata. They revealed that emmer wheat, Italian millet, common millet, walnuts, pine nuts, chestnuts, hazel nuts, chickpeas, bitter vetch, broad beans, olives, figs, pears, onions, garlic, peaches, carob, grapes, and dates were consumed.
Conservation Challenges And Tourism
Objects buried beneath Pompeii were well-preserved for almost 2,000 years as the lack of air and moisture allowed little to no deterioration. However, Pompeii has been exposed to natural and anthropic deterioration following excavation. Weathering, erosion, light exposure, water damage, poor methods of excavation and reconstruction, introduced plants and animals, tourism, vandalism and theft have all damaged the site in some way. The lack of adequate weather protection for all but the most interesting and important buildings has allowed original interior decoration to fade or be lost. Two-thirds of the city has been excavated, but the remnants of the city are rapidly deteriorating. In June 2013, UNESCO warned that if restoration and preservation works fail to deliver substantial progress in the next two years, Pompeii could be placed on the List of World Heritage in Danger. A Grande Progetto Pompei project of about five years had begun in 2012 with the European Union and included stabilization and conservation of buildings in the highest risk areas. By 2008, it was attracting almost 2.6 million visitors per year, making it one of Italy's most popular tourist sites. In 2024, the site's management announced that it would limit daily sales to a maximum of 20,000 personalised tickets per day and introduce timed entry schemes in the peak summer season.