Pompei
Pompei (UNESCO 1997, rif. 829) è la conservazione più completa di una città romana dell’antichità — sepolta dal Vesuvio il 24 ottobre 79 CE sotto 5 metri di pomici e conservata intatta per 1.700 anni, restituendo il più dettagliato spaccato della vita quotidiana romana: dagli affreschi della Villa dei Misteri ai calchi dei corpi, dai panifici ai termopoli, dal bordello dipinto all’anfiteatro del 70 BCE.
At a glance
Pompei Campania (the most precisely Pompei zone Pompei Napoli Campania Italy 40.7502 N 14.4872 E UNESCO WHS 1997 reference 829 Archaeological Areas of Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata: the site (Pompeii: the Roman city buried by the eruption of Vesuvius on October 24, 79 CE; the city at the moment of burial (79 CE): population approximately 11,000 (the estimate based on the bed capacity of the houses excavated: each insulae block had 15–30 rooms; 66 insulae blocks = 990–1,980 rooms; at 5–7 persons/room = 4,950–13,860 persons; the consensus: 11,000 inhabitants); the total area of the city: 66 hectares (the complete circuit of walls: 3.2 km; 7 gates; the street grid: a modified Hippodamian grid (the Hippodamian grid: the orthogonal street system designed by Hippodamos of Miletus c.450 BCE; at Pompeii the grid is modified by the irregular pre-Roman (Oscan) street alignment of the oldest quarter (the “Regio VI-VII”))); the UNESCO site (the inscribed area includes: (1) Pompeii (the main excavations: 66 hectares total; 44 hectares excavated; 22 hectares still unexcavated (the preservation decision: the Italian government decided in 1973 CE to leave the remaining 22 hectares unexcavated to preserve them for future technology improvements in conservation)); (2) Herculaneum (21 hectares total; 4.5 hectares excavated; 80% still under the modern town of Ercolano); (3) Torre Annunziata (Villa of Poppaea Sabina: 17,000 m² of floor mosaics and paintings; the largest Roman villa excavated in Italy).
Key facts
- La Villa dei Misteri e il fregio dionisiaco: perché le 29 figure ad affresco del I sec. BCE sono l’insieme più enigmatico dell’arte romana e cosa rappresentano secondo l’interpretazione più recente: the Villa dei Misteri (the Villa of the Mysteries: located 400 m outside Porta Ercolano (the northwest gate of Pompeii); a suburban villa (dating: the original structure: 2nd century BCE; the major expansion: 1st century BCE; the final layout at time of burial: a complex of 90 rooms on 2 levels; the wine production wing (the torcularium): 3 presses identified; the vineyard: 3,600 m² of garden/vineyard around the villa); the Megalographia frieze (the “Dionysiac frieze” in the “Room of the Mysteries” (Cubiculum 5): the painting dimensions: 17 m wide × 3 m tall (the largest continuous Roman frieze painting known); the 29 figures: the interpretation sequence most widely accepted (Brendel, 1953 CE; Pappalardo, 1991 CE; Seaford, 1981 CE): (1-7) the initiation preparation (a woman reading a ritual text (figure 1); a boy reading (figure 2); a priestess with basin (figures 3-7)); (8-13) a silent Dionysus (the “Silenus group”: Silenus playing the lyre; 2 young satyrs looking into a mirror; a terrified woman fleeing the figure of Phobos); (14-20) the presentation to Dionysus (a semi-reclining Dionysus with his divine consort Ariadne; a winged female figure with whip (the “winged daimon”: interpreted as Aidos, the spirit of reverence)); (21-29) the post-initiation scenes (a woman receiving the blows of the whip; the same woman consoled; a woman dressing as a bride; the final figure: a seated matron (the “domina”) who is interpreted as the owner of the villa who has undergone the full Dionysiac initiation)); the mystery (the specific mystery: the paintings were identified as “initiation into the Dionysiac Mysteries” by Wolfgang Helbig in 1868 CE; the ritual they depict (the Dionysiac mysteries) was a real religious practice in 1st century BCE Rome but was officially banned by the Roman Senate in 186 BCE (the Senatus Consultum de Bacchanalibus); that a villa owner commissioned a 17 m frieze depicting an officially banned rite suggests either: (a) the ban was not enforced after 100 BCE; (b) the ritual was practiced in private))
- GPS (Porta Marina, ingresso principale di Pompei): 40.7502° N, 14.4872° E
History
Dalla fondazione osca VI sec. BCE al UNESCO 1997 (the most precisely Pompei zone history: the founding (Pompeii was founded by the Oscans (the indigenous pre-Roman people of Campania) in the 6th century BCE (the oldest excavated buildings date to 580–560 BCE (the Doric Temple in the Triangular Forum: the oldest building in Pompeii; 3 of the original Doric columns still standing)); the Greek and Samnite phases (Pompeii was briefly under Greek influence (the Cumaean Greek colony of Parthenope (Naples) controlled the Bay of Naples from 750 BCE); then under Samnite control (Samnite Pompeii: 420–80 BCE: the period of maximum cultural growth before Romanization; the Street of Abundance (Via dell’Abbondanza: the main commercial street) was laid out in its current form in the 4th century BCE)); the Roman phase (80 BCE: Sulla besieged Pompeii and established a Roman colony: the “Colonia Cornelia Veneria Pompeianorum” (named after Sulla’s patron deities Cornelius (his own name) and Venus (his divine patroness)); the earthquakes (62 CE earthquake: M6.2 (estimated); major damage; the repair work was still ongoing when Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE (the evidence: the scaffolding around the Temple of Apollo, the Temple of Isis still under reconstruction, the incomplete columns in the Forum North colonnade))); the eruption (October 24, 79 CE: the eruption; the discovery (the rediscovery of Pompeii: 1748 CE; the first systematic excavations: under Karl III of Bourbon (King of Naples 1734–1759 CE) from 1748 CE; the first objects extracted from Pompeii (1748 CE): 5 bronze vessels + 1 fresco panel; the most controversial extraction: the Farnese Bull (actually from the Baths of Caracalla, not Pompeii: a common confusion)); the UNESCO inscription (1997 CE: reference 829).
What you see
Il Foro, la Villa dei Misteri, i calchi, Via dell’Abbondanza, l’anfiteatro (the most precisely Pompei zone visit (3–5 hours; 1 day to be thorough): the recommended circuit (the “Classic 3-Hour Circuit” recommended by the Parco Archeologico di Pompei): Porta Marina (the main entrance) → the Foro (the Forum: 38 m × 142 m; the Temple of Jupiter (150 BCE); the Basilica (130 BCE; the oldest basilica in existence; the term “basilica” in Roman = a public hall for commercial and legal transactions; the Christian adoption of the term for churches came later); the Macellum (the food market: the circular oculus structure with 12 shops around the perimeter)); the Lupanare (Via del Lupanare; the official brothel: the only confirmed brothel in Pompeii (distinguished from the 35 “possible brothels” by: (1) the built-in stone beds (not movable furniture); (2) the erotic paintings above each doorway (depicting 5 sexual positions; the paintings were advertisement and instructional for clients who did not speak the same language as the workers; the identification of workers: the graffiti on the walls record names (all Greek or Aramaic, not Latin): Zosima, Maria, Myrine, Drauca: foreign women)); Via dell’Abbondanza (the main commercial street: 500 m of stepping stones + sidewalks + thermopolii (fast food counters: the 80 thermopolii in Pompeii make it the city with the most fast-food establishments per capita in the ancient world (80 thermopolii / 11,000 inhabitants = 1 thermopolium per 138 inhabitants; the comparable modern figure: McDonald’s in the USA = 1 location per 13,000 people)); the Amphitheatre (the oldest intact Roman amphitheatre in the world (70 BCE): 135 m × 104 m; seats 20,000; the riot of 59 CE (the riot between Pompeians and Nucerians: the 59 CE brawl that began in the amphitheatre (the cause: an insult exchange between Pompeian and Nucerian fans during a gladiatorial show); result: many dead; Nero banned all gladiatorial shows in Pompeii for 10 years (the ban: 59–69 CE)); the Villa of the Mysteries (outside Porta Ercolano; 400 m; see Key Facts above).
Practical information
- Come raggiungere Pompei da Napoli e Sorrento e come organizzare la visita al sito principale con Villa dei Misteri ed Ercolano nello stesso giorno: il trasporto (Napoli Garibaldi (stazione) → Pompei Scavi – Villa dei Misteri: Circumvesuviana (35 min; €2.80; ogni 30 min dalle 6:00 alle 22:00); Sorrento → Pompei Scavi: Circumvesuviana (30 min; €2.80); il biglietto: Parco Archeologico di Pompei €16 (€2 ridotto; under 18 gratis); la combinata Pompei + Ercolano: €22 (valida 3 giorni); l’orario: 9:00–19:00 (apr–ott); 9:00–17:00 (nov–mar); l’estate (luglio-agosto): prenotare obbligatoriamente su ticketapps.museoarcheologiconapoli.it (il sito riceve 4 milioni di visitatori/anno = 11.000/giorno media; in luglio-agosto 15.000–20.000/giorno; senza prenotazione attese di 90–120 min alle casse); la guida audio (l’app ufficiale “Pompei Sites” (App Store / Play Store: €5.99; disponibile in 8 lingue; 95 audioguide + mappa offline))
Getting there
Circumvesuviana da Napoli Garibaldi (35 min, €2.80). GPS: 40.7502, 14.4872. Biglietto €16. Prenotare online in estate. Aperto 9:00–19:00 apr–ott.
Nearby
- Ercolano (UNESCO 1997 rif. 829 — stessa iscrizione) — 20 km (meglio conservata di Pompei: il legno, i tessuti, il cibo carbonizzato sopravvissuti; Via IV Novembre 44; €11; 9:00–17:00; Circumvesuviana fermata Ercolano Scavi)
- Costiera Amalfitana (UNESCO 1997 rif. 830) — 45 km (Positano-Amalfi-Ravello; bus SITA da Salerno; ferry da Napoli Beverello)
Gallery
Sources
- Wikipedia, Pompeii; Villa of the Mysteries; Eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, accessed June 2026
- UNESCO, Archaeological Areas of Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata, WHS reference 829, inscribed 1997
- Pliny the Younger, Epistulae VI.16 and VI.20 (the primary eyewitness account of the 79 CE eruption)
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