Edward Herbert Bunbury, Thomas Ashby, and Robert Seymour Conway

“ Dyers shops, a tannery and a shop where colours were ground and manufactured—an important business where almost all the rooms of every house were painted—are of special interest, as is also the house of a surgeon, where numerous surgical instruments were found, some of them of a very ingenious and elaborate description, but all made of bronze. ”

“ Adjoining the theatres is a large rectangular enclosure, surrounded by a portico, at first the colonnade connected with the theatres, and converted, about the time of Nero, into the barracks of the gladiators, who were permanently maintained in the city with a view to the shows in the amphitheatre. This explains why it is so far from that building, which is situated at the south-eastern angle of the town, about 500 yds. from the theatres. Remains of gladiators’ armour and weapons were found in some of the rooms, and in one, traces of the stocks used to confine insubordinate gladiators. ”

“ From the existing remains it is clear that the inhabitants were still actively engaged in repairing and restoring the ruined edifices when the whole city was overwhelmed by the great eruption of A.D. 79. Vesuvius (q.v.) , the volcanic forces of which had been slumbering for unknown ages, suddenly burst into violent eruption, which, while it carried devastation all around the beautiful gulf, buried the two cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii under dense beds of cinders and ashes. ”

“ One practice which is especially prevalent, so as to strike every casual visitor, and dates from the early years of the empire, is that of filling up the flutings of the columns for about one-third of their height with a thick coat of stucco, so as to give them the appearance of being smooth columns without flutings below, and only fluted above. ”

“ On the east side of the forum were four edifices; all of them are of a public character, but their names and attribution have been the subject of much controversy. The first (proceeding from the north) , once known as the Pantheon, is generally regarded as a macellum or meat-market, consisting of a rectangular court surrounded by a colonnade, with a twelve sided roofed building (tholus) in the centre. On the south side were shops, and in the centre of the east side a chapel for the worship of the imperial house. ”

“ No manuscripts have been discovered in Pompeii. Inscriptions have naturally been found in considerable numbers, and we are indebted to them for much information concerning the municipal arrangements of the town, as well as the construction of various edifices and other public works. The most interesting of, these are such as are written in the Oscan dialect, which appears to have continued in official use down to the time when the Roman colony was introduced by Sulla. ”

“ Another curious discovery was that of the abode of a sculptor, containing his tools, as well as blocks of marble and half-finished statues. The number of utensils of various kinds found in the houses and shops is almost endless, and, as these are in most cases of bronze, they are generally in perfect preservation. ”

“ Another exception is to be found in the Strada Stabiana (Stabian Street) or Cardo, which, owing to the existence of a natural depression which affects also the line of the street just east of it, is not parallel to the other north and south streets. The other main streets are in some cases broader, but rarely exceed 20 ft. in width, and the broadest yet found is about 32, while the back streets running parallel to the main lines are only about 14 ft. (It is to be remembered, however, that the standard width of a Roman highroad in the neighbourhood of Rome itself is about 14 ft.) ”

“ Great as is the interest attached to the various public buildings of Pompeii, and valuable as is the light that they have in some instances thrown upon similar edifices in other ruined cities, far more curious and interesting is the insight afforded us by the numerous private houses and shops into the ordinary life and habits of the population of an ancient town. ”

“ Almost all the skeletons and remains of bodies found in the city were discovered in similar situations, in cellars or underground apartments—those who had sought refuge in flight having apparently for the most part escaped from destruction, or having perished under circumstances where their bodies were easily recovered by the survivors. ”

“ Marble first appears as a building material in the temple of Fortuna Augusta (c. 3 B.C.) .
6. The period from the earthquake of A.D. 65 to the final destruction of the city, the buildings of which can easily be recognized. The only wholly new edifice of any importance is the central baths.
Outside the Porta Ercolanese, or gate leading to Herculaneum, is found a house of a different character from all the others, which from its extent and arrangements was undoubtedly a suburban villa, belonging to a person of considerable fortune. ”

“ Some of these present a very elaborate system of defence, but it is evident from the decayed condition of others, as well as of parts of the walls and towers, that they had ceased to be maintained for the purposes of fortification long before the destruction of the city. The names by which the gates and streets are known are entirely of modern origin. ”

“ The same impression is produced in a still higher degree by the paintings with which the walls of the private houses, as well as those of the temples and other public buildings, are adorned, and which are not.merely of a decorative character, but in many instances present us with elaborate compositions of figures, historical and mythological scenes, as well as representations of the ordinary life and manners of the people, which are full of interest to us, though often of inferior artistic execution. ”

“ In general the shop had a very small apartment behind it, and probably in most cases a sleeping chamber above it, though of this the only remaining evidence is usually a portion of the staircase that led to this upper room. The front of the shop was open to the street, but was capable of being closed with wooden shutters, the remains of which have in a few instances been preserved. ”

“ The general plan of the town is very regular, the streets being generally straight, and crossing one another at right angles or nearly so. But exceptions are found on the west in the street leading from the Porta Ercolanese (gate of Herculaneum) to the forum, which, though it must have been one of the principal thoroughfares in the city, was crooked and irregular, as well as very narrow, in some parts not exceeding 12 to 14 ft. in width, including the raised footpaths on each side, which occupy a. ”

“ The portion of the portico surrounding the forum which was in the process 'of rebuilding at the time when the city was destroyed was constructed of this material, while the earlier portions, as well as the principal temples that adjoined it, were composed in the ordinary manner of volcanic tufa. Marble appears to have been scarce, and was sparingly employed. ”