Book: Affreschi Romani

From Archart.it:

“Affreschi Romani”, il nuovo libro di Umberto Pappalardo
E’ in libreria il nuovo lavoro di Umberto Pappalardo, docente di Archeologia pompeiana presso l’Università “Suor Orsola Benincasa” di Napoli. Il volume intitolato “Affreschi Romani” si inserisce in maniera nuova nel settore dei studi riguardanti la pittura romana, rivisitando e aggiornando l’analisi di questa straordinaria arte antica.
Nuovo è anche l’approccio con il quale l’archeologo propone la sintesi del suo lavoro: un’ accurata indagine che si avvale sia delle fonti antiche, come Varrone, Vitruvio Plinio, Svetonio e lo storico Sisenna, sia di esempi concreti. Prendono così forma le straordinarie descrizioni delle dimore campane di età repubblicana di Terzo e Quarto Stile, delle residenze dell’Esquilino che, con il loro ciclo pittorico omerico, rappresentano le testimonianze più antiche di pittura del paesaggio datate intorno al 50 – 40 a.C.
Seguono la Villa di Livia a Prima Porta fino ad arrivare alla celebre Domus Aurea di Nerone che impersona in pieno lo sviluppo conosciuto dal Quarto Stile a Roma.

Lo studioso inoltre dimostra di come non ci si debba sorprendere che ogni città della provincia italica vivesse e rielaborasse in maniera propria il riflesso di quanto avvenisse nella capitale: quello della pittura è un caso emblematico poiché rispecchia la volontà da parte dei Romani di avere un rapporto di continuità con il mondo greco, arrivando anche all’acquisizione ed imitazione dei modelli ellenici facendoli propri. Questo è palese nell’evoluzione dei cosiddetti “quattro stili pompeiani” individuati dallo studioso tedesco August Mau (1840 – 1909), classificati sulla base degli esempi di Pompei ma diffusi in realtà in tutto il mondo romano.

Individuato l'antico Teatro romano di Baia

See Napoli.com for news of the discovery of the ancient theatre of Baia, thanks to satellite imagery. The remains of the theatre are under water and can be seen just off the coast. They are located beneath (and partly built into) a hill where at a later date the Castello Aragonese was constructed. The theatre faced the sea, and it has been suggested that this is the famous 'Theatre of Caesar' (Tacitus claims that Caesar had a villa on the Bay of Baia), and that the remains of the villa and theatre were incorporated into the later castle.

AIA Program and Blogging Pompeii Social Event!

Only 10 days until the APA/AIA in Anaheim, USA! Here are the papers/sessions on Pompeii and associated sites:

Session: 4D: Politics of Archaeology, Friday, January 8, 8:30 AM - 11:30 AM
1. Staging excavation at Pompeii (Joanne T. Berry, Swansea University)

Session: 5C: Subcultures in Roman Social Life: Negotiating Non-Elite Identity and Outsider Status, Friday, January 8, 12:30 PM - 2:30 PM
4. Street Theater in Five Acts: Pompeian Performances of Subcultural Identities (Jeremy Hartnett, Wabash College)

Session: 5H: Baths and the City, Friday, January 8, 12:30 PM - 2:30 PM
3. Campanian Baths: Indigenizing Inspiration in the Form and Function of Public Baths (Tanya Henderson, University of Alberta)

Session: 6B: Pompeii, Friday, January 8, 2:45 PM - 5:15 PM
1. Dialogues of Graffiti in the House of Maius Castricius (Rebecca R. Benefiel, Washington and Lee University)
2. Pompeii’s Water Supply: A Reappraisal Suggested by New Geochemical Analyses of Sinter Deposits (Duncan Keenan-Jones, Macquarie University, John Hellstrom, University of Melbourne, and Russell Drysdale, Newcastle University)
3. How the Alexander Mosaic was Used (Martin Beckmann, University of Western Ontario)
4. Dine and Dash: Zooarchaeological Comparisons among Households in Pompeii (Michael MacKinnon, University of Winnipeg)
5. Re-contextualizing the Naples Philosophers Mosaic (Tamara Durn, Cleveland Museum of Art/Case Western Reserve University)

Let me know if I've missed any.

Now, I feel that the AIA is a good excuse for another Blogging Pompeii Social Event! I suggest that we meet after the 'Pompeii' session on Friday afternoon, and retire to the closest bar for an hour or two. (This is not restricted to Blogging Pompeii contributors - anyone who wants to come and talk Pompeii is welcome). So, who's game?

Hi Jo I'm not sure if this is going to work. It's the first time that I have blogged. Just to say thank you for the nice comments about Latrinae et Foricae and My BAR on 'Latrines and Downpipes in Pompeii' has just been printed Barry

Pompei ed Ercolano in musica

I REALLY wish I was at Pompeii for this - Mozart in the Villa of the Mysteries on Christmas Day! This is part of a series of concerts and special openings of the sites of Campania over the Xmas holidays. If anyone makes it to any of these concerts, please take some photos for me! Here are the details:

Le musiche di Piazzolla nella Casa dei Cervi, Mozart a Villa dei Misteri, e ancora le note di Paisiello, Paganini, Vivaldi, Beethoven, Morricone, Gershwin da ascoltare tra le mura delle domus più famose: quest’anno Pompei ed Ercolano sono ‘aperti per ferie’. A Natale e Capodanno i visitatori avranno una sorpresa: dieci concerti straordinari per amplificare la magia degli scavi vesuviani in un’inedita atmosfera di festa.
L’iniziativa, che non comporta alcuna maggiorazione al prezzo del biglietto, è stata resa possibile grazie ad uno specifico accordo sindacale raggiunto tra la Soprintendente, Mariarosaria Salvatore, e le organizzazioni sindacali.
“Far vivere il nostro patrimonio archeologico ai turisti – ha dichiarato il Commissario delegato Marcello Fiori – anche nei giorni delle festività, attraverso la musica nelle sue diverse espressioni, è un modo per proporre un percorso originale di valorizzazione e di accoglienza”.

Questo il programma in dettaglio dei concerti straordinari di Pompei e Ercolano:

POMPEI

25 Dicembre dalle ore 10 alle ore 12

• QUARTETTO MITIJA - Villa dei Misteri
Musiche di Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart e Franz Joseph Haydn.
• TRIO RESONARE - Domus del Menandro
Musiche di Antonio Vivaldi, Giovanni Paisiello, Niccolò Paganini, George Friedrich Handel, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart e Ludwig van Beethoven.

• AN ARPERC’ - Domus di Casca Longa
Melodie natalizie, musica celtica e britannica, tarantelle del sud.

• QUARTETTO D’ARCHI MAURICE RAVEL - Domus del Poeta Tragico
Musiche di Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Richard Strauss, Nicola Piovani, Astor Piazzolla, Ennio Morricone e George Gershwin.

1° gennaio dalle ore 11 alle ore 13

• TRIO RESONARE - Domus del Citarista
Musiche di Antonio Vivaldi, Giovanni Paisiello, Niccolò Paganini, George Friedrich Handel, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart e Ludwig van Beethoven.

• AN ARPERC’ - Domus della Fontana Piccola
Melodie natalizie, musica celtica e britannica, tarantelle del sud.

• QUARTETTO D’ARCHI MAURICE RAVEL - Domus del Poeta Tragico
Musiche di Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Richard Strauss, Nicola Piovani, Astor Piazzola, Ennio Morricone e George Gershwin.

ERCOLANO

25 dicembre dalle ore 10 alle ore 12

• VIAGGIO IN DUO - Domus dei Cervi
Brani inediti, musiche di Astor Piazzolla, George Gershwin, Nino Rota ed Ennio Morricone.

• QUARTETTO MARTUCCI - Domus del Bel Cortile
Musiche di George Bizet, Astor Piazzolla, Claude Debussy e Johann Sebastian Bach.

1° gennaio dalle ore 11 alle ore 13

• QUARTETTO MARTUCCI - Domus del Bel Cortile
Musiche di George Bizet, Astor Piazzolla, Claude Debussy e Johann Sebastian Bach.

Le visite guidate e le aperture straordinarie interesseranno anche gli altri siti archeologici della Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni archeologici di Napoli e Pompei, secondo il seguente programma:

OPLONTIS e STABIA (25 dicembre e 1° gennaio ore 9,00 – 17,00 )
Visite guidate alla Villa di Poppea (Oplontis) e alle Ville di Arianna e S.Marco (Stabia)

MUSEO DI BOSCOREALE (25 dicembre e 1° gennaio ore 9,00 – 17,00 )
“Un ospite d’Eccezione”, esposizione temporanea della statua marmorea di Demetra rinvenuta negli scavi della Villa dei Papiri di Ercolano.

MUSEO DI NOLA (25 dicembre 9,00 – 14,00 e 1° gennaio ore 14,00 – 19,00)
Esposizione dei dipinti attribuiti alla Bottega di Micco Spadaro.

BAIA (25 dicembre e 1° gennaio 9,00 – 14,00 )
Apertura del Tempio di Diana e del Tempio di Venere

CUMA (25 dicembre e 1° gennaio 9,00 – 14,00 )
Apertura Masseria del Gigante, Tempio di Giove, Mura Settentrionali e Necropoli

MUSEO ARCHEOLOGICO NAZIONALE (25 dicembre 9,00 – 14,00 e 1° gennaio ore 14,00 – 19,00)
Mostra Farnese
Mostra L’Ora X di G. Paolini

Volcano Mt Mayon to erupt

The active strato volcano Mt Mayon shares similar characteristics to Vesuvius and is on the verge of an eruption in the Albay region, Luzon Island in the Philippines. The volcano and its eruption will be of interest to scholars studying the Vesuvian area including Pompeii as the type of eruption expected could mimic the catastrophic AD 79 eruption that destroyed the region.

Those who are following the eruption patterns closely after the volcanic activity hit major newsources last week will notice that the volcano is renowned for its perfect cone shape (similar to the likely depiction of a cone-shaped Vesuvius dating from the first century AD) prior to blowing off much of the cone. The eruption pattern also includes up to a thousand earthquake tremors per hour and scientists with PHILVOCS are predicting a pyroclastic flow if the volcano moves to from its current Level 4 eruption to a Level 5 alert (an active volcanic eruption), which is expected imminently.

The volcano has been spewing lava and ash for several days and major attempts to remove those occupying cities and settlements around the volcano were begun several days ago (documented in photos at the above link), but some people are refusing to leave their homes and belongings. Volcanic eruptions over the last 400 years have resulted in destruction in the area, including a catastrophic eruption almost 200 years ago that covered an entire town, but the volcano has also created intensely fertile landscapes for agriculture.

For those of us who study the Vesuvian region in antiquity, let us hope that those occupying the area are able to escape safely, as Vesuvius and other volcanic catastrophes have illustrated too succinctly that distance is the only safety that can be provided.

Te Papa shows off A Day in Pompeii

See here for a brief video about the A Day in Pompeii exhibition that just opened at Te Papa in New Zealand.

Blogging Pompeii survey results!

A big thank you to all those who took the time to give us some feedback about Blogging Pompeii. The majority who replied were professionals in the field, but there were also some useful comments from members of the public. It was interesting to note that many people heard about the blog through word of mouth (or word of email!) - so keep spreading the news!

Overall the comments were extremely positive and constructive. Here is a brief summary, which I have divided into 1) Things we can do now; 2) Things we can do with a bit of help; and 3) Things we (unfortunately) can't do.

1) Things we can do now

i) There was a great deal of discussion and comment about the current policy of only allowing named contributors to comment on posts. In the end, more people wanted to keep the current restriction rather than remove it - although it was a close-run thing.
Here is my solution: the current restriction will remain, but comments can be emailed to bloggingpompeii@gmail.com. We will then post them on readers' behalf. Alternatively, anyone with a Facebook account can comment freely on the Blogging Pompeii mirror site.

ii) There were some useful comments about the structure of the blog. I have already made a few changes, including removing the label cloud (which was getting a bit unwieldly) and making the search box more obvious. You can now also see a list of recent posts - which at least gives an overview of current activity to those who are too busy to visit the blog every day. If you have any other suggestions about structure or appearance, email them to me.

2. Things we can do with a bit of help.

i) The most popular items on Blogging Pompeii are the news about current events and news about current research initiatives. However, MANY people want more news about current field work. This is unpublished- apart from occasional press releases - which means that we need researchers in the field to post information about their work. This is obviously tricky since Blogging Pompeii is a blog, not a formal publication. But there are a few possibilities here:

1. Contributors can keep their profiles updated with news of their current projects.
2. Contributors, or anyone with a current project, could send in links to their project websites to be added to the list of current projects, and can post when updates have been made to these websites.
3. Contributors can consider writing a brief informal summary of their work for Blogging Pompeii, to tide us over until proper publication.
4. Contributors should post or email in any new publications about their work.
5. Perhaps we can interview people about their current projects. If anyone would like to interview a fellow scholar for Blogging Pompeii, or if anyone would like to be interviewed, email me.

ii) Discussion! Many, many people commented that they would like to see more discussion. One of the problems here is that the blog is so fast-moving that posts quickly drop from the first page. However, I think we should give discussion a chance! I am willing to start discussions (if I know anything about the topic!), or to find people to start a discussion - but I would like readers and contributors to suggest topics that they would like to discuss or see discussed. Email your ideas to bloggingpompeii@gmail.com. I notice that discussions often develop out of questions asked by contributions. A good example is the recent discussion of how to identify modern mortar! In general questions get good responses - demonstrating the good will and desire to help that exists among contributors! So, questions might be another way to generate more discussion. Think about posting some questions, or email them to us.

Related to i) and ii), several people commented that they would like to see more contributors blogging about their current work.

iii) More book reviews! Ok, this would be great! But it needs contributors to review books!

iv) Web conferences and lectures. Wow! I would love that. But I have no idea how to do it, or whether blogspot blogs can do it. If anyone has any ideas about this - about how to do it practically, or about possible topics, - or if anyone would like to organise such an event, email bloggingpompeii@gmail.com.

v) Project calendar. There is already a link to the Pompeiana project calendar in the right hand column. More people should use it!

vi) More links with Pompeiana.org. Yes, great! Any ideas about this should be emailed to me, or to Eric Poehler of Pompeiana.org.

3. Things we (unfortunately) can't do.

i) A weekly summary of posts. Sorry, I don't have time to do this! But in the right-hand column you can now see a list of recent posts. I hope this helps!

ii) Translation of Italian. I have a problem with providing translation: this is an academic site that aims to bring together scholars from around the world. I want to avoid the impression that this is primarily an English-language blog. Contributors should feel free to blog in their own language, in the knowledge that other scholars can understand them. I want to encourage more Italian, French, Spanish and (sigh) German, and I don't want international contributors to think that they have to blog in English (which might put them off posting at all). The idea is to be as inclusive as possible.
Providing translation is also time-consuming ...
However, for those who don't know much Italian, we will attempt to give a very brief idea of what an Italian article is about. That will help a bit, I hope.

iii) Remember that Blogging Pompeii is dynamic, not static. We can't expand the blog format on this site, and we can't set up discussion groups or email groups. We can develop more links with Pompeiana.org, however, and readers should also take a look at Peter Clements' useful AD 79 site (answers to some questions asked in the survey can be found here).

Finally, one frequent comment - readers would like to see posts from a greater number of contributors. I would say that over the year the number of people posting has steadily increased. But - if we are to have a true sense of community, which is the primary aim of this blog - more contributors need to develop the blogging habit! Contributors - embrace your inner blogger! And UPDATE YOUR PROFILE.

Remember that this blog is a democratic and open enterprise. If you have any further comments or suggestions over the coming months (and years!), email them in.

Jo

P.S. If anyone would like to see the full survey results they should email bloggingpompeii@gmail.com.

Visit Pompeii with the Victorians in Second Life

A 3D recreation of a Roman house in Pompeii, built in the virtual world Second Life by academics from the University of Bristol, was unveiled at a joint online and real world event on Wednesday.

To read more see the Bristol website.

Help Blogging Pompeii

Today is your last chance to complete the survey about the development of Blogging Pompeii. If you haven't already done so, please take a minute to give us some feedback here.

Christmas present suggestion: Herculaneum DVD!

I've already posted about the DVD "Herculaneum: diaries of darkness and light".

I just wanted to bring it to your attention that in the new year it will be distributed by Electa (and so available in site and museum bookshops and online) but the price will increase (to 18.90 euros).

However, the film maker, Marcellino de Baggis, has been able to sell it at the original - and lower - price on his website and will keep it at 16.90 euros until the end of year. Now's the time to get your copy for Christmas while it's still cheap!

Book: Herculaneum: A Guide to the Printed Sources

And another extremely important volume has just come out:

I. C. McIlwaine, Herculaneum. A guide to printed sources, 1980 - 2007 (Naples: Bibliopolis, 2009).

It can be ordered from the publisher here.

Congratulations to Ia!

Nova Bibliotheca Pompeiana

It has come to my attention that there are still copies available of Laurentino Garcia y Garcia's 1998 Nova Bibliotheca Pompeiana. I had assumed this was out of print! All our institution libraries should have a copy of this - so, if yours doesn't, get them to order it from Bardi Editore.

Blogging Pompeii's First Birthday!

The first post appeared on Blogging Pompeii a year ago today!

To celebrate ...

A Wordle image generated from Blogging Pompeii's first year of posts:

And a collection of random Twitter comments about Pompeii from the last few months (after filtering out the rock band 'Pompeii', the US town 'Herculaneum', the race-horse 'Pompeii Spirit', the nightclub 'Pompeii Lounge' and the almost daily tweets about Pink Floyd's concert in the amphitheatre of Pompeii!). I have categorised them into:

The misinformed:

‘So according to the German translation of Lisa's sentence in The Simpsons the people of Pompei froze to death when the vulcano erupted.’
‘Overheard at Pompeii: "So, basically, you're standing in ancient poop."’

The shocked:

‘Watching a show about ancient Pompeii. There's a guy on it who is an "expert on economics of prostitution in ancient Rome." The hell?’
‘Okay, Google Streetview misses out much of my city and instead adds some place in Italy. I mean I've never even heard of Pompeii.’

The frankly weird:

‘I snuck into Pompeii once, in the area that was still being excavated. Saw an arm sticking out of a wall; made me sad for days.’
‘Today is the anniversary of the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius when God punished Pompeii for all those naked statues.’
‘And as I finish my lunch, I can think only of the walls of Pompeii.’

Pompeii as a metaphor:

‘Once again, Los Angeles feels like living in Pompei.’
‘Inbox buried. Think Pompeii.’
‘just about burned my house down by pressing 0 too many times on my microwave. Now it smells like Pompeii’
‘the instructions say 'simmer,' not 'recreate the last hours of Pompeii.'’
‘The onion volcano NEVER gets old. You just hafta worry about them putting too much stuff in there and it going Pompeii on you’
‘Dinner is served. Anger bubbles below the surface, threatening to cover everyone nearby, to trap them like residents of Pompeii.’
‘God forbid if this town ever had snow fall on it; a panic would sweep the land and it would burn to the ground faster than Pompeii.’

The totally random:

‘Apparently the people of ancient Pompeii "tweeted" through wall graffiti. Leaving us ancient messages about sex and bodily functions.’
‘I was in Pompeii. My mom and I snuck out of the public area and found the bodies.’
‘Y63: Nero kills his one kid(maybe...probly). There's an earthquake in Pompeii. They rebuild afterwards. About as smart as Californians. Heh.’

And my personal favourite, the disaffected student:

‘Preparing herself mentally for when she has to listen to some old dude talk about Pompeii for 3hrs Tomorrow.’
‘I hate Pompeii. Your not interesting. I wish you were never found’
‘I have a sudden urge to watch Ponyo instead of studying Pompeii.’

I hope you are all chuckling as much as I am!

A big thank you to everyone who has contributed over the year, and to all you who read the blog. Keep up the good work!

Are there any blog readers who are wheelchair users?

I’m looking for any blog readers who are wheelchair users, or who have accompanied wheelchair users around the Vesuvian sites. I’ve accompanied wheelchair visitors myself and know that it is well worth it, if somewhat tiring!

We all know that archaeological sites are particularly challenging in terms of access, and it is something that the Soprintendenza is aware of and trying to prioritize (Commissario Fiori is keen to tackle this issue properly in 2010).

However, in the immediate we’d like to help improve the experience of wheelchair visitors (we being the Herculaneum Conservation Project) – and one proposal we’re looking at is a scheme where you could borrow a wheelchair from the ticket office on arrival at Herculaneum, one that would be more robust, lighter and could take the curbs better.

What do you think? Is it a waste of time and money? Is your average wheelchair already robust enough to cope? Would you rather have other services offered?

Any feedback would be very much appreciated!
Thanks, Sarah

Intervista Marcello Fiori

Thanks to Pia Kastenmeier for this link to a recent interview with Marcello Fiori on RAI Radio 3.

Inauguration of the Museo Storico Archeologico di Nola

Notice from GAV:

LUNEDI' 21 DICEMBRE
INAUGURAZIONE DEL MUSEO STORICO ARCHEOLOGICO DI NOLA (NA) E CONVEGNO

Riapertura del Museo Storico Archeologico di Nola - a cura della Presidenza della Regione Campania, del Comune di Nola, della Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei, della Soprintendenza per i Beni Architettonici, Paesaggistici, Storici, Artistici, ed Etnoantropologici per Napoli e Provincia - Museo Storico Archeologico di Nola - ore 16.30
a seguire

Convegno dal titolo "Attuazione e rilancio del Piano di valorizzazione dei Beni Culturali dell'Area Nolana" - interventi di Geremia Biancardi (Sindaco di Nola) ed i sindaci dell'area nolana, conclusioni di Gianfranco Nappi (Ass.Agricoltura e Coordinamento del Piano) e Oberdan Forlenza (Ass.Beni Culturali Regione Campania)
Sala dei Medaglioni del Museo Diocesano di Nola (Na) - ore 17.30

Beni archeologici a Poggiomarino. Il sindaco scrive alla Soprintendenza

This from Insomma.it:

Un incontro con la responsabile della Soprintendenza speciale di Napoli e Pompei per discutere degli scavi archeologici presenti a Poggiomarino.

Lo chiede il sindaco Vincenzo Vastola, che ha scritto alla dottoressa Mariarosaria Salvatore, soprintendente archeologo della Soprintendenza Speciale di Napoli e Pompei manifestando “le preoccupazioni, insieme a quelle dell’intera cittadinanza, circa la sorte dell’indagine in via Fontanelle e dell’area archeologica di Longola”. Si legge nella lettera: “L’amministrazione che rappresento è vivamente interessata alla salvaguardia e alla valorizzazione in tutti i suoi aspetti dei siti archeologici oggetto di indagine, pertanto Le chiedo una informativa, per quanto è di Sua competenza, circa le attività in corso o quelle in progetto”. Vastola specifica anche che il Comune è disponibile a predisporre un deposito per la conservazione dei beni archeologici di Poggiomarino: “Siamo disponibili ad individuare, in brevissimo tempo, nell’ambito del territorio comunale, un’area da attrezzare o locali idonei alla conservazione dei reperti, secondo le indicazioni della Soprintendenza”. Infine la richiesta di un incontro, peraltro già fatta una prima volta il 10 novembre scorso, “nella certezza di un reciproco impegno e una comune volontà ad affrontare proficuamente i problemi”. Gli scavi in via Fontanelle sono stati realizzati dalla Sovrintendenza ai beni culturali, su richiesta del commissariato di governo per la bonifica del Sarno, che in quella zona sta ultimando il nuovo sistema fognario. In pratica, ai tecnici della Sovrintendenza è stato chiesto di fare saggi di scavo nell'area dove verrà installata la tubazione fognaria per verificare l'eventuale presenza di reperti archeologici. Un lavoro preventivo che avrebbe portato alla luce importanti scoperte, sulla cui natura ora il Comune chiede informazioni. A Poggiomarino, inoltre, nel 2000 fu rinvenuto un importante sito protostorico del VI secolo avanti Cristo in località Longola, proprio mentre venivano effettuati i lavori per la costruzione del depuratore del Sarno. Per meglio seguire e valorizzare i beni archeologici di Poggiomarino, l’amministrazione comunale si avvale anche della consulenza del professor Salvatore Ciro Nappo, archeologo e autore di numerosi studi e pubblicazioni nel settore.

Book: Il rischio Vesuvio

Titolo: Il rischio Vesuvio. Storia e geodiversità di un volcano
Autore: Antonio Nazzaro
Editore: Guida
Anno: 2009
Pagine: 176

“Dalla ferita del vulcano si vedeva la lava che come una fauce rossa di drago inghiottiva le case di Torre del Greco finendo in quel mare di coralli”. La sorveglianza geofisica del Vesuvio iniziò con il duca Ascanio Filomarino della Torre e fu istituzionalizzata poi, nel 1841, con la fondazione dell’Osservatorio Vesuviano. Ricordando i progressi di una felice stagione scientifica, questo libro sviluppa in una prospettiva storica gli attuali problemi del rischio vulcanico, emblema dei rischi che avvolgono l’umanità. Assieme alla storia eruttiva del vulcano più famoso della terra, più studiato e più pericoloso per il vasto territorio che si estende alle sue pendici, l’autore riporta inediti fenomeni precursori dell’eruzione del 1631 e mette in rilievo le reazioni all’attività eruttiva, sia per quanto riguarda i provvedimenti a difesa dalle eruzioni, che le pratiche religiose. Da questo punto di vista s’impone, nelle complesse connotazioni del rapporto uomo-vulcano, la figura di San Gennaro, che, con il miracolo della liquefazione del sangue, offre quasi una mistica transustanziazione magma-sangue nella quale si leniva l’angoscia, non solo delle eruzioni, ma anche delle altre catastrofi, come i terremoti e le pestilenze che colpivano la città di Napoli lungo il corso dei secoli.

Antonio Nazzaro è stato ricercatore dell'Osservatorio Vesuviano. Ha lavorato, tra l'altro, sulla storia delle idee in vulcanologia e delle eruzioni del Vesuvio, sull'origine dei musei scientifici napoletani e della sorveglianza vulcanica e sismica. Oltre al volume Il Vesuvio, storia eruttiva e teorie vulcanologiche (Napoli, 2001) ha pubblicato lavori innovativi sull'eruzione del 1631 e sulle variazioni della forma del Vesuvio negli ultimi 2000 anni.

Book: "Pompei"

Yet another book on Pompeii!

Titolo: Pompei
A cura di: Fausto Zevi
Editore: Guida
Anno: 2009
Pagine: 384
Illustrazioni: 48 a colori, 100 in b/n

Pompei ha esercitato sempre un forte richiamo su viaggiatori, letterati e artisti d’ogni tempo, divenendo volta a volta, fonte di suggestivi intrecci tra mito e realtà. Come ha scritto Stendhal, dinanzi alle sue mura il visitatore si ritrova direttamente “faccia a faccia” con l’antichità. Tuttavia proprio per l’insostituibile completezza della sua evidenza documentaria, Pompei costituisce anche un terreno nuovo di ricerca, dove ogni generazione ritrova i fondamenti della propria storia e su cui si misura ogni storico dell’antichità. L’opera vuole rispecchiare questo duplice aspetto. Alla forza evocativa delle immagini, in cui i tesori archeologici di Pompei sono colti in inusitate prospettive dall’obiettivo del grande fotografo Mimmo Jodice, il volume unisce, infatti, l’attenta analisi del sito vesuviano, opera di alcuni noti studiosi dell’antichità. L’opera è tradotta in lingua inglese.

Indice del volume:

* Mauro Cristofani - La fase etrusca di Pompei
* Stefano De Caro - La città sannitica. Urbanistica e architettura
* Fausto Zevi - La città sannitica. L'edilizia privata e la Casa del Fauno
* Stefania Adamo Muscettola - La trasformazione della città tra Silla ed Augusto
* Elio Lo Cascio - La società pompeiana dalla città ssannitica alla colonia romana.

New Years Resolutions

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all from Jackie and Bob.

Our new year resolution is to improve pompeiiinpictures.com by adding two new areas for the Sarno Canal and for views of all streets. We also want to add more older pictures.

We would love to include pictures such as those taken by Tatiana Warscher before WW2, in particular those of Regio I.2 and I.3 and Regio 7.6. These insulas interest us greatly as they have changed so much over the years.

We would also be interested in any pictures from anywhere in Pompeii that you may have which show houses and features that are no longer there or not now visible.

If we had the use of some of these pictures we could return to Pompeii in the Spring to take a new photograph from exactly the same positions and publish the old and the new next to each other.

The problem with a free site such as ours is that we do not have funds to pay for lots of pictures, however all pictures are published with appropriate credits to their copyright owners.

Can anyone help identify sources where our request may be sympathetically received.

Have your say about the development of Blogging Pompeii!

Blogging Pompeii will celebrate its first birthday next week! So it's time to take stock, and think about the development of the site.

This your chance to have your say about Blogging Pompeii's future. Please take 60 seconds to complete this survey.

We'd like to know what you like, what you dislike, what you would change, and what ideas you have for the future. We want to hear from contributors and readers alike.

Bear in mind as you fill in the survey that Blogging Pompeii is a blog (!), not a static site like Pompeiana.org and PompeiiinPictures, and its content is changing every day. There are some things that a blog is better suited to than static sites, and vice versa. We want to develop alongside these sites, not to compete against them.

Thank you in participating in this survey! I will report back with the results next week.

Sarah Bisel: one of the 25 most influential people in forensic science

Sarah Bisel - who worked on the human bones of Herculaneum - has been included in the Forensic Files 25 Most Influential People in Forensic Science. See here for Bisel's profile.
My thanks to James Atkinson of the Forensic Files for drawing my attention to this!

Reconstruction techniques at Pompeii

One aspect that every Pompeian scholar is bound to come up against during the course of their research is the question of what is and isn't reconstructed at Pompeii. In the course of my own work I've examined walls and doorways time and again with this in mind. Now I'd like to open it up to other researchers to kindly point out some details that can be put together as recognised patterns of reconstruction that are otherwise unrecorded in the excavation reports, etc. Please post a reply if you can help with this!

Mortar - what is ancient and what is modern?
This is a big question because so much relies up on viewing a mortar up close. Occasionally it's possible to know what is a modern repair like repointing (to keep the opus incertum stones from falling apart and allowing the wall to collapse, etc), but does anyone have other markers to point out?

Blocked doorways: Blocked in antiquity or in modern times (and why)?
20th century site workers (muratore) developed a method of filling in doorways but leaving gaps at each side of the doorway to show that it was a modern fill. Of course, the largest clue lies in the modern mortar, but does anyone have further thoughts on this and/or why the muratore thought this was necessary?

Earthquake damage to walls in AD 63: How to know?
John Dobbins and the Pompeii Forum Project have carried out some great work on noting wall failure patterns and the subsequent repairs. But does anyone else have some tips?

Latrinae et Foricae: Toilets in the Roman World by Barry Hobson

A very interesting and informative book that, to our inexpert eyes, is well thought out and executed. It will be of interest to both students of Roman Archaeology and those looking away from the monumental and heroic and more towards the daily life of the ordinary people.

The author is a Medical Doctor and has a degree in Archaeology so he knows his subject. The subject is different and not covered elsewhere in this breadth. He has worked with the Anglo American Project in Pompeii and with numerous other people. With the aid of a team of five helpers has been able to survey virtually the whole of Pompeii. Bob is very interested in latrines also, so we have probably been treading the same ground.

We are not expert enough (there can’t be many who are) to perform an academic critique of the book but, in view of the interest shown on the blog have set out some detail of the structure and coverage of the book and some comments about its potential usefulness.

The book starts with Toilets across the Roman world: an introduction, looking first at Rome, Ostia and Hadrian’s Villa, then Southern Italy and Sicily and finally The Empire. The second chapter on Roman Britain covers toilets for the army and toilets for civilians.

Pompeii is well covered. Chapter 3 is devoted to Pompeii but numerous other chapters use Pompeian examples. The author defines Pompeian as including all inhabitants before and after the Roman colonisation. Pompeii unlike many other Roman cities did not have a (foul) sewer system. He states that most types of properties, large and small, had latrines. It is interesting that he puts forward the theory, perhaps difficult to accept in the modern day, that many of the toilets near the doors to the street could have been used by passers by on their daily journeys around Pompeii. Certainly those who visited Pompeii during the recent restaurant closure, which included its toilets, would have wished themselves back in this ancient Pompeii.

Chapter 4 is a Chronology of toilets which apparently have existed since the third millennium BCE. Here Pompeii provides the opportunity to examine at least 200 years of toilet development. Evidence from contemporary writers suggests elite houses used chamber pots which slaves emptied into the toilets in the working areas and kitchen.

The development of Upstairs toilets is covered next. So far 15 have been identified in Pompeii. Nine out of ten samples of mineralised material taken from the downpipes have confirmed the passage of human waste.

Chapter 6 is on Privacy which the author regards as highly complex and attempts to understand the Roman culture and the behaviour it produces so as to be able to interpret the archaeological findings and establish what privacy meant in the Roman world.

Rubbish and its disposal follows, examining Roman writings as well as the impact of formation processes on original deposits. One persons cow dung is it seems another’s cleansing material. The Romans apparently also had a recycling programme.

Dirt, smell and culture seeks to establish the principles of hygiene and cleanliness that operated in Roman times. It looks at attitudes to smells and hygiene as well as at the various smells from toilets, tanneries, fulleries, cesspits and rubbish. Were the wooden pegs occasionally found in walls beside or behind a latrine designed to hold garlands or such material to combat the odours? Were the people simply resigned to the smell because they could not change it?

Chapter 9 is about Water supply, usage and disposal. There was an abundance of cisterns, that of then House of the Painted Capitals holding about 69,000 litres of water. Heavy rain would cause water from the houses to flow under the door thresholds into the street, helping to cleanse them. After the introduction of piped water he finds little evidence of this being connected to the kitchen for drinking or cooking. He then looks at the evidence for flush toilets.

The book then looks at Greek and Roman “writings” on excrement, latrines and toilet utensils to determine Who used the toilet?.

Motions Maladies and Medicine looks at the dangers to public health, disease carrying flies, how to maintain a healthy lifestyle and modern research on preserved faecal material and stresses the need to search diligently in the areas where such material may be found.

Who Cares about Latrines? looks at the published work on latrines, the often lack of interest in that part of the house and the relatively small amount of work on the contents of cesspits and latrines.

The final chapter outlines ideas for Future research. We hope that much more research is undertaken on latrines and in particular collated in the style of this book rather than being left as just an other room lost in a larger number of rooms.

As with many Pompeii books there are a few minor errors. Figure 65 for example is attributed to the latrine in the House of the Duc d’Aumale (VI.7.15) whereas the chalkboard in the photo indicates VI.13.11. (Another house attributed to the Duc d’Aumale is to be found at VI.9.1.) Similarly on page 51 the House of the Silver Wedding is given the location V.7.15 whereas it is at V.2.i.

We agree with the author’s statements about the poor state of many of the latrines, covered in uncleared rubbish, or in our experience simply reburied. This has made identification and photography difficult for us as well.

The only negative comment we can make about the book is that nowhere does he mention pompeiiinpictures.com where you can search for “latrine” and find all those we have managed to photograph. One of the aims for pompeiiinpictures.com is to provide a resource for authors to cross check their material and eliminate any errors before publication. We are more than happy to reply to email queries and requests for help.

The book is a wealth of photographs, material, sources ancient and modern from which to draw. There are 142 illustrations with a very large number from Pompeii and Herculaneum. A 10 page bibliography includes just over a page of ancient works in translation from which the author has quoted frequently in Latin but always with an English translation. A further function of the book is as a catalogue of latrines.

We thoroughly enjoyed this book. We got a copy in Melbourne whilst visiting the Day in Pompeii exhibition earlier this year and have found it an excellent resource to cross check our web site pictures and descriptions originally "derived or deduced" from other sources.

Well worth reading.
Jackie and Bob at pompeiiinpictures

Latrinae et Foricae: Toilets in the Roman World by Barry Hobson
ISBN 9780715638507
July 2009
Duckworth
Paperback, 200 pages, 142 Illustrations.
List price £14.99, AU$49.95 and US $28.95.
(Currently available with substantial discounts on the usual Internet book sites)

Article: Te Papa exhibition

An article in Heritage Key about the upcoming Pompeii exhibition at the Te Papa Museum of New Zealand, including details of events.

A ghost in Pompeii?

Google Streetview captures a ghost!

Interview: Eric Poehler and Pompeiana.org

Here's another interview in our continuing series on Blogging Pompeii. I recently asked a few questions of Eric Poehler, founder and managing editor of Pompeiana.org.


I want to thank Eric not only for all his great work on the site, but also for answering my emails at such a productive time in his life. Eric's has recently become a dad! Yay Eric!
___________________________________________________________________

FT: How do you define the mission of the Pompeiana website?

EP: Pompeiana.org, I believe, can be a primary resource for all people interested in the ancient city of Pompeii. Although the site is targeted principally to academics, it is our mission to make Pompeiana.org the “one-stop shop” for researchers and the interested public alike. To accomplish this goal, the site must be more than simply the biggest list of links. Instead, we want Pompeiana.org to be an online repository for resources relating to the ancient city, eventually including original research by scholars in the field.

FT: How do you think Pompeiana fits in with other sites about Pompeii on the web? What other sites are out there that can contribute to our knowledge of Pompeii?

EP: The site should serve as a complement to the other sites online. There is no reason to try to compete with other websites, nor is there a need to ‘reinvent the wheel’ so to speak. Some websites will always be better at what they do. For example, YouTube will always be the best place for videos about Pompeii and Google Maps now provides street view for Pompeii offering interesting digital walk-throughs. There are three specific sites about Pompeii itself – the Pompeii Superintendency site, Pompeii in Pictures, and Blogging Pompeii– that I think Pompeiana.org strongly complements. The first of these, obviously contains a wealth of information on new and on-going initiatives, but their purpose is broader than research alone. On the other hand, the mission of the other two websites is narrower. Pompeii in Pictures is a treasure of imagery that opens up all the ruins to our eyes, including bare masonry walls, picking up with photographic recordation where the Pompei: pitture e mosaici volumes left off. Blogging Pompeii stands out, however, as the most important new tool on the web for Pompeianists. Blogging Pompeii has accomplished what Pompeiana.org has been unable to do: build an online community that can share information about the latest news, events, publications, etc. and simultaneously serve as a forum to discuss those issues. Broadly speaking, I hope Pompeiana.org will grow as a research tool to make finding and using the best parts of these sites, and others, as easy as possible. I envision taking the user from, for example, a location on a map of the ancient city to the current research on that location, images of it, and a discussion of timely opinions all with the speed of the internet.

FT: Having a bibliography for Pompeii on the site is a terrific idea & I see your page is a work in progress. What are your plans for that?

EP: A robust bibliography is primary to the academic usefulness and legitimacy of Pompeiana.org. With the assistance of keen library and IT professionals at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, I am building a bibliographic database that is accessible using the standard search terms of author, title, year and, eventually, key words. Populating such a database with citations, of course, has always been the hard part. Today, however, this difficulty can be overcome by mining the ever-expanding online sources – worldcat.org in particular – and by tapping social networking sites to ask scholars to share their references. It is fascinating to me to think of the possibilities. Not only will even the most obscure references eventually be captured, but the explosion of full-text sources online will make it possible for many books, articles, and illustrations to be instantly available. Full text is available already in particular areas. Some laudable examples are the Internet Archive, which has a number of out-of-copyright works, including Fiorelli’s Pompeianarum Antiquitatum Historia some of the Notizie degli Scavi di antichita, the Fortuna visiva which website adds more books as well as images of Pompeii from the 18^th and 19^th centuries, and FastiOnline, perhaps the very best source for the latest information from the field. I want our bibliography on Pompeiana.org to be a first stop for researching the ancient city, a place to find references and to be redirected as seamlessly as possible to other online resources.

FT: Clearly it is the younger generation who immediately think of the web as a way to disseminate scholarly content. How can we convince the "old guard" that the Internet can be a great tool for academic work?

EP: The conservative answer is the standard ten-year plan, or rather, tenure plan: get it, then change the world. But certainly there are more progressive, less cynical approaches. First, we must be vigilant to ensure that what we produce is quality scholarship and not digital for the sake of being digital. In that sense, only the medium of delivery would be different. Beyond maintaining quality, the flexibility of digital formats must eventually be explored to do the things that print formats cannot. Multimedia support for narrative argumentation will be one route, nicely illustrated by the Finnish Project’s treatment of the Domus Marci Lucretii. Data rich sites, such as Pim Allison’s online companion to The Insula of the Menander, vol. III is another avenue that will revolutionize how we publish our ideas and the evidence that supports them.

What I think will happen is that the growing strength of online research tools to find, manage, deploy and (most importantly) analyze information will make the web a more palatable place to publish. There are also more calculating answers that fit into this scenario as well. Web publishing makes the ideas therein not only instantaneously available, but also portable, allowing those ideas to have the greatest chance to make an impact. Of course, the difference between the enormous potential readership on the web and the more limited circulation of print publishing is legitimacy. The flood gates will open when more big names in the field put their weight behind online publication.

On a more philosophical level, it is surprising to me that the power of the web can be dismissed by anyone. A computer connected to the internet is replacing so many iconic items of modern daily life – the newspaper, the television, the phonebook, the telephone – and in most cases improving how we can use those items. Watching the revolutionary events in Iran on Twitter a few months ago clearly demonstrates the raw power of even the most superficial and time wasting of online applications. The question isn’t how can academia escape the omnipresence of the internet, the question is why would it want to?

FT: What other plans do you have for the future of Pompeiana?

EP: The most innovative and challenging initiative in the works for Pompeiana.org is an online Geographical Information System for Pompeii. For my dissertation research and analyses I spent hundreds of hours digitizing the city to serve as the basemap. It horrified me to learn a few years ago that others were enduring the same labors. These data should be available to scholars so that they are free to use those many hours working on their topic rather than the digital infrastructure of its representation and analysis. To this end, we are working to produce a map of Pompeii that researchers can navigate online with the additional ability to download basic spatial information to use on their local computers. In partnership with MainStreetGIS, we expect a functional Phase One GIS to be in place by early 2010 to replace the current beta version.

A GIS, however, is not to be confused with a map. Instead, a GIS uses space itself as the structuring metaphor to organize information. Thus, while an alphabetical list is a very common means to organize information, it is not particularly intuitive or flexible one. A GIS uses the representation of a place itself to contain the information about that place and in so doing, also puts the information for adjacent properties (e.g., a neighboring workshop) or associated properties (e.g., other workshops not in proximity) at the user’s immediate disposal. I am encouraged by the power of this organizational structure to believe that the GIS will in the future be the primary platform for using Pompeiana.org. By linking the searchable bibliography, full-text articles and books, online images, and other electronic resources to each property, research can be done by simply clicking on the location of interest to bring together all of these materials in one place. It’s a big project, but so were the indispensable works of the PPM, the CTP, and Garcia y Garcia’s bibliography. Now imagine them all together, on your screen and weighing only as much as your laptop.

Finally, I would like to put out an open call to all who are interested in making a powerful online resource for Pompeii a reality. This can be done by sharing your personal bibliography, digital imagery, data, or spatial data. We are always in need of your suggestions, advice, and criticisms. Most valuable of all is sharing your time and expertise. If anyone wants to help, please send an email to Pompeiana@gmail.com.

Corso di formazione: Guida turistica

The subject of the "official" guides at Pompeii and the other sites in Italy has long been controversial. So good to see a new course being advertised to help more people pass the exam to become official guides of the Regione Campania.

See the ArcheologiAttiva website for more information on the course that starts in January 2010.

Commissario Fiori on RaiTre

The Commissario Straordinario of the Soprintendenza Speciale per i Beni Archeologici di Napoli e Pompei, Marcello Fiori was on the RaiTre programme "Geo & Geo" last week.
You can watch the interview here which mainly focuses on the "adopt a dog" campaign.

Convegno: "Dal Tempio di Apollo di Pompei al Museo di Napoli"

This event will be held as part of the Museo Archeologico Nazionale's series of Incontri Archeologici:

Dal Tempio di Apollo di Pompei al Museo di Napoli
di Mario Grimaldi
In collaborazione con Facoltà di Lettere dell’Università degli Studi Suor Orsola Benincasa di Napoli
giovedì 17 dicembre 2009 ore 15: Napoli, Museo Archeologico

Should we rebury Pompeii?

Google Street View has generated an awful lot of chatter about Pompeii on Twitter and in other blogs. I came across one blogger the other day who was advocating the reburial of the site as a solution to its conservation problems, since computer-generated reconstructions mean that tourists no longer need to visit. Conservators are fighting a losing battle, even when they have appropriate funding. Pompeii is dying, there is no doubt about it.
You can imagine my knee-jerk reaction to the idea of burying Pompeii, because I'm sure you all just had it too! But since then I have been mulling the idea over. So here are my thoughts, in no particular order. I'd be really interested to know what anyone else thinks.

• This is not a new idea, but one that surfaces every few years, often alongside with the idea of building a replica Pompeii for tourists (the best versions imagine the real site left to scholars - now, there's an idea!). The thing is, a replica - whether real or digital - can't reproduce the atmosphere of Pompeii and the experience of walking its streets and entering its houses. We need to remember that Pompeii is a tourist site. I sometimes think that we scholars are there on sufferance. The SAP likes us, for sure, for I don't think the Italian government cares all that much unless there is money to be made. Perhaps I am being too cynical. But note that the majority of Fiori's current initiatives are to do with making the site more accessible and enjoyable for tourists. Even if scholars all agreed that Pompeii should be reburied, the government would never allow it to happen.
• Burying Pompeii would be an economic disaster for the region. Ok, the entrance ticket money goes directly to the site and funds (one hopes) conservation and other necessary works. But an entire modern town depends on Pompeii for its livelihood - hotels, restaurants, shops, stalls. This is an economically depressed region at the best of times. Reburying Pompeii would destroy it.
• How exactly would it be reburied? Practically, I mean. It took years of effort to get rid of the fill in the first place! Anyone who has read the excavation reports knows that this issue was a serious and costly one. Thank goodness for the A3 autostrada, since that used up a lot of lapilli! So what could be used to rebury the site, where would it come from, and how much would it cost to do it?!
• Covering Pompeii over would mean the end of stratigraphic excavation. Reconstructions would document the state of the town in AD 79 (or should I say 2009!), but investigations into Pompeii's pre-AD 79 history would stop. We wouldn't be able to answer any of our questions about the development of the site, for example.
• Would any reconstruction really be able to document everything? Scholars are finding new things all the time - I'm thinking about recent research into upper floors and on graffiti, but there are other examples too. And wouldn't the reconstructions decay too (look at the current condition of the Pompejanum at Aschaffenburg, for example)? Even computer-generated reconstructions will eventually degrade.

So is there is a solution? Personally I don't think we can stop the destruction of Pompeii. We can slow it (as they are doing in Herculaneum), but Pompeii won't be around 1000 years from now. Just look at the parts of the town excavated in the 1700s. The walls have crumbled, the wall-paintings have disappeared. And this has happened DESPITE conservation attempts (yes, the first efforts of conservation occurred in the 1770s and have continued since then). So our job is to study and record (in multiple formats) as much as we can now, and to support any efforts of conservation. There is no point complaining about the inevitable decay of the site.

Malware problem

It has come to my attention that Blogging Pompeii has a malware problem, i.e. annoying adverts start popping up after one views the blog. I have absolutely no idea what to do about this. Scanning my computer has made no difference at all. Can anyone suggest how to get rid of this annoyance? Thank you!

Online course: Pompeii and the Cities of the Roman World

For those wanting to learn something new in the New Year, why not sign up for Oxford University's online course on "Pompeii and the Cities of the Roman World".

The course overview says:
"Pompeii is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. Its fame and uniqueness are,of course, due to the remarkable way in which it was preserved by the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79. Using evidence from Pompeii, you can study public buildings, monuments, inscriptions and painted posters that reflect public life, houses and gardens that reveal how the people lived, shops, markets and streets where they earned their living, and tombs where they buried their dead."

Applications are currently being accepted for the January course start. For more information see the Department for Continuing Education's website.

[I've heard the tutor is quite good too!]

E' polemica sul nuovo ingresso agli scavi

From Insomma.it:

“Una proposta che taglierebbe fuori dai circuiti turistici la città nuova e penalizzerebbe le attività economiche”: così le associazioni di categoria cittadine, Federalberghi e Ascom, “bocciano” il progetto del commissario straordinario per l’area archeologica, Marcello Fiori, di istituire un ingresso agli scavi direttamente dall’area meeting del Santuario di Pompei. La proposta di Fiori, fa parte del più ampio piano di rilancio da 32 milioni di euro che il commissario governativo ha presentato ai sindacati nei giorni scorsi e che contempla anche tante altre iniziative per la promozione del sito, tra cui il restauro di importanti domus antiche, il potenziamento dell’impianto di videosorveglianza, l’assistenza didattica per i disabili, un albo per le guide turistiche che operano a Pompei, una pista ciclabile, la ristrutturazione del sito web, la vendita e la degustazione dei prodotti antichi, un impianto di illuminazione stabile per le visite notturne, il completamento del restauro del Teatro Grande per organizzarvi concerti ed eventi. “Tutte iniziative bellissime e che accogliamo con favore - commenta Rosita Matrone, presidente Federalberghi Pompei – ma un progetto di sviluppo complessivo non può non tener conto delle realtà locali, in primo luogo quelle istituzionali e quelle economiche. Pompei vive di turismo e di commercio e con un ingresso diretto agli scavi dal Santuario sarebbe completamente tagliata fuori da qualsiasi sviluppo e piano di rilancio. Serve, invece, un progetto complessivo da elaborare con la partecipazione di tutte le realtà locali. Noi siamo disponibili a collaborare in tal senso con il commissario Fiori, per il rilancio della città nuova e del sito archeologico. Per due volte abbiamo chiesto un incontro ma, a distanza di mesi, non abbiamo ottenuto nessuna risposta. Inoltre il tavolo tecnico con gli operatori economici, istituito dal suo predecessore, Profili, è stato improvvisamente congelato senza una spiegazione”. Sulla scia dell’intervento di Matrone è anche quello di Ferdinando Pellì, presidente dell’Ascom Pompei: “Fa bene il commissario Fiori a rilanciare il sito archeologico, ma alcune decisioni, come l’ingresso dal Santuario, che avrebbero, se realizzate, un impatto così forte sulla città nuova andrebbero assunte di concerto con le istituzioni comunali e gli operatori economici. Credo che la collaborazione tra Soprintendenza e Santuario possa concentrarsi, invece, in maniera più costruttiva per la città sul recupero del Sacro Cuore, per l’istituzione di un’area museale”. Marco Pirollo

Conference: Lo sviluppo economico legato al turismo culturale. Recupero, conservazione e valorizzazione del patrimonio del territorio vesuviano

Little information available but Enea has announced a conference on Lo sviluppo economico legato al turismo culturale. Recupero, conservazione e valorizzazione del patrimonio del territorio vesuviano to be held in Portici, on 11 December 2009.

Pompeii now on Google Street View

A new tool is available to Pompeian scholars and the general public in the form of Google Street View as described in this BBC news report and this Italian article from Ansa. For those of us who need to check the odd detail it will be useful, but it remains to be seen how much of the site material is documented. From a conservation point of view it is now obvious to a larger number of the public how much the site has suffered despite recent efforts.

By chance I've already spotted a few Pompeian scholars (Jennifer & Arthur Stevens near to the custodians' office) on the Google Street View of Pompeii, although of course everyone's faces are blurred, but their specialised camera equipment gives it away as they chat to a custodian! Let's see who else we can spot!

Appeal to all bloggers

We are trying to get in contact with those people who studied and/or excavated in Ercolano using the Villa Maiuri. There was a programme that facilitated this for the period from 1961 to 1979. We have already spoken to various people who were students at the time and its been fascinating finding out where they have ended up (Ny Carlsberg Glyptotec, ICCROM, etc). We’d love to hear from you too!

Christian Biggi centro[at]herculaneum.org

Looted artifacts being returned to Italy from NYC

Here is an Associated Press release about the return of a Pompeian wall-painting. See an earlier post for details about the painting, its original discovery, theft and recovery:

NEW YORK — Two stolen ancient artifacts are being returned to Italy from New York City.

An Italian government representative is taking possession of them at a ceremony Wednesday. The artifacts are a Pompeii plaster wall painting and a Corinthian vase for mixing water and wine.

They were recovered by immigration and customs officials in June. Both items had been scheduled for auction in New York before they were discovered to have been stolen.

Immigration officials said the vase may have been illegally introduced into the art market by Giacomo Medici in 1985. The art dealer was convicted in Rome in 2004 of conspiracy to traffic in antiquities.

The wall painting was reported stolen in Italy in 1997.

Siti vesuviani, un piano da 33 milioni per rivalutazione

Marcello Fiori has announced his plans for Pompeii. Read the full story here. He'll be spending 33 million Euros between now and June 2010. Projects include videosurveilance, night visits, lighting, panels and the opening of more houses to the public.

Rivista di Studi Pompeiani 19 (2008)

The next Rivista di Studi Pompeiani (19/2008) has been published (2009) by L'Erma di Bretschneider.

Contents:

Pier Giovanni Guzzo, In memoria di Giuseppe Di Santo;
Pier Giovanni Guzzo, Intorno all esquisse di Latapie;
Claude Albore Livadie, B. Cesarano, A. D'Avella, G. Di Maio, Nuovi documenti sulla frequentazione del Bronzo medio a Poggiomarino;
Steven L. Tuck, Scheduling Spectacle: Factors Contributing to the Dates of Pompeian Munera;
Armando Cristilli, Tra evergetismo e culto imperiale: le statue-ritratto dal Macellum di Pompei;
Domenico Esposito, Un inedito affresco pompeiano nelle collezioni dell'Ashmolean Museum di Oxford;
Alessandro Gallo, Una matrice fittile votiva dall insula 1 della Regione IX di Pompei;
Mariarosaria Borriello, Note per una storia dell'indirizzario di Pompei;
Maria Rosaria Esposito, Garibaldi, Pompei e il Museo di Napoli;
Jeremy Hartnett, Fountains at Herculaneum: Sacred History, Topography, and civic Identity;

Attività di ricerca nell' area vesuviana;

Notiziario: A. D'Ambrosio, Ufficio Scavi di Pompei;
F. Pesando et al., Il Progetto Regio VI. Campagna di scavo 2007;
R. Berg, Interventi di scavo e saggi stratigrafici nella Casa di Aulo Trebio Valente a Pompei (III 2,1);
M. Grimaldi, Scavi nella Casa di Marco Fabio Rufo;
Appendice 1: A. Russo, R. Ciardiello, Un complesso di materiali votivi;
Appendice 2: R. Di Maio, M. Fedi, B. Garofalo, M. La Manna, N. Mroberti, M. G. Soldovieri, Indagini geofisiche non invasive nellarea a giardino della Casa di M. Fabio Rufo;
M. E. Pirozzi, Il restauro della Cappella di S. Paolino in Pompei Scavi;
D. Esposito, P. Rispoli, L'esperienza del restauro a Pompei. L'esempio della Casa del Moralista;
A. Ciarallo, Laboratorio di ricerche applicate.

Attività 2007;

M. P. Guidobaldi, Ufficio Editoria;
A. M. Sodo, F. Ruffo, V. Castiglione Morelli, Lattività dell' Ufficio SIAV. Primo aggiornamento e ampliamento del patrimonio informativo;
L. Fergola, Ufficio Scavi di Oplontis;
L. Fergola, M. Damo, Indagini termografiche ad alta risoluzione sugli affreschi della Sala dei Pavoni nella Villa A di Oplontis;
M. P. Guidobaldi, Ufficio Scavi di Ercolano;
M. E. Pirozzi, Lilluminazione del Parco Archeologico di Ercolano;
G. Bonifacio, Ufficio Scavi di Stabia;
G. Bonifacio, a. M. Sodo, Mostra Otium ludens;
P. G. Guzzo, Dalla ricerca alla valorizzazione dell'antica Stabiae;
D. Camardo, M. Notomista, Le indagini archeologiche nell'area del Castello di Lettere (NA) 161;
D. Camardo, M. Notomista, Le indagini archeologiche nell'area di Fontana Grande a Castellammare di Stabia;
C. Albore Livadie, P. G. Guzzo, U. Heussner, P. Kastenmeier, M. T. Pappalardo, Il progetto dendrocronologico di Poggiomarino;
Discussioni: P. G. Guzzo, Virtuale?; P. G. Guzzo, La peste, gli storici dellarte, archeologi ed altri umanisti oggi in Italia;

Recensioni:
V. Zimmerman, Excavating Victorians, Albany 2008 (P. G. Guzzo);
S. A. Curuni, N. Santopuoli, Pompei. Via dell'Abbondanza. Ricerche, restauri e nuove; tecnologie, Milano 2007 (G. Carbonara);
Joanne Berry, The Complete Pompeii, London 2007 (a. Pesce).

WorldCat.org

Has anyone else seen WorldCat.org? This is a site that tells you which libraries have the book you are looking for, and I think it could be quite useful.
Having said that, I am looking for a copy of Fonti documentarie per la storia degli scavi di Pompei, Ercolano, e Stabia, a cura degli Archivisti Napoletani (Naples 1979), and WorldCat.org told me that the nearest copies were in Michigan and at the Getty! I know there is a copy at the American Academy in Rome because I have used it. But I NEED a copy to be in the UK (does anyone know of one?!).

Capturing a volcano from above

Capturing a volcano from above

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Book: Latrinae Et Foricae: Toilets in the Roman World

Thanks to Virginia for pointing this one out! I haven't been able to find any reviews, though.

Barry Hobson, Latrinae Et Foricae: Toilets in the Roman World (Duckworth, 2009)

The Romans are renowned for their aqueducts, baths and water systems, achievements equalled in the modern world only over the past few hundred years. Their toilets, both single ('latrinae') and multi-seater ('foricae') form part of the Roman sanitation system that continues to fascinate the modern visitor to ancient sites today. In this well illustrated overview, Barry Hobson describes toilets in the Roman empire from Iberia to Syria, and from North Africa to to Hadrian's Wall. Particular emphasis is given to Pompeii, where many toilets are preserved and where some evidence for change over time can be found. The discussion encompasses not only details of location, construction and decoration of toilets, but also questions of privacy, sewage, rubbish disposal, health issues, references in Latin literature, and graffiti.

Barry Hobson was a GP until he retired in 1997 following which he undertook a degree in Archaeology at the University of Bradford and then a Research Masters degree. He has spent twelve seasons working at Pompeii and has travelled extensively looking for evidence of Roman toilets.

Convegno: "Archeologia e territorio a Poggiomarino: proposte per una rinnovata tutela, valorizzazione e promozione del Patrimonio Culturale"

Sabato 28 novembre alle ore 18,00 presso i locali del I Circolo Didattico di Via Roma a Poggiomarino (NA) si terrà il Convegno: "Archeologia e territorio a Poggiomarino: proposte per una rinnovata tutela, valorizzazione e promozione del Patrimonio Culturale"

Il Gruppo Archeologico “Terramare 3000” con il contributo del Comune di Poggiomarino organizza il convegno: “Archeologia e territorio a Poggiomarino: proposte per una rinnovata tutela, valorizzazione e promozione del Patrimonio Culturale”
Modera la discussione per il Gruppo Archeologico “Terramare 3000” il dott. Roberto Aprea

Parteciperanno:
- la dott.ssa Caterina Cicirelli, Direttrice Ufficio Scavi Zone Periferiche - Soprintendenza Archeologica di Napoli e Pompei
- la dott.ssa Linda Solino, Direttrice Gruppo Archeologico “Terramare 3000”
- il prof. Giuliano Cannata, Presidente Ente Autorità di Bacino Sarno
- l’arch. Alfonso Montesano, Commissariato emergenza fiume Sarno
- il dott. Andrea De Simone, Presidente Parco Regionale Fiume Sarno
- il sig. Carmelo Rosa, Presidente del Consiglio Comunale
Concluderà il Sindaco, dott. Vincenzo Vistola

Christmas gift ideas!

Anyone stuck for Christmas gift ideas? How about some replica ancient jewellery? A consortium of Neapoletan jewellers have produced a range of jewellery in collaboration with the Naples Museum - rings, necklaces, pendants (even a 'bulla'!) and earrings, each copied from an ancient find. The ring below is a silver copy of a gold original from Pompeii.
The website is called Aurea Venus. Watch out for the extremely dodgy English ...

Pompei: trentotto milioni per salvare gli scavi

This from Il Giornale.it:

Trentotto milioni di euro. E' quanto è stato speso in pochi mesi nell'area archeologica di Pompei. Il commissario straordinario Marcello Fiori, operativo dal luglio 2008, spiega che gran parte del budget messo a disposizione per l'emergenza scavi, 40 milioni in tutto, è già stato investito. Fiori precisa che «solo gli interventi di messa in sicurezza sono costati 33 milioni». Certo, 33 milioni possono sembrare una cifra enorme, ma a Pompei i lavori da fare sono moltissimi. «I primi risultati raggiunti - spiega Fiori - sono stati il recupero di mosaici, affreschi e dipinti ma anche la costruzione di coperture assolutamente necessarie». Parallelamente sono state avviate attività di valorizzazione, come la vendemmia negli scavi o il progetto Cave canem- Adotta Meleagrò, ideato per tranquillizzare i turisti. «Il problema del randagismo a Pompei è atavico - riconosce Fiori - anche se i cani sono sempre stati un elemento caratteristico degli scavi». La prima fase, già cominciata, prevede il censimento dei cani presenti nel sito, la realizzazione dell'anagrafe canina, l'applicazione di microchip, collare e medaglietta di riconoscimento, il rilascio del passaporto europeo.

A Day in Pompeii at Te Papa - Flickr Group

The Te Papa museum - which is about to host the 'A Day in Pompeii' exhibition - is asking people to upload their photos and memories of Pompeii to Flickr:

Have you visited Pompeii and taken photos of what you saw and experienced?

Submit your snaps to our group to see the way Pompeii has changed from 79 AD to the present day. We don’t just want to see your photos – we also want to hear stories about your adventures in the ancient Roman city. Share your memories with people who have been there or would love to go either in the description of your photo or in the discussion section. While you’re at it, compare your experiences with others’ and see how the exhibition 'A Day in Pompeii' represents the place and people.

This is the URL: http://www.flickr.com/groups/youinpompeii.

Italian volcano questions

Those of you interested in the current state of knowledge about Italian volcanoes should check out this interview with Dr. Boris Behncke of the Italian National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology in Catania, which has just been published on the Eruptions blog. Vesuvius and the Campi Flegrei naturally feature quite prominently. It's interesting stuff.

UQ archaeology digs into the life behind Pompeii

And now to the other end of the spectrum (!). A nice piece on current research by University of Queensland archaeologists, who have been collecting and analysing samples from toilets. Their samples come from the PARP:PS project. They're not the first to do this, though. Mark Robinson was collecting samples from the BSR/Reading project (I.9) and the DAIR project (House of the Postumii) a few years back, and the Anglo-American project have done the same in VI.1. Does anyone know of any other examples of this type of research (and any publications)? It's interesting that it seems to demonstrate that specialised food preparation was no longer taking place in normal houses in AD 79. The question is, how do we identify where it WAS taking place? Any ideas?

E il Museo Archeologico diventa una megapasticceria

This is great! The National Academy of Cake-makers (rough trans!) held their annual meeting at the Naples Museum this month. And it all took place in the hall that is home to the Farnese Bull! See here for the article in the Corriere della Sera and a video. The video is awesome - cakes and statues, what a combination!