Steve's Genealogy Blog

Eumachia, who inherited a large sum of money from her father, financed the construction of the Building of Eumachia, which faces the Forum of Pompeii (VII.9.1). The inscription on colonnade at the front of the building read:

Eumachia, daughter of Lucius, public priestess, in her own name and that of her son, Marcus Numistrius Fronto, built at her own expense the colonnade, corridor and portico in honor of Augustan Concord and Piety and also dedicated them.

At the rear of the large building is the Vicolo di Eumachia (between VII.9.67 and VII.13.1) which intersects with Via dell’ Abbondanza. Near the rear of the building where a ramp and staircase rise from the street to the upper level is a fountain with the head of Fortuna (VII.9.67). Across Via dell’ Abbondanza from the Building of Eumachia is the house of the Popidii (VIII.3.4).

Part of Eumachia’s Inscription

SOURCE:  Part of Eumachia’s Inscription (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Vicolo di Eumachia

SOURCE:  Vicolo di Eumachia (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Fountain with Head of Fortuna

SOURCE:  Fountain with Head of Fortuna (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

House of the Popidii

SOURCE:  House of the Popidii (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

The Lupanare, or Brothel, in Pompeii includes several small rooms with stone beds where the girls entertained their clients. Over the doors are painted erotic scenes on the frieze. In the middle of the north wall is a painting of Priapus, a god of fertility and protector of fruit trees and livestock, standing in front of a fig tree.

Bed in the Lupanare

SOURCE:  Bed in the Lupanare (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Lupanare Painting 1

SOURCE:  Lupanare Painting 1 (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Lupanare Painting 2

SOURCE:  Lupanare Painting 2 (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Lupanare Painting 3

SOURCE:  Lupanare Painting 3 (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Priapus

SOURCE: Priapus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

Continuing west on Via dell’ Abbondanza, we pass the entrance to the Stabian Baths on the right (VII.1.8). Looking north from the entrance, we see the gymnasium and the east side of the portico. A litter farther west and on the other side of the street is the house of Holconius Rufus (VIII.4.4). Looking south from the atrium (reception room), through the tablinum (study), we can see the peristyle (the garden).

Turning right onto Vicolo della Maschera, we reach a fountain in front of a woolen mill (VII.11.5). Across the street, on the corner of Vicolo della Maschera and Vicolo del Balcone Pensile, is a shop (VII.10.10).

The Stabian Baths

SOURCE:  The Stabian Baths (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

The House of Holconius Rufus

SOURCE:  The House of Holconius Rufus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Fountain in Front of the Woolen Mill

SOURCE:  Fountain in Front of the Woolen Mill (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Shop

SOURCE: Shop (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

Walking more or less west on Via dell’ Abbondanza in Pompeii, the residence of L. Rapinasi Optati (I.4.25) is seen, looking south across the atrium. Across the street is the residence of Marco Epidio Rufo (IX.1.20). A few doors west, near the intersection of Via dell’ Abbondanza and Via Stabiana (Holconius’ Crossroad) is the Bar and Inn of Primus (IX.1.16). Finally, we reach Via Stabiana itself and look north up the street to view Mount Vesuvius in the background.

Residence of L. Rapinasi Optati

SOURCE:  Residence of L. Rapinasi Optati (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Residence of Marco Epidio Rufo

SOURCE:  Residence of Marco Epidio Rufo (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Bar and Inn of Primus

SOURCE:  Bar and Inn of Primus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Mount Vesuvius from Holconius’ Crossroads

SOURCE:  Mount Vesuvius from Holconius’ Crossroads (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

Fulleries were an important business in ancient Pompeii. Fullers processed, dyed, and washed cloth. Washing was accomplished by soaking cloth in solutions of soda and urine. The fullery of Stephanus (I.6.7) also included a private residence and it stood conveniently next door to the workshop of Verecundus, the textile manufacturer. On the walls of the fullery were painted a number of images on a red background.

Angel in the Fullery of Stephanus

SOURCE:  Angel in the Fullery of Stephanus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Pegasus in the Fullery of Stephanus

SOURCE:  Pegasus in the Fullery of Stephanus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Floral Image in the Fullery of Stephanus

SOURCE:  Floral Image in the Fullery of Stephanus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Lion in the Fullery of Stephanus

SOURCE:  Lion in the Fullery of Stephanus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Stag in the Fullery of Stephanus

SOURCE:  Stag in the Fullery of Stephanus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

Continuing through Pompeii, I walked along Via dell’ Abbondanza, stopping in to look at a structure that had served as a Workshop or Dwelling at I.6.9. Inside this building were some pottery jars still held together with pumice and ash standing near an impluvium, a basin in the floor of the atrium to catch rainwater falling through the compluvium, an opening in the roof.

Next was the Residence of Calavius Crescens and Calavia Optata at I.6.11, showing marble tripod table legs, the compluvium, impluvium, and a puteal, a protective pottery covering over the cistern.

Then, arriving at IX.7.5, the Workshop of Verecundus, a textile manufacturer, was a painting of Venus riding a chariot pulled by elephants.

Via dell’ Abbondanza from Vicolo di Tesmo

SOURCE:  Via dell’ Abbondanza from Vicolo di Tesmo (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Workshop or Dwelling

SOURCE:  Workshop or Dwelling (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Residence of Calavius Crescens and Calavia Optata

SOURCE:  Residence of Calavius Crescens and Calavia Optata (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Workshop of Verecundus

SOURCE:  Workshop of Verecundus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

In the years since the site of the ancient city of Pompeii was discovered buried in ash and pumice, much of the city has been excavated. The city has been divided into nine regions for archeological purposes. Each region was divided into insulae (blocks), and each structure has been numbered. Designations for the individual buildings follow a code, such as I.4.28, which means Region I, Block 4, Building 28.

The street called Via Stabiana stretches from the Porta Stabia (Stabian Gate) to the center of the city. Along this street, on the west side (Region VIII), are the Gladiators’ Barracks and the Odeon. Note the large raised stones in the street. These were stepping stones to allow pedestrians to cross the street without stepping into whatever might be in the street itself. Carriages could still travel along the streets, their wheels passing between the stepping stones.

On the east side (Region I), are a number of residences and shops, including a bakery (I.3.1) with an oven which is seen as a hole in the wall with a large stone above it. Next door is a thermapolium or bar (I.3.2) with a counter containing four dolia (pottery jars sunk into the counter) and display shelves. Further along on the Via Stabiana is the Domus (large residence) of Q. Octavius Romulus (I.4.28).

Stabian Gate and Via Stabiana

SOURCE:  Stabian Gate and Via Stabiana (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Bakery on Via Stabiana

SOURCE:  Bakery on Via Stabiana (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Thermapolium on Via Stabiana

SOURCE:  Thermapolium on Via Stabiana (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Residence of Q. Octavius Romulus

SOURCE:  Residence of Q. Octavius Romulus (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko

The ancient city of Pompeii, near Naples, Italy, was buried in ash and pumice when nearby Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD. Not until 1749 was the city rediscovered. Since that time, many structures have been excavated. Before entering the city, visitors see the external walls that reveal little of what lies inside. One of the first areas my group visited was the Casamera dei Gladiatori, the Gladiators Barracks. From here, one can see Mount Vesuvius, looming over Pompeii. From here, we walked through the Odeon, Pompeii’s small theater, originally covered with a wooden roof, that presented musical concerts, plays, and performances by mimes to an audience of up to 1000 people.

Pompeii Exterior

SOURCE:  Pompeii Exterior (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Gladiators’ Barracks

SOURCE:  Gladiators’ Barracks (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

View of Mount Vesuvius from Gladiators’ Barracks

SOURCE:  View of Mount Vesuvius from Gladiators’ Barracks (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

The Odeon Theater

SOURCE:  The Odeon Theater (Pompeii, Campania, Italy); photographed by Stephen J. Danko on 08 August 2011.

Copyright © 2011 by Stephen J. Danko