This is our second visit to Herculaneum because we both find Roman history fascinating. We visited Pompeii in 1998 and Herculaneum in 2000. So, after a decent break, we are back to see if anything has changed.
Pompeii is a much larger archeological site and more monumental than Herculaneum. It includes a forum and numerous civic and religious buildings that have not been found within the archaeological boundaries here. However, the dynamics of the burial of Herculaneum in 79AD are different to Pompeii.
Here the city was covered by flows of pyroclastic rock (pumice and ash) to about 20 metres preserving organic materials such as plants, fabrics, furniture, structural wood and even a boat. In addition, it conserved the upper floors of buildings and with them, knowledge of volumes and building techniques.
It seems that the people in Herculaneum died from heat exposure rather than from drowning in molten lava as in Pompeii and the city was covered by extremely hot but light rock, rather than heavier lava.
Excavations began in 1738 using the technique of tunnels and ventilation shafts, and continued until 1828 when open air digs were carried out until 1875. During this 137 year period most of Herculaneum's treasures were plundered and removed to the homes of the wealthy and powerful. In 1927, work resumed and continued until 1958. Work undertaken during the past 20 years has concentrated on exploring the ancient shoreline and protecting the already unearthed city from damage by pollution, sun, wind and rain and tourists. One gets the strong impression that the site runs on a shoestring of funds that trickle in from America and little is contributed by the Italian authorities.
The photo above shows the vaulted rooms, port warehouses and boat sheds that opened onto the ancient beach and which support the imposing structures of the suburban baths on the right and the piazza above.
In these vaulted rooms, 300 skeletons have been found; people trying to flee the eruption by heading to the sea but who were killed by the heat of the blazing clouds of rock and ash exploding from the volcano. In the same area, archeologists have found a well preserved 9 metre wooden Roman boat with the skeleton known as "the rower", together with a soldier with belt, two swords, daggers and a bag of coins. Unfortunately none of these discoveries are on display and neither are the vaulted rooms, the suburban baths, the House of Papyri or several other houses we saw in 2000. The official explanation for their closure is 'a lack of resources'.
In the piazza above the ancient beach is this marble funeral alter. In Roman cities, bodies could not be buried within the city walls so cremation was preferred. This cremation alter was dedicated to the Senator who was later to become the Roman Emperor Augustus and who was a great supporter of urban and cultural development, including here in Herculaneum. That is his statue behind the alter.
The house above belonged to a wealthy person - we know this because it is large, it has a garden and it has a view of the sea. About the same as any location in the world, really.
Although this house has not yet been restored, you can clearly see the impluvium, a feature of every Roman house. The impluvium is a shallow basin, in the centre of the atrium of the house, into which rainwater flows down from the compluvium in the roof. The compluvium is a square opening in the centre of the roof over the atrium which conveys rainwater down to the impluvium.
The Large Taberna - this is a pub with a marble covered counter in which dolia (jars) are inserted. Fires underneath the counter kept food hot. On the staggered shelves, also coloured with marble, were stored the containers for serving food and drink. The taberna was connected to two atrium-style dwellings, probably traveller accommodation.
This cavern and its associated tunnels was part of the aqueduct and the sewerage system, but we couldn't quite determine how it all worked. However we do know that every dwelling and shop in Herculaneum had its own sewered toilet and most had their own water supply. Unfortunately, the water system utilised lead pipes and the skeletons that were uncovered in the excavation showed the population was slowly dying from lead poisoning.
Rather than blackening or charring the decorative layers that were applied to most surfaces, the intense heat from the eruption baked the colours to a higher intensity than originally. Even in frescoes like those on this column, open to the elements now for more than 100 years, the colours are still quite intense.
The roads in Herculaneum are narrow and designed for foot traffic only - no carts allowed, only porters. In Pompeii, the roads are wider and are deeply rutted from the heavy wooden carts used to carry goods around the city.
An original water trough.
Although we didn't see anyone who looked like an archeologist (whatever an archeologist looks like) or even anyone who looked as if they might possibly be working, one gets the feeling that a lot of a action could happen here.
Many, but not all roads have these columns on the edge of the footpath which would have supported verandahs and second-storey structures above. These columns have lost most of their decorative layers, exposing the terracotta brick from which they are made.
And there are ramps on the footpaths for the oldies because the gutters are very deep. You'll also notice the oldies are carrying an umbrella - for shade!
The colour of this fresco in a private house is very intense, again as a result of the heat.
Mosaic floor detail that is still all complete.
And look at the frescos in this dining room - they have been superbly conserved. This wall painting is 2,000 years old!
It was 38 degrees on the day of our visit and oppresively humid. I'm in the dressing room of the men's baths looking for my water bottle. The shelves above my head are where a man would have put his clothes while he bathed, exfoliated and did a bit of business. Men favoured bathing between 9am and 3pm whereas women bathed in the late afternoon.
Business was done in this area after sport, exercise and bathing. Not sure about the big dish at the back but it had some heating function.
Another view of the men's changing room.
This is a fabulous mosaic of Neptune on the floor of the room with the hot bath.
This house belonged to a merchant who conducted his business from home, hence the sliding wooden screens across the front of his office. Although the screens have now been enclosed in perspex to save them from further deterioration, what you see here are the 2,000 year old originals. You can also see the impluvium which would have been full of water, keeping the inside of the house cool.
This was a shop that sold amphoras. Even the wooden stacking racks were preserved.
This area is part of a luxury hotel that overlooked the sea. It had an internal garden.
To get it all in perspective:
- the green area at the bottom of the photo is the original beach
- their are about 6 people standing on the walk way
- the arched warehouses and boat sheds form part of the supporting structure for the first level of the city
- above the piazza and buildings of the first level, we can see the second level, the houses and hotels with sea views
- on the right hand side are the two seperate excavation levels, plus the ramp, that were required to uncover the city.
Truly amazing!
I wonder why it doesn't meet the requirements for UNESCO World Heritage status?
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