8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

1/16

Pompeii & Herculaneum the

living cities of the dead

HUM540

History of Ancient Cities

Spring 2010

Dr. Feuer

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

2/16

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

3/16

Ancient Cities Model

The Model of the Ancient City is typically an aggregated form of the many evolutionary attributes of small groupsof people growing into larger groups of extended family (villages) to a central fortified location to defend againstintrusion or attack by outside forces. These consolidated spaces for people to live in became cities where certainattributes took form.

Many if not most Large cities sat near major fresh water locations as a result of mankinds need for fresh drinkingwater in daily life

Many cities had some sort of center and many of the cities functions occurred in that center. This included themarket place for buying/selling/trade, religious activities, a form of government administration (buildings) or

meeting place/area for assembly Most large cities were established with walls or a fortified position characterized by either a fortified wall or a

natural geographic advantage like being an island (surrounded by water), a desert (Egypt), or having a highvantage point to see trouble coming from afar.

Some for of administrative government existed in the form of tribal hierarchies, a tyrannical warrior leader, or someother form of democracy, oligarchy to consolidate or distribute power.

Most large cities had some form of trained or active military as a protector for the citizens of the city. This was theunspoken agreement between inhabitants and leaders; protection for tribute and taxes. This led to the stability ofsocieties and the ability to deal with both internal and external threats to that society and allowed for production of

goods, trade and economies to flourish Storing food created the ability to sustain societies in good and bad seasons of rain and pestilence, it alsopresented security concerns from raiding tribes or people. This dual edged sword of capability required the abilityto defend their provisions and instruments of survival. Diversity of food sources followed in trade establishment.

Building for the cycles of life and cemeteries for the rituals of death cemented peoples allegiance to an area ofland and planted their wandering tribes in a place to form an identity and become a people of common purpose.The Food production from a hinterland and the security of organized armed forces and technology that enabled adefense caused all else to flourish.

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

4/16

Class Model of Attributes of An Ancient City compared with

Pompeii

and

Herculaneum

Table of Contents

Common Attributes of Ancient Cities

I Introduction....pp. 3-6 II The Center of Public Life pp. 7-8 III The City Authorities and Their Selection...p. 8

IV The Temples.... pp. 9 V Veneration of the gods....pp. 10 VI Commerce & Trade..pp. 10-11 VII Water Sources, A Hinterland, Agricultural Resources.p. 14

Components of Ancient Cities that Pompeii & Herculaneum Did Not have in common with Ancient Cities

VIII Theaters & Amphitheaters..pp. 11-12 IX The Tombs outside the Gates.....p. 13 X. The Thermae & Palastrae of Pompeii.............pp. 13-14 XI Division of Labor (slaves, workers, free men)...............pp. 14 XII Armed Forces .....pp. 14-15

XIII Water Sources (Aqueduct), Baths & Thermes.....p. 15 XIV The Samnite and Roman Palastrae (gymnasium).............p. 15 XV (The Great Theater, The small theater & the Amphitheater..p. 16 XVI Money Exchange/Banking/Barter......p. 17 XVII Conclusion.....p. 16-17

XVIII Bibliography......p. 18 XIX Addendums...p. 19

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

5/16

Likely to Have Might Have Probably

would not

have

Village

yAccess to Fresh Water

ySome form of tribal/clangovernment decision making

yA sense ofcommunity

ownership/relationship

yMulti-functional skills base

yWalls for

defenseyAcentral

meeting place

yAgricultural

base

yFood storage

place

yA standing

army

City1.Fresh water source

2.Defensive wall and or a

standing security

force/army

3.Acentral market or

citadel

4.food storage

5.a hinterland for growingfood

6.a form of tyrannical,

democratic or monarchial

government

7.cemeteries

8.trade/commerce/barter

relationships established,

9.division of labor, classsystems/social stratification

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

6/16

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

7/16

Pompeii was the equivalent of a modern exclusive resort island forthe rich and famous of that day but did have a population estimatedat approximately 64,000, that tells us that they probably werent allelites, but a mix of servants, merchants and support systempopulation to the rich and potential aristocracy of that day.

Since Pompeii was more urban and Herculaneum was the countryvilla of sorts and more rural, the state-of-the art examples of apolisor agora are going to be enhanced due to the massive amount ofmoney that was inordinate in the common ancient city of the pastand has little resemblance to the antiquated small village or smallassembly of agricultural person living primarily off of harvesting fromthe land.

Tremendous amounts of commerce and trade had been developedto accommodate the monied class (like the Hamptons, the east endof Long Island, New York, today, a whole economy springs uparound the wealth that resides there).

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

8/16

Mount Vesuvius

Mt. Vesuvius as seen from

the ruins ofPompeii, which

was destroyed in theeruption ofAD 79. The

active cone is the high peak

on the left side; the smaller

one on the right is part of

the Somma caldera wall.

Elevation 1,281 m(4,203 ft)

Location

Mount Vesuvius

Province of Naples, Italy

Coordinates 4049N 14

26E

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

9/16

Images of Mt. Vesuvius in Pompeii

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

10/16

Pompeii as a center of Western

Civilization Pompeii was preserved as a permanent site of archeological valueon August 24th & 25th A.D. 79.

The eruption of Mt. Vesuvius left this as one of the two richest andmost beautiful cities known to the area and left in a state ofexamination to uncover the most extensive archeological evidence

of our times, possibly not only the best documented, but the mostfamous preserved reflection of the culture, civilization and wealth ofthe Roman Empire at the time, to in a sense define WesternCivilization.

Pompeii acts as a center-point to all cultures and civilizationsprimarily as a result of it being preserved in 66 feet of ash, volcanicmagma and forces of sediment that made the 1700-year wait

between when it was covered by the elements of a volcanicdisruption to the current-day remains of what has been left afterevacuating precious works of art, sculpture and pieces of thatsociety that could be carried off for personal profit.

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

11/16

Pieces of Pompeii culture &

Civilization

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

12/16

An Overview of Pompeii

While museums and exam papers patronizingly try to make history accessible byasking what the olden days were really like for ordinary people, Pompeii does itwithout asking. The scene doesn't even have to be gruesome. The most memorableincident is the one of the painters who scarpered while redecorating a room, leavingbehind their pots of paint and a bucket of fresh plaster on a scaffold. When thescaffold collapsed during the eruption, the bucket fell, splashing the plaster acrossthe neatly prepared wall, leaving a thick crust, still visible today. It's worth

remembering that the painters might have survived; most of the people of Pompeiidid. It's thought that 2,000 out of 64,000 inhabitants were killed (Beard, Mary.accessed 4/13/2010

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

13/16

Conclusions of Pompeii Research

Conclusion

Many areas are still to be uncovered in Pompeii, but it is even more important to restore what has already beenexcavated. Today 44 (322 acres) of the 66 hectares (483 acres) of urban area are visible, and it is unanimouslyconsidered that the other 22 hectares (161 acres) must be left under the volcanic debris, in order to preserve thisimportant part of our past for future generations.

Pompeii was a Roman colony and pleasure resort of sorts with many means left the city well equipped toentertain, allow commerce and trade in wool, olives and grape (wine products) but imported many if not most othernecessities of the day.

Herculaneum was a microcosm of Pompeiis miniature of Rome with fewer resources, a more rural feel like a

country village and less traffic situated away from coastal routes of trade and inner roadways that led to majortrade routes.

These appeared to be the country villages away from the traffic of downtown Pompeii and all of its temples andtrade activities of a quasi port town.

Although abundance and wealth resided at both locations, the influence of Rome re-building the cities after amajor earthquake 16-19 years earlier had still not been completed at the time of the Mt. Vesuvius eruption. Thistells us that to some degree the Pompeii and Herculaneum area were enjoyed by Rome, but Rome did not feeldirectly responsible for their upkeep and repair.

The wealth of the money changers, like todays Cayman Islands and other offshore money centers, tells us thatmoney exchange and barter had evolved to such a level that people could do the exchange of money, weights andmeasures and the associated commerce and trade just by arbitrage of these vehicles in what today would becalled wholesale and retail of commercial activity.

There were no signs of wars or standing armies at either location which tell us that geographically the plunder thatmay have attracted any raids was too close to Rome and Rome too great in its power at that time period to chancesuch a confrontation. It also tells us that the recognized players in money exchange, barter and commerce/tradehad wielded power throughout the region and anyone disrupting that organized power would not only havepowerful enemies, but many of them.

Kind of sounds like the Mafia or organized crime/corporatocracy businesses of the day, well what do you know, Iwonder if this IS the origin of?

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

14/16

The Gruesome must sees of the remains of Pompeii after

the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

15/16

Misc. Cultural Artifacts

8/9/2019 Pompeii & Herculaneum the living cities of

16/16

Weights & Measures, Zeus Temple and Excavation Site