Pompeii: The History, Life and Art of the Buried City

The objective of this book is to bear witness to the importance of Pompeii in the field of archaeology, and to contribute to our body of knowledge about the complex civilization of the Romans. At the same time, it is also an invitation to visit a remarkable site where the past still seems extraordinarily alive. Using the latest scientific research, this multidisciplinary journey explores everything from painting styles to local history, botany and architecture. It investigates public life (politics, the baths, city theaters and the amphitheater), religious life (different types of public and private worship, temples and sanctuaries), the economy (commerce, financial activities and coinage, craftsmanship and agriculture), and the private arena (the world of women, erotic representations, lifestyles, wall inscriptions, funerary rites and the necropolises). A special section is devoted to the eruption of 79 AD, with a description based on the most recent discoveries, and another section takes a look at Oplontis, the most celebrated villa in the suburbs of Pompeii - and legendarily owned by Poppea Sabina, Nero's second wife. An updated bibliography and a chronological outline conclude this journey back in time.