Private Buildings: Houses, Shops & Villas
By Jessica and Christine
 “Pompeii’s greatest gift to history and social science is
its houses… nowhere else can we see so complete a
documentation of ancient home life as at Pompeii and
the nearby town of Herculaneum… At Pompeii we
have houses of various classes, perfectly preserved in
the details of structure and decoration, and we can
follow the evolution of home styles through at least
three or four centuries” (Maiuri, ‘Pompeii’, p. 84)
Rooms and its features:
August Mau – Plan of Roman house
House of Sallust – atrium and
tablinum
Pompeii - kitchen
Men’s public toilets
House of Vetti, Pompeii peristylium
House of the Vetti – inside the
portico of the peristyle
House of the Menander –
peristyle towards atrium
House of Menander floor
plan
Floor plan of House of Vettii
Peristyle Garden of House of Vettii
Peristyle Garden of House of Vettii
Entrance to House of Vettii
Second Peristyle
First Peristyle
Atrium with statue of faun in the
implivium
Floor plan of House of the Faun
View across floor of the tablinum
Entrance of House of the Faun
with Corinthian capitals on the
pilasters flanking the doorway
Courtyard of House of Menander
Floor plan of House of Menander
Interior of House of Menander
Atrium of House of Menander
Exterior of House of Julia Felix
Interior of House of Julia Felix
Garden of House of Julia Felix
Entrance to House of Julia Felix
Garden
Tablinum
Triclin
Triclinium
Atrium
Floor plan of House of Surgeon
Exterior of House of Surgeon
 CIL IV.4353
“Crescents the net-fighter, of the girls at night…healer.”
 CIL IV.4345
“Girls’ showpiece, Celadus the ‘Thracian’”
 Country estates offered “…an escape…where aristocrats
could spend their leisure time in a completely private
sphere.” - Zanker
Pompeii house and
shop entrance
Remains of a shop in Pompeii
Small shops had L-shaped counters
where large storage vessels were sunk
and contained either hot or cold food
The strip of shops in Pompeii
Bakery at Pompeii
Preserved shop at Herculaneum
The counter of a shop in Herculaneum
 CIL.IV.1136
“In the estate of Julia Felix, daughter of Spurius – a
bath (balneum) for respectable people, shops
(tabernae) with rooms above (pergulae) and upstairs
flats (cenacula). From the 13th August to the 13th
August in the sixth year, five continuous years. The
lease will expire at the end of five years”
1995
Exterior of Villa of Mysteries
Floor plan Villa of the Mysteries
Wall and Window of Villa of Mysteries
Frescoes inside of Villa of
Mysteries
Courtyard with pool of Villa of
Papyri (re-production)
Floor plan Villa of Papyri
Villa of Papyri –
reconstruction of the
marble atrium
Interior of Villa of Papyri
(Reproduction)
Interior of Villa Of Papyri under excavation
 “Clearly this villa [was the] residence of an important
family.” (Deiss, Herculaneum, Italy’s Buried Treasure p.
60)
 “Jets of water all around the pool transformed it from
an old-fashioned cistern collection basin, into a
fanciful fountain for nymphs.” (Deiss, Herculaneum,
Italy’s Buried Treasure p. 61)