The Fall of Pompeii through Art

3 paintings of Pompeii in Historical context

[ancienthistorythruart]

The Ancient world in the 19th century

The early 19th century was a time of rapid change and the solidification of colonial power. The rise and fall of France under Napoleon occurred in this period as well as the rise of the British Empire as the defining world power of the 19th century. Part of a large amount of change in this period was due to the beginning of the industrial age which gave rise to the middle class. A group of people who now had the leisure time to write and create art and new ideas. Some of these ideas would lead to a focus on curiosities and the collection of artifacts from the ancient world by individuals known as antiquarians. While antiquarians had existed since the late 1600s by the 1800s they were uniting into cohesive groups that would eventually form the first public museums. (Christenson, 1989) While some antiquarians collected anything seeming ancient others specialized in specific areas. Following Napoleon’s invasion of Egypt in 1798 and his deposing in 1815 Egypt and much of the orient became a popular region for study (Boorstin, 1983). Concurrently excavations of Rome and Greek historical sites by proto-archeologists helped fuel the interest in the ancient world with many individuals writing pamphlets, books, poems and even an opera about their interpretation of ancient events (Momigliano). A time of relative peace also occurred in the early 1800s allowing the new middle class the opportunity to travel, something that would become integral as the capstone of their children’s education. This travel would become known as The Grand Tour and would involve individuals traveling to places of historic and cultural interest to perhaps sketch, write or study. Something they could use on their return home to prove their status as an educated individual. Art in the early 1800s was comprised of a mixture of landscape art and the beginnings of the dramatic and historic art of the 1840s and 50s. As a result paintings of historical regions like Pompeii or Cairo became popular with the emphasis on the landscape or the excavations. Portrait painting with some aspect of the historic in the background or with the individual portrayed with items alluding to historic events were also common.

[axollot]

Mosaic section from Pompeii, Naples Archaeological Museum by sixthland on Flickr.

[ancient-history-sihs]

How Did the People of Pompeii Die? Suffocation Versus Thermal Shock

Accepted scholarship stated that Pompeii’s victims died from suffocation. But re-examination of casts and skeletal remains suggests another cause of death.

How did the people of Pompeii die? Good overview of the evidence

[danskjavlarna]

From Relazione dell’ Ultima Eruzione del Vesuvio, 1779.

[thelastdiadoch]

CT SCANS MADE OF POMPEII VICTIMS

“POMPEII, ITALY—Massimo Osanna, the archaeological superintendent of Pompeii, announced that a team made up of archaeologists, computer engineers, radiologists, and orthodontists will use CT scanners to examine the remains of 86 people who died in Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79. In the late nineteenth century, Italian archaeologist Giuseppe Fiorelli developed a technique of plaster casting the remains of the victims of the volcano, but the plaster, while preserving the external details of the bodies that had been preserved in the ash, had prevented modern archaeologists from examining their bones and teeth.

“It will reveal much about the victims: their age, sex, what they ate, what diseases they had and what class of society they belonged to. This will be a great step forward in our knowledge of antiquity,” Osanna told The Local, Italy. Orthodontist Elisa Vanacore added that the citizens of Pompeii had very good teeth, probably from eating a diet high in fruits and vegetables. “The initial results also show the high levels of fluorine that are present in the air and water here, near the volcano,” she explained. To read more about Pompeii, go to “Saving the Villa of the Mysteries.”

[artyhoopla]

Graffiti of Pompeii: Proving humor hasn’t changed

Each inscription begins with a reference to where it was found (region.insula.door number).  The second number is the reference to the publication of the inscription in the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, Volume 4.

I.2.20 (Bar/Brothel of Innulus and Papilio); 3932: Weep, you girls.  My penis has given you up.  Now it penetrates men’s behinds.  Goodbye, wondrous femininity!

I.2.23 (peristyle of the Tavern of Verecundus); 3951: Restitutus says: “Restituta, take off your tunic, please, and show us your hairy privates”.

I.7.8 (bar; left of the door); 8162: We two dear men, friends forever, were here.  If you want to know our names, they are Gaius and Aulus.

I.10.2-3 (Bar of Prima); 8297: Word square

I.10.4 (exterior of the House of Menander); 8304: Satura was here on September 3rd

I.10.7 (House and Office of Volusius Iuvencus; left of the door); 8364: Secundus says hello to his Prima, wherever she is.  I ask, my mistress, that you love me.

II.2.1 (Bar of Astylus and Pardalus); 8408: Lovers are like bees in that they live a honeyed life

II.2.3 (Bar of Athictus; right of the door); 8442: I screwed the barmaid

II.3.10 (Pottery Shop or Bar of Nicanor; right of the door); 10070: Lesbianus, you defecate and you write, ‘Hello, everyone!’

II.4.1 (bar; left of the door, near a picture of Mercury); 8475: Palmyra, the thirst-quencher

II.7 (gladiator barracks); 8767: Floronius, privileged soldier of the 7th legion, was here.  The women did not know of his presence.  Only six women came to know, too few for such a stallion.

II.7 (gladiator barracks); 8792: On April 19th, I made bread

II.7 (gladiator barracks); 8792b: Antiochus hung out here with his girlfriend Cithera.

III.5.1 (House of Pascius Hermes; left of the door); 7716: To the one defecating here.  Beware of the curse.  If you look down on this curse, may you have an angry Jupiter for an enemy.

III.5.3 (on the wall in the street); 8898: Theophilus, don’t perform oral sex on girls against the city wall like a dog

V.1.18 (House of Valerius Flaccus and Valerius Rufinus; right of the door); 4066: Daphnus was here with his Felicla.

V.1.26 (House of Caecilius Iucundus); 4091: Whoever loves, let him flourish.  Let him perish who knows not love.  Let him perish twice over whoever forbids love.

V.1.26 (peristyle of the House of Caecilius Iucundus); 4087: Staphylus was here with Quieta.

V.3.9 (House of Cosmus and Epidia; right of the door); 6702: Aufidius was here.  Goodbye

V.5 (just outside the Vesuvius gate); 6641: Defecator, may everything turn out okay so that you can leave this place

V.5 (near the Vesuvius Gate); 7086: Marcus loves Spendusa

V.5.3 (barracks of the Julian-Claudian gladiators; column in the peristyle); 4289: Celadus the Thracian gladiator is the delight of all the girls

VI (on the Street of Mercury); 1321: Publius Comicius Restitutus stood right here with his brother

VI.6.1 (House of the Olii; on the Via Consolare); 139: The city block of the Arrii Pollii in the possession of Gnaeus Alleius Nigidius Maius is available to rent from July 1st.  There are shops on the first floor, upper stories, high-class rooms and a house.  A person interested in renting this property should contact Primus, the slave of Gnaeus Alleius Nigidius Maius.

VI.11 (on the Vico del Labirinto); 1393: On April 20th, I gave a cloak to be washed.  On May 7th, a headband.  On May 8th, two tunics

VI.14 (vico degli Scienziati); 3042: Cruel Lalagus, why do you not love me?

VI.14.20 (House of Orpheus); 4523: I have buggered men

VI.14.37 (Wood-Working Shop of Potitus): 3498: What a lot of tricks you use to deceive, innkeeper. You sell water but drink unmixed wine

VI.14.43 (atrium of a House of the Large Brothel); 1520: Blondie has taught me to hate dark-haired girls.  I shall hat them, if I can, but I wouldn’t mind loving them.  Pompeian Venus Fisica wrote this.

VI.15.6 (House of Caesius Valens and Herennius Nardus); 4637: Rufus loves Cornelia Hele

VI.16.15 (atrium of the House of Pinarius); 6842: If anyone does not believe in Venus, they should gaze at my girl friend

VII (House of the Tetrastyle Atrium); 2060: Romula hung out here with Staphylus.

VII.1.40 (House of Caesius Blandus; in the peristyle of the House of Mars and Venus on the Street of the Augustales); 1714: It took 640 paces to walk back and forth between here and there ten times

VII.2.18 (vicolo del Panattiere, House of the Vibii, Merchants); 3117: Atimetus got me pregnant

VII.2.18 (vicolo del Panattiere, House of the Vibii, Merchants); 3131: Figulus loves Idaia

VII.2.48 (House of Caprasius Primus); 3061: I don’t want to sell my husband, not for all the gold in the world

VII.7.5 (House of the Calpurnii); 4783: Crescens is sweet and charming

VII.9 (Eumachia Building, via della Abbondanza); 2048: Secundus likes to screw boys.

VII.12.18-20 (the Lupinare); 2175: I screwed a lot of girls here.

VII.12.18-20 (the Lupinare); 2185: On June 15th, Hermeros screwed here with Phileterus and Caphisus.

VII.12.18-20 (the Lupinare); 2192: Sollemnes, you screw well!

VII.12.35 (Vico d’ Eumachia, small room of a possible brothel); 2145: Gaius Valerius Venustus, soldier of the 1st praetorian cohort, in the century of Rufus, screwer of women

VII.12.35 (Vico d’ Eumachia, small room of a possible brothel); 2146: Vibius Restitutus slept here alone and missed his darling Urbana

VIII (corridor in the theater); 2457: Methe, slave of Cominia, from Atella, loves Chrestus.  May Pompeian Venus be dear to both of them and may they always live in harmony.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1797: No young buck is complete until he has fallen in love

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1808: Auge loves Allotenus

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1811: A small problem gets larger if you ignore it.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1812: Caesius faithfully loves M[…name lost]

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1816: Epaphra, you are bald!

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1820: Chie, I hope your hemorrhoids rub together so much that they hurt worse than when they every have before!

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1824: Let everyone one in love come and see.  I want to break Venus’ ribs with clubs and cripple the goddess’ loins.  If she can strike through my soft chest, then why can’t I smash her head with a club?

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1826: Phileros is a eunuch!

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1837: If you are able, but not willing, why do you put off our joy and kindle hope and tell me always to come back tomorrow.  So, force me to die since you force me to live without you.  Your gift will be to stop torturing me.  Certainly, hope returns to the lover what it has once snatched away.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1842: Gaius Pumidius Dipilus was here on October 3rd 78 BC.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1852: Pyrrhus to his colleague Chius: I grieve because I hear you have died; and so farewell.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1864: Samius to Cornelius: go hang yourself!

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1880: Lucius Istacidius, I regard as a stranger anyone who doesn’t invite me to dinner.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1880: The man I am having dinner with is a barbarian.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1881: Virgula to her friend Tertius: you are disgusting!

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1882: The one who buggers a fire burns his penis

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1904: O walls, you have held up so much tedious graffiti that I am amazed that you have not already collapsed in ruin.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1926: Epaphra is not good at ball games.

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1928: Love dictates to me as I write and Cupid shows me the way, but may I die if god should wish me to go on without you

VIII.2 (in the basilica); 1951: Sarra, you are not being very nice, leaving me all alone like this

VIII.7.6 (Inn of the Muledrivers; left of the door); 4957: We have wet the bed, host.  I confess we have done wrong.  If you want to know why, there was no chamber pot

IX.1.26 (atrium of the House of the Jews); 2409a: Stronius Stronnius knows nothing!

IX.2.18 (House of Curvius Marcellus and Fabia; in the tablinum); 4993: Ampliatus Pedania is a thief!

IX.5.11 (House of Poppaeus Sabinus; peristyle); 5092: If you felt the fires of love, mule-driver, you would make more haste to see Venus.  I love a charming boy; I ask you, goad the mules; let’s go.  Take me to Pompeii, where love is sweet.  You are mine…

IX.8.3 (House of the Centenary; in the atrium); 5213: My lusty son, with how many women have you had sexual relations?

IX.8.3 (House of the Centenary; in the latrine near the front door); 5243: “Secundus defecated here” three time on one wall.

IX.8.3 (House of the Centenary; interior of the house); 5279: Once you are dead, you are nothing

IX.8.11 (triclinium of a house); 5251: Restitutus has deceived many girls.

Nuceria Necropolis (on a tomb); 10231: Serena hates Isidorus

Nuceria Necropolis (on a tomb); 10241: Greetings to Primigenia of Nuceria.  I would wish to become a signet ring for no more than an hour, so that I might give you kisses dispatched with your signature.

Herculaneum (bar/inn joined to the maritime baths); 10677: Apelles the chamberlain with Dexter, a slave of Caesar, ate here most agreeably and had a screw at the same time.

Herculaneum (bar/inn joined to the maritime baths); 10678: Apelles Mus and his brother Dexter each pleasurably had sex with two girls twice.

Herculaneum (on a water distribution tower); 10488: Anyone who wants to defecate in this place is advised to move along.  If you act contrary to this warning, you will have to pay a penalty.  Children must pay [number missing] silver coins.  Slaves will be beaten on their behinds.

Herculaneum (on the exterior wall of a house); 10619: Apollinaris, the doctor of the emperor Titus, defecated well here

[greekconvention-blog]

25 mind blowing facts about the destruction of Pompeii. It’s a quick 5 minute video and full of great and interesting facts!

[the-ancient-world-blog]

Pompeii lyrics- Bastille

Pompeii lyrics- Bastille I should probably get a life. But these are fun to make. It counts as doing something.

SO I just made the connection here…. The popular song “Pompeii” by Bastille is, believe it or not, actually related to the historic events that occurred at Pompeii. Here are some of the lyrics:

“And the walls kept tumbling down in the city that we love”

“Grey clouds roll over the hills bringing darkness from above”

“In your pose as the dust settled around us”

[whencyclopedia]

ART OF POMPEII: 

MOST people have heard of the city of Pompeii and the natural disaster that preserved it so well under a deep layer of ash. This city has provided an invaluable insight to the Roman world and many claim it to be the richest archaeological site in the world, because of the amount of raw data it has given scholars.

Many buildings had decorated walls in Pompeii; they were covered with frescoes or mosaics. What is interesting about frescoes (mural paintings) is that they are  painted onto freshly-laid or wet lime plaster: ‘fresco’ means ‘fresh’. This way, the paint mixes with the plaster and becomes much more durable. Mosaics, on the other hand, were created using tiny pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. They were artfully arranged to create an elaborate picture. Frescoes and mosaics depicted anything from Roman myths, religion, sports, war campaigns or sex.    

Read More 

Info by Jade Koeoe || Photos belong to their respectful owners 

[peacebeuponu]

The Destruction of Pompeii (AD 79), as written by Pliny the Younger in letters to his friend and historian Cornelius Tacitus.

[ancienthistorythruart]

Pompeii

   The destruction of the city of Pompeii is one of the most iconic ancient disasters in western culture. This is likely due to the well-preserved nature of the city in the archaeological record as well as the surviving writings from its destruction. Beyond its association with a dramatic and terrifying natural disaster, however, Pompeii also tells us much about life in Ancient Rome. Despite its burial under over 10 feet of ash and pumice in 79 CE. , Pompeii lives on today in the numerous artistic and literary depictions of its demise.

         Located in the modern Italian region of Campania, Pompeii is located near the shores of the Bay of Naples and was initially founded in the late 6th to early 7th century BCE. By 80 BCE it had become a Roman colony and at the time of its destruction it had over 8,000 residents and a thriving merchant community as well as a well-developed arts population (Roberts 2013). Its reputation was high enough that it became a popular vacation spot for wealthy Romans. In addition, the fertile ground resulting from its location near Vesuvius and the resulting volcanic ash had encouraged the use of the land surrounding and on the volcano to be used as farmland and wineries.

         While it was known that Vesuvius was a volcano because it had never erupted in living memory individuals were unconcerned when it began showing warning signs of doing so. Earthquakes were common in the region and while they can occur as a result of volcanic activity they also occur due to natural shifting of the earth’s crust. As a result, the steadily increasing number of minor earthquakes from 60 CE on as well as the intermittent smoke and ash emitted were overlooked as phenomena both common to the region and perhaps a message from the gods. The largest earthquake in 62 CE, however, caused widespread damage (Lessing, 1996).

         The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 BCE coincidentally occurred the day after the annual festival celebrating Vulcan, the god of volcanoes. Beginning the night before, by the morning of August 29th the eruption was in full swing with ash and pumice being ejected from the volcano as far as the town of Stabiae. While slight layers of volcanic ash can be found in the surrounding archaeological record, Pompeii and Herculaneum have layers up to 11 feet deep in some areas. While the loss of life associated with the eruption was initially presumed to be from such airborne projectiles it is now known that many individuals likely perished as a result of heat and gases the volcano was emitting (Luongo 2012).

         Records of the eruption come from Pliny the Younger who wrote a set of letters explaining his Uncle, Pliny the Elder’s death. As a result, of the letters, we have a vivid description of a natural disaster that seemed inescapable to those caught in it. Noting that the pumice chunks were falling in such great numbers his uncle and other individuals tied pillows to their heads to attempt to avoid injury, Pliny the Younger tells the rest of the story in similar detail (Allen 1999). As a result, archaeologists have been able to trace the events of the day in the archaeological record and compare them to his writings with some accuracy.

         Following the eruption Pompeii and its neighboring buried towns were abandoned until their rediscovery in the 16th century. This rediscovery was, however, largely ignored and the city remained buried until 1748 when workmen digging foundations for a villa discovered the neighboring city of Herculaneum. Since then excavations of the city have been ongoing till the present day. One of the most notable aspects of the excavations was the discovery by Giuseppe Fiorelli in 1863 that the air pockets they found containing human remains could be filled with plaster. These plaster casts would allow historians and archaeologists to have a vivid picture of the individuals fleeing the devastation. Today the same method is used when excavating, however, clear resin is used to preserve the bone. Other notable aspects of these excavations have been the high quality of preservation within the city, likely a result of the lack of air and the ph. balance of the ash covering it.

[ancienthistorythruart]

The Destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum was painted in 1822 by John Martin. An English painter, Martin had previously painted another historical painting known as  Belshazzar's Feast(1820), which was well known at the time. The Destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum is one of his largest paintings and was a commission painting for Sir Richard Greville. It is unlikely that Martin visited the city of Pompeii and it is known that he titled the painting after Edwin Atherstone’s poem titled “The Last Day of Herculaneum” (Johnstone, 1974). It is also likely that he used a recently published book called Pompeiana that had extensive information about the excavations of the region as well as everyday life in the ancient world,(Feaver, 1975) heavily as a source for this painting. His inclusion of Pliny the Elder in the painting suggests that he may have used the others letters as sources of inspiration as well (Feaver, 1975).

                     Painted in a mix of the landscape style as well as the dramatic historical one, Martin’s painting draws the viewer’s eyes to a beam of light at the center of the swirling clouds in the painting. The apocalyptic lighting of the painting in many ways highlights the dramatic historic nature of the painting and emphasizes the tragedy and devastation of the moment captured. Whether Martin used daurgauotypes or simply etchings of the region is unknown, however, the accuracy of the landscape is notable to the extent that the place from which the viewer is looking can be named as the town of Stabiae, located across the Bay of Naples (Feaver, 1975). It is likely that Martin picked this as his location because the many survivors including Pliny the Elder fled to the town by boat. In his effort to draw the viewer’s gaze to the central characters of his painting as well as the volcano, Martin also made the edges of the painting darker (Johnstone, 1974). Also notable in the painting, if somewhat obscured by the damage and restoration work(1), is the accuracy of the buildings in the background of the painting including the Temple of Jupiter and the city’s amphitheater (Johnstone, 1974).

         As a dramatic painting, Martin succeeds with his characters in the foreground of the painting sheltering themselves from the imminent death the volcano represents. (Feaver, 1975) As with many other paintings depicting the subject such shelter comes from everything from a cloak to a soldier's shield. The struggling boats behind the people fleeing emphasize the chaos both on land and sea that people must face to escape. While Martin includes Pliny the Elder dying as he looks back to Pompeii none of the other individuals are known which is unusual for a commission in a time period where often the commissioner would be included as a character (Johnstone, 1974). Martin’s original painting also includes different characters than his copy does. While the original has a larger cluster of individuals gathered into a crowd to the right of the paintings center the copy has few figures and almost focuses the gaze on one individual in particular. While she may be present but obscured due to the figures crowding in the original in the copy she stretches her hands up to the sky as if asking the gods for help. A sentiment that was likely echoed by many of the people during the events of Pompeii.

         In context, Martin’s painting fits into the dawn of the historical painting era. Capturing the transition from the landscape and formal portraiture to the looser and dramatic theatrical aspects of historical events his somehow manages to put both into his painting. In addition, due to the French excavations of Pompeii during Napoleon’s invasion of Italy, a great deal of new information about the, site was being uncovered. This information included some that established the Roman colonization of the region, a topic that would have been of interest in an age where colonizing areas was common place. As such Martin perhaps included individuals in non-roman costume in his painting to portray the colonized nature of the region. The 1820s are also known for the many religious movements that occurred in the period known as the Second Great Awakening. As such it is not surprising that Martin would paint apocalyptic imagery into his painting and many of his later paintings dealt with similar themes of catastrophe in historical times.

(1) Damaged by flooding in the 1920’s it was taken off exhibit in the Tate Gallery in England until it was restored in 2011. While the restoration of the painting is excellent it is worth noting that it involved a restoration artist repainting a large portion of the upper canvas using a copy of the painting Martin had made for another client. This restoration work is noticeable at the brush stroke level, however, it is assumed that the painting is likely as near similar to the original as possible after such damage.

[ancienthistorythruart]

The Last Day of Pompeii

Like many other painters of his time Karl Briullov spent his youth abroad, traveling after the finishing of his studies to Rome and other places of culture. Painted in 1830 from sketches he made during his trip in 1828 Briullov’s The Last Day of Pompeii was one of the first Russian artworks to achieve acclaim abroad (Rice, 1959). Inspired by the neoclassical revival of the time as well as the beginnings of romanticism in art Briullov captures the typical essence of what a dramatic historical painting of the era would be. Briullov’s painting would inspire Pushkin and others to write (Rice, 1959) and paint with the same level of historical accuracy and detail. While none of his other works would achieve the acclaim of The Last Day of Pompeii Briullov’s contribution to art and history is valuable as an example of how the 19th century perceived ancient Rome.

                     With a passion for historical accuracy in his painting Briullov studied texts concerning ancient Rome and Pompeii including the writings of Pliny the Younger. While the accuracy of the clothing is questionable the actions of the people fleeing the imminent death Vesuvius would bring are painted in ways excavations have confirmed as true(Luongo). Excavations began in the 16th century and were still underway at the time of Bruillov’s visit in the 1800s. As a result, Bruillov was able to make extensive peremptory studies of artifacts and scenery before he painted the final product (Rice, 1959).  Archeological excavations have confirmed that people did indeed attempt to take statues, jewelry and various household goods with them as they left the city, some of which were abandoned as they realized the danger of the situation. Evidence of individuals with children has been found showing that parents indeed sheltered their children as fire and volcanic rock rained from the sky.           While initially hailed as the epitome of Romanticism, Bruillov’s work also has many aspects of the Historic and Dramatic periods of art that followed in the later 19th century (Blakesley, 2000). While the first impression of his painting is one of chaos closer analysis shows a more detailed story. The falling statues in the right corner of the painting capture the sense of destruction both of the city but also in the people’s faith in the gods they thought watched over them. The idea of showing the end of an era through the destruction of a city representing the values held in it was a novel one for the time. Later art depicting the fall of Rome would take this motif. New ideas and the beginning of the industrial age were rapidly changing the face of Europe while in many ways Russia stagnated due to non-industrialization and its status as an absolute monarchy. Whether Bruillov meant to call out to the idea of Russia being personified as one of the individuals remaining in the destruction refusing to leave; while the populace of the city or world changes and moves away from old ideas and ways of life is unknown. However, the metaphorical representation of such ideas was not uncommon in art work of the time and at the very least the crumbling of the building representing the government and arts of the society seems to indicate some larger idea to the view than just destruction. The man carrying the girl in the left corner of the painting attests to this as she is wearing a bridal crown, implying their recent if not immediate marriage preceding the eruption and the destruction of the family and potential futures as a result of her death. In regards to other individuals portrayed in the painting, it is known that the woman with the two daughters in the left corner is the Countess Samoilova who the artist considered his muse (Blakesley, 2000). Whether the children painted with her are representations of her actual children is unknown, however, rumors of her dalliance with the artist could have been represented by her presence in the scene of unfolding calamity (Rice, 1959). Perhaps the rocks and fire raining down as she attempts to shelter the children represent more than just physical harm and actually represent slander and gossip she must endure. The man fleeing with the older woman in the right corner is presumed to be a representation of Pliny the Younger attempting to flee with his mother from the devastation (Blakesley, 2000). This inclusion a nod to the individual whose writing had inspired Bruillov’s art. In the crowd to the left Bruillov also painted a self-portrait placing himself as an individual leaving the devastation. Whether this is symbolic of his fleeing the stagnation of the Russian art world or of his leaving the old ways and world to embrace the life offered outside of Russia is unknown, however, it is likely.

[camelotsqween]

ANCIENT HISTORY MEME - 1/10 Events in the Ancient World

“Ashes were already falling, not as yet very thickly. I looked round: a dense black cloud was coming up behind us, spreading over the earth like a flood.’Let us leave the road while we can still see,’I said,’or we shall be knocked down and trampled underfoot in the dark by the crowd behind.’We had scarcely sat down to rest when darkness fell, not the dark of a moonless or cloudy night, but as if the lamp had been put out in a closed room.”

           ~ Pliny the Younger, eye-witness account of the Destruction of                       Pompeii addressed in a letter to Tacitus.

[ancienthistorythruart]

Eruption of Vesuvius with Destruction of a Roman City

Painted in 1824 Eruption of Vesuvius with Destruction of a Roman City by Sebastian Pether is a panoramic landscape depiction of the eruption in 79 CE that destroyed the city as well as its neighboring city of Herculaneum. Painted during Pether’s stay in the region this painting is a result of an era where gentlemen with money would travel ‘the continent’ as part of the finishing of their education (Roberts 2013). Called ‘The Grand Tour’  individuals from artists to future parliamentary leaders would travel to Rome, Greece and other places of western culture often producing memoirs of their travels as well as art and music. As an Englishman Pether’s decision to go to Greece and Rome instead of France (as some of his contemporaries) lies in current events of the time. While not at war with France, England’s empirical colonizing that had begun in the later 1700s had continued into the 1800s had led to some hostility to the nation that had helped the American colonies become independent. In addition, the resulting philosophical and economic turbulence from the French Revolution and subsequent internal conflicts made France, while still a bastion of culture, less than ideal for an Englishman seeking to see the world.  Knowledge of the ‘grand tour’ is essential to explaining Pether’s landscape as the grand tour was one of the educational aspects of the era that encouraged the neoclassical era of the arts where Greek and Roman artwork and style came into vogue. From the empire waisted dresses of the era to the Romanesque pillars and peaks used in the building of homes, the impact of Greek and Roman ideas and art saw a revival in this era.

          As an artist Pether was fond of doing large dramatic landscapes and country scenes. Usually moonlit these paintings feel dreamy and calm as a result. The Eruption of Vesuvius with Destruction of a Roman City dramatically differs, however, with the dreamy aspect marred by the apocalyptically erupting volcano. The apocalyptic bright colors of the painting center on the erupting volcano with the doomed city painted in stark white. While Pether’s signature calm moon and landscape remain toward the side of the painting the viewer’s gaze is drawn to the movement and drama outlined in red (Ruzicka, 2000). In his similar The Eruption of Vesuvius painted two years later a similar technique is used. In this painting the only thing that tells us that this is Rome instead of a mythological or imagined landscape is the small part of a roman villa in the left corner of the painting. It is likely that it is a reproduction of the ancient ones as that was common at the time the painting was done and Pether may have seen some on his tour. What is important in this second view of Pompeii is that it is likely a mirror image of the previous painting. Evidence for this lies in the fact that the white light to the right of the erupting volcano in the second painting is in the same place as the city in the first. In addition, the position of the lake is flipped from right to left as well. This aspect makes the original painting seem like it may have been a preparatory one. While both the Eruption of Vesuvius with Destruction of a Roman City and The Eruption of Vesuvius have small figures to the side the latter one has small boats moving across the lake recalling stories of people fleeing the devastation via boat(Ruzicka, 2000). The lake in both paintings is likely The Bay of Naples which was used as an escape route during the eruption.

          The use of Pompeii in art shortly after the events of the French Revolution and the rise and fall of Napoleon as well as issues in the various colonies of the British Empire perhaps speaks to the search for explanation and dramatization about how and why empires fell in the early 1800s. While later explanations would focus on the economic or political reasons behind the fall of empires such as Greece and Rome in the early 1800s explanations ranged from the anger of God for sinful behavior reminiscent of Sodom and Gomora to instability brought by overextension and wars. In either case, the image of Pompeii burning and being devoured by the inexorable Vesuvius is something both iconic and reminiscent of biblical destruction. Pether largely remained a painter of landscapes for the rest of his life never becoming wealthy from his art. While his first depiction of Pompeii was sold to support Pether’s family shortly after its creation the second one was retained until shortly before his death. Whether this was from sentimental reasons or not is unknown.