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[jared-browncsuchico]

Eruption

Prior to AD 79 Mount Vesuvius had not displayed any volcanic activity since 1800 BC. However, on the 5th of February AD 62 a serious earthquake shook the Bay of Naples region, leaving portions of Herculaneum in ruins. Vesuvius remained peaceful for 17 years after that. Then in early August AD 79 the tremors returned. On the 24th of August of that year, Vesuvius began spewing ash into the sky. Had the inhabitants of the region known the signs, surely they would have fled. By the early afternoon, it was too late. Pliny the Younger retold the story of what truly was an apocalypse for the cities in the Volcano’s path. Molten stone was spewed into the sky, the sun disappeared behind the clouds, and lightning scorched the earth. At approximately 1:00am the following the day, the first pyroclastic flow buried Herculaneum, and all who decided to stay. One hour later the second surge buried the first, entombing the town beneath tens of meters of ash and rock. By 7:00am the fourth surge sealed the fate of Pompeii. Following the pyroclastic flows are mudslides, which alter the shape of the shoreline and hide the once thriving cities for nearly 1700 years.

[jared-browncsuchico]

Current state of excavation

As of the completion of this project it is estimated that less than 50% of the town of Herculaneum has been excavated. It is likely that the town in its entirety will never be completely unearthed.

A major reason for this is that there is a modern city sitting on top of much of the ancient town. It would not serve the greater good of the public to risk serious damage to the town of Ercolano in the pursuit of ancient artifacts.

There is currently a moratorium on excavations of the ancient cities in the Bay of Naples region. First and foremost this is a sign of the economy. Austerity measures have been in effect in Italy for some time, and the cost of the project is staggering. With the cost of continued excavation comes the cost of preservation, which only increases with every new find.

The preservation effort battles elements that are both natural, and caused by humans. Erosion facilitated by weather continues to be a source of damage to the ruins, as is the encroachment of vegetation and wildlife. Tourism is the major source of funding for the project, but that in itself exacerbates the damage. Up to 2.5 million people visit the site every year, and the sheer volume of foot traffic causes wear and tear. In addition to those who simply visit, the care takers of the sight have to deal with vandalism and theft. In the past artifacts have gone missing from the site, only to turn up later in illegal markets. Graffiti is a problem for the site, as is tourists carving their names and initials into the architecture.

With the present state of the economy, it is in the best interest of the site to halt excavations until adequate funding can be guaranteed. Due to the fragile nature of ruins, it is in their best interest to leave them entombed in the earth should their proper care be unavailable. The academic community would surely love to dig further, and see what else the past has to offer, but the conditions at this time simply aren’t right.

[jared-browncsuchico]

Who actually owned the Villa?

It is known through the writings of the philosopher Cicero that Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesonius and the philosopher Philodemus were close personal friends. However, what was not widely known in ancient times was Philodemus. So it stands to reason that he would have in some way or another been responsible for the largest collection of his own works, which was the collection at the Villa. It is all but impossible that Philodemus was the true owner of the Villa, he is what was referred to as a ‘Greekling’, which is essentially the ancient Greek terminology for a freeloader. He got through life mostly by flattering his patrons.

In addition to library the contents of the Villa itself are characteristic of Caesonius’ lifestyle. He was described graciously as ‘unkempt and shabby’. The Villa lacked furnishings, and the magnificent collection of statues and artwork are likely what was pillaged from armies he defeated in battle. There is a portrait of Caesonius himself in the Villa, he was identified in the bust of the pseudo-Seneca. Also, his name is engraved on the stand of a bust of Aulus Gabinius, who was a colleague of Caesonius in the consulate.

[jared-browncsuchico]

How the scrolls are read

Multispectral imaging, also referred to as hyperspectral imaging, is a process that takes advantage of wavelengths of light invisible to the human eye. A sample (in this case a papyrus scroll) is scanned with UV or infrared light. The sample re-emits light with a wavelength characteristic of the material. Because ink and papyrus have very different molecular structures, the light they re-emit is characteristic of either the ink or the papyrus. This image is processed by a detector, and the resulting image is something which can be deciphered by the human eye. Link to Wikipedia article on hyperspectral imaging: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperspectral_imaging

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (k)

Small garden

East of the atrium part of a small garden was discovered. Both the west and north sides of the garden were excavated revealing a portico with seven columns on the west side and three to the north. A large number of dolia were found in the fragments in this quarter; they were evidently supplied with water by a long pipe (m). Similar pipes are found in other parts of the villa; some, from their position, must have carried water from the large garden pool to the house. A substantial covered aqueduct was also discovered that supplied water to the villa's baths.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (j)

More rooms

There were four or five rooms immediately north of the tablinum, and a few more partially excavated, at right angles to them opening off the north side of the peristyle. In one of these rooms were found the busts of four Epicurean philosophers. It was here also that over 250 papyri were found.

The rooms south of the tablinum had some good mosaics, and the bronze busts of Hernarchus, the magnificent head sometimes referred to as Plato and sometimes Dionysus and a herm of Hercules.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (i)

More rooms

There were four or five rooms immediately north of the tablinum, and a few more partially excavated, at right angles to them opening off the north side of the peristyle. In one of these rooms were found the busts of four Epicurean philosophers. It was here also that over 250 papyri were found.

The rooms south of the tablinum had some good mosaics, and the bronze busts of Hernarchus, the magnificent head sometimes referred to as Plato and sometimes Dionysus and a herm of Hercules.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (h)

Tablinum - The central room at the end of the atrium of a Roman house, originally the master bedroom, later used for storing records.

Opening off the west side of the peristyle is the tablinum which measured 19.9m by 8m. It must have been a very charming room, looking out, by its three doors on one side to the garden and on the other onto the peristyle, open the whole width save of two columns, between which stood the marble statue of the Archaistic Pallas.

Against the north wall was a marble statue of the Veiled Woman, and down the centre, in a double row, were eight bronze busts. The floor was of mosaic. In this room on April 8, 1753, were found a few papyri lying about, two wooden cases, nearly destroyed, and also some wax tablets.

When found, the papyri were blackened cylinders more akin to 'lumps of coal' and at first they were a mystery to the excavators. On examining some broken fragments, however, it was discovered that the cylinders were indeed scrolls containing Greek text written on scorched papyrus.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (f)

Rooms

On both sides of the atrium are four or five rooms communicating by corridor; several of which had fine mosaics floors, and in one on the left hand side three frescoes were found featuring garlands and masks, goats and geese.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (d,e)

Alae - Wings or alcoves opening to left and/or right of the atrium of a Roman house.

Opening off the atrium are two alae (d and e). Both alae have black and white mosaic floors and retain fragments of their original decoration.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (c)

The atrium - The main hall of a traditional Roman house. It could be completely roofed (testudinate) or have an opening (compluvium) in the middle of its roof and a water tank (impluvium) in the floor beneath.

The fauces opens directly onto a Tuscan style atrium with a central impluvium. The atrium is paved with a coarse mosaic floor in black with multi-coloured insets. Fragments of fresco decoration survive on the lower parts of the walls.

Round the walls of the atrium were found bronze statues, busts and statuettes, the two most beautiful being the Dancing Faun and the Faun playing Pipes. The impluvium too was decorated with statuary with eleven bronze statuettes of sileni, fauns, cupids and wild animals.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (b)

The Fauces - An entrance passageway or vestibule generally leading to the atrium.

The fauces which opens off the portico is unusually wide. It has a black and white mosaic floor with a black border, although its condition is rather poor. Again, like the frontage some fresco decoration has survived along the lower parts of the side walls.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Eastern Edge (a)

Portico – a porch leading to the entrance of a building with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls.

In front of the entrance to the villa is a grand portico. Only eight columns of the portico have been excavated, but judging from the plan of the house there must have been four additional columns to the east of the entrance.

The portico is paved with a black and white mosaic floor bound by a simple broad black border. The paving is remarkably well preserved as are the marble thresholds to the rooms that open off the portico. The ground floor of the villa sustained considerable damage as a result of the eruption and many of the rooms are in a semi ruinous condition. The surviving walls of the frontage lining the portico retain some fresco decoration.

[jared-browncsuchico]

The Grand Peristyle

The Grand Peristyle, or garden, is the largest feature of the estate. It measured 93x31 meters, which amounts to nearly 28,000 square feet. Running through the center of the garden was an immense marble pool, itself measuring 65.7x6.9 meters. The garden was (rather intuitively) open roof, and all four walls surrounding it were adorned with columns. The numbers in the picture correspond to statues adorning the peristyle and they were all made of either marble or bronze. In addition to the extensive artwork merely placed about this part of the estate, the floor itself was a marble mosaic.

It seems that whoever chose to furnish and decorate this room was quite fond of hedonistic philosophy.

[jared-browncsuchico]

Layout of the town of Herculaneum

The layout of the streets of Herculaneum is very much like what we see in modern cities. There are streets that run east to west (called decumani) that are intersected at right angles by streets running north to south (called cardi). This street system divides the city into blocks (called insulae) that are then subdivided further into individual properties. The insula are numbered counterclockwise, starting at number 2, from the northwest corner. Each property is numbered according to the insula in which it resides, in the same counterclockwise pattern as the insula themselves.

There are three more sections to the city which are named differently, as the main decumanus (Decumanus Maximus), does not run through them. These sections are called the orientalis 1, orientalis 2, and to the south of orientalis 1 is the Suburban District.

To the north of insula 2 lies the Villa, which will be discussed in detail later, and to the northeast of insula 7 lies the theatre. These two sites have seen little excavation, so they are not well documented.

[silvahumn220-blog]

The long awaited final post has come. At the beginning of the semester in my initial post, I talked about my space being full of contradictions. But with the aid of the posts throughout the semester, I have come to the conclusion of a more pin pointed word to describe my bedroom: juxtaposition....

[jared-browncsuchico]

My room is absolutely the same way. My decorations clash, the color scheme is crap, it's too crowded, my bed is too big and that being said I love my room. Despite the mess I know exactly where everything is, and if I clean it, I forget where I put it. Relating to your key word, juxtaposition, I am reminded most vividly of my walls. Each wall has a different theme. One is covered in movie posters, the next has pictures of me and my family. The biggest wall is the most random. For the last several years on my birthday I've had my friends sign a large poster, and I proudly display these despite the fact that my friends' idea of wishing me a happy birthday is plastering it with crudely drawn c**ks. On this wall I also have nails where I hang my hats, watches, and other things I tend to grab on my way out the door. The last wall is the one which my desk faces. This one is dedicated to school. I have a periodic table puzzle permanently fixed to a poster, my hand drawn amino acids, chemical structures, and equations. So my four juxtaposed walls accurately reflect the contrasting sections of my personality.

I think it would be wise to also relate juxtaposition to my space. I chose to do the fourth floor of Chico State's Meriam Library. Although most people in there go to the library to study, some are better at it than others. From my map post you can see that there is typically a naturally occurring segregation of the different study personalities. The talkers congregate here, the quiet ones there, the science majors on one side, and groups of business majors working on projects on the other. All of these juxtaposed groups combined form the image that makes the fourth floor unique, and worth documenting.

[jared-browncsuchico]

Simultaneous subliminal separations

The fourth floor of the Meriam Library is best summarized by the word 'simultaneity'. The students who occupy the floor at any given time are there for the same general purpose, but everyone there is doing something unique to themselves. The text that best resonates with this space is 'corners', by Bachelard. From the map I posted in a previous post it can be seen that in any straight line the use of the space does not change. But as soon as a corner appears the space changes. This may be by design, or possibly from the intuitive use of spaces. 

I have used the library for the entire time I have been at Chico State. The way in which I have described it comes from both the passive and active observations I have made over my five years here. Since I began analyzing it for this course my views have not necessarily changed, but have realigned. I have become more aware of the separations and inclusions covering the entire space. I have began to think of it not just in terms of use but purpose as well. I have tried to wrap my head around the decisions made by the patrons of the library that lead to these purposes. Almost subliminal behaviors lead to distinct patterns that are obvious once you know what to look for. These include separation of areas by classes studied, where the most socializing occurs, the active use of provided resources, and how these things seem to occur naturally without any prodding. This series of assignments led me to think more deeply about what a space really is, and how I fit into it.