Pompeii's Architectural Analysis

Personal homes in Roman society were “very public” and were not only provided as indicators of their “status” in society, but their power (House…Vettii). Circulating throughout the Roman public, was the desire to be a “participant in cultured society” and this was shown through Roman architectural elements, small gardens, large dining rooms, and a “world of images” (Zanker 120). Even though, a small group of people could afford crucial elements essential to a Roman house, those unable, made the best out of what they had. In Pompeii for example, those who wanted to construct “architectural elements of villas and other grand residents, imitated [them] in modest small, dwellings (Zanker 120). Also, those able to afford small gardens,

These wall paintings currently to this day, are the most important art form of Pompeii and its surrounding areas. The city of Pompeii was buried in volcanic ash in 79 C.E., when Mt. Vesuvius erupted, however, the ash preserved a huge quantity of wall paintings and broadened the understanding the Roman culture. For the Romans, the paintings were not only reserved for the wealthy, but those able to afford them. The paintings were not uniform throughout the home, concluding that there was a connection between the room and images on the wall. Those located in the public area were simplistic and not decorated opposed to those located in private rooms. Those located in private rooms were heavily decorated possibly because of the engagement of sexual acts as seen in the House of the Vettii. It featured a “painting of Priapus (god of fertility)” who laid his large phallus against a bag of money upon entrance to home. (House…Vettii) While this can be seen as the wealthy establishing their authority within society and as protection of the household, the explicit sexual nature of the image implied to the visitors that their home was a place where their sensual fantasies could come