Anthropology

1

What do we learn by applying Archeology: The Pompeii Case

Archeology is closely connected to culture and history. According to Philips, the goal of

archeology is to establish “an image of life within the limits of the residue that is available from

the past” (Philips & Willey, 616), and to reconstruct cultural forms and relationships. This

science is providing both research community and broad public with important data on the past,

which is widely used in the contemporary time. The cultural heritage provides education of the

new generations of people, becoming a substrate for further humankind development. Why is

archeology so important? What does it allow to learn about human culture, way of life, family

and personal values? In this essay we will study what information and how does archeology

provide, and why is it so important to explore the past. To do that, we shall refer to the case of

the city of Pompeii, and find out what can be learnt about its political, social, religious and other

issues from the excavations of the remnants of material culture.

POMPEII LIFESTYLE RESTORED VIA EXCAVATIONS

According to Hales and Paul, the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD had contradictory

effects on the humankind development: it has destroyed the relatively insignificant town of

Pompeii, in the same time having preserved it as an archeological value for the further

generations. After having been discovered and examined in the eighteenth century, the remains

of Pompeii have turned into opportunity for people, even those far from historical studies, to get

deeper into the ancient past of Europe. These findings offered an understanding of everyday life

in that period to the mass audience, which comprises not only on such visible aspects, as material

culture, information on health, diseases, aging and even diet, but broader social implications

(Hales & Paul; Beard 2010).

Our analysis on archeological opportunities will start with the political system: what does

the material culture of Pompeii tell about organization of political life? Paul Zanker notes that

archeological findings allow to us consider that by the time of the eruption, Pompeii was an old

city, inhabited by many generations of people in the structured society. According to him, the

uniqueness of the situation is that Pompeii has been conserved on the merger of two periods: last

years of Republican Rome, with the uniform type of urban development and growing, and the

beginning of Empire, when new values were introduced within the townscape (eg, the remains of

2

city forum allow to conclude on the existing cult of the Emperor). While for democratic societies

the forum was very important, in the Empire period it has turned into a symbolic place to

worship the Emperor, which is visible from its architecture. At the same time, the public

communication and interaction has moved to other rapidly developing places, such as large

baths, clubhouses and even public latrines, where free rich people were spending their leisure

time and communicating. Another proof of the important Emperor’s role is the structure of the

arena and the circus, where Emperor or other power representatives had separate boxes – visible

by everyone, yet not accessible, as it was practiced in the Roman Empire. The local arena and the

circus, along with above mentioned infrastructure facilities, were also used as communication

hubs (Zanker, 9).

The Pompeian housing system also provides hints to the social organization. Unlike

prevailing modern view at the house as a very private place, in Pompeii it was “a center of social

communication and pointed demonstration of the occupants' standing” (Zanker, 10). The space

and the furniture were used to declare the position of owner in the society. The rooms were

normally multi-functional: eg, the same room could be a place for children to play or slaves

given the instruction in daytime, and reception room for guests in the evening. A lack of privacy,

large number of rooms and multi-functionality turned a family house into the area of intense

social activity.

Considering that social and political life was so active, we should also get knowledge on

how stratified the society was, what were the main features of social life, and to what extent were

the citizens of Pompeii equal in terms of political and social rights? Mary Beard notes that

“Pompeii may have been an intensely political culture” (Beard 2009, 192), in which the

benefaction at all levels played an important and honorable role. The town elites contributed

much to the development of culture and infrastructure, as shown via renovated and large theaters

and water facilities (Zanker). The governing class in the city was aristocratic; there were several

important and rich families, which have kept their memories attentively, preserving the

inscriptions about career and beneficent deeds. This family pride also was reflected in the

portraits of family members, which were found in the large houses. Though the new community

members could be co-opted to the aristocratic families, the city had a powerful old native

aristocracy, which preserved its standing structure and lifestyle (Ordo, 169). The society was

patriarchal, and women could not take official positions in the authority (Cooley & Cooley).

3

Although the Pompeii was the city of slavers and slaves, the freedmen were a numerous social

group, which could even enter the higher society upon partnering with the city elite (Ordo, 182).

In economic terms, the community of free people was more or less equal. The analysis of the

skeletons proves that even people far from being rich enjoyed the same diet as the city elite,

including sea food, meat, nuts and figs (Beard 2010), and the ration of different groups of

citizens was similar. To sum up, Pompeii had a sociable community with both conservative and

democratic features, yet with relatively high level of economic equality (Ordo, 182).

The material remnants also provide important findings about the economic situation. Pompeii

was situated perfectly to serve as a market and financial hub (Cooley & Cooley). Geographically,

in was a port to the river gallery. The imported goods came from various regions – Italy,

Mediterranean, Africa – which allows to conclude on the developed commercial network.

According to Laurence, the major export product was pottery, though it was not produced

especially for export or for a mass market. Another branches of the city economy included

bakery, textile manufacturing, metal working and culinary – speaking of the latter, Pompeii was

famous for its high quality fish sauce called garrum (Laurence, 73). The findings prove that

notwithstanding developed industries, the key driving force of the economy was negotiating and

trade (Laurence).

An important role in the Pompeian society was played not only by social and economic

activities, but by religion. It drew upon different international sources, from Greece to Egypt, yet

with dominating impact of the Roman Pantheon. The religious festivals and ceremonies were

important for citizens, and were widely celebrated. Upon the start of Empire period, the Emperor

cult started to prevail over the others (Cooley & Cooley). There is evidence that the cults of Isis

and of Dionysus were widespread in the city (Matthiesen).

Still, one of the most worshiped gods in Pompeii was Venus, praised by poets and

ordinary inhabitants, and in connection with that a high eroticism of local society should be

noted. The important role of sex symbolism is represented in numerous phallic symbols and

erotic frescoes found in the remnants, which in the religious discourse has even led to the

attribution of Pompeii's destruction to the divine punishment for the immorality (Hales & Paul).

To pay tribute to the conservative religious point of view, it is worth mentioning that such

devotion to love and sex in Pompeii was not exclusively connected with Venus cult. Beard

stresses that prostitution, along with gambling and crime, was present in Pompeii. Moreover, for

4

the elite men sexual partner could have been of either sex, there was no particular difference.

This is supported by the remnants of brothels and pornographic inscriptions and drawings (Beard

2009).

Despite the spread of promiscuity in sexual life, the family ties in Pompeian society were

strong. The remains of children with heavy and dangerous diseases, who needed a lot of care,

prove that society involved support networks for the disabled and devoted time and efforts to

looking after them (Beard 2010). The carbonized remains of people allow one to conclude that a

majority of them were trying to save their families from certain death.

LESSONS OF ARCHEOLOGY

Summing up the above, we may conclude that the remnants of Pompeii are the unique

historical monument, which provides complex view towards the culture, social and political life

of that epoch, having remained intact to the environment for centuries. It gives the reasoning,

why it is so important to explore the past, and how can archeology benefit humankind.

Firstly, archeology is beneficial for more comprehensive knowledge of history and learning the

historical lessons. It allows to reflect about the maintenance of life, dynamics and relationships in

the societies, adding to the historical books and other sources (Allison, 16), and sometimes even

providing new view towards them. For instance, McAllen writes that according to the ancient

historical documents, the citizens of Pompeii were portrayed as fleeing in terror, fighting to

preserve their own lives and material values. The archeological studies have uncovered evidence

that among the citizens were a number of those who met the cataclysm with bravery, and did

their best to protect their families, otherwise remaining with those who couldn’t escape

(McAllen). Reconstruction of past societies is important to provide understanding, how the social

forces were developing, and to fill the gaps in cultural, social and economic theories (Allison,

16).

Secondly, as emphasized by Goran Blix, archaeology not only allows us to learn about

culture, it has significant impact on its development. Having been discovered, Pompeii and its

neighboring city, Herculaneum, have attracted numerous travelling artists. The decorative art

represented in these cities has set “a long-term trend in decoration, inspiring, for example, the

Pompeian ornamental scheme of Napoleon's castle” (Blix, 10). Subsequently, it has led to the

5

spread of intense romantic drama of the doomed cities, proceeding with the Hollywood movies.

Thus archeology exploration of culture has given a new life to the seemingly lost values.

CONCLUSION

Following the results of the study of Pompeii we may conclude that archeological

research provides an exclusive opportunity to understand the ancient past. The exploration of the

past makes the material and non-material culture of the dispelled civilizations beneficial for the

descendants, provides them with insights to new knowledge. It offers a broad understanding of

how people lived, what values did they appreciate, how their society was developed and

changing. It makes the study of cultural heritage of the past an important component of education

and personal development.