Pompei Et La Campanie Antique

Each guide in Les Belles Lettres’ “Civilisations” collection presents a civilisation from the vantage point of its mindset and behavioural history; i.e., each strives to explore the various aspects of the depicted civilisation through the perspective and judgement criteria – so unlike our own – of the era’s inhabitants.Adopting this viewpoint is essential in order to “fathom” the cities of Pompeii and Campania. The traditional image which comes to mind is that of small towns in which people enjoyed a pleasant and peaceful existence in the tranquil opulence of a heavenly landscape. Yet life there was nothing like that in the final years preceding the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. First of all, in AD 62, Pompeii had endured a violent earthquake which had destroyed most of the city. Its inhabitants were thus living among ruins, rubble and partially reconstructed buildings. Poverty, misery and slavery were rampant. Obviously, people today who visit the cities’ luxurious dwellings, with their multicoloured frescos creating a world of beauty, will say that their owners were scarcely to be pitied. And yet, these houses were dark and cold, and the promiscuity of dozens, if not hundreds, of slaves prohibited any degree of intimacy. Not to mention that the streets were always crowded, noisy, and littered with garbage and sundry excrement. Yes, Pompeii stunk! So it would seem that we need to reconsider all our preconceptions – even those which history has handed down to us. No, the volcano did not erupt on 24 August of AD 79, as all pupils have been taught. In-depth research compels us to acknowledge that it happened two or three months later.This work therefore invites us to experience a rediscovery. It completes the book devoted to Rome in two ways: first, it was in Campania – site of the first Greek colonisation in Italy – that the development of Roman civilisation began. Next, the sole benefit of the volcano’s eruption was that its deadly path preserved elements of the inhabitants’ daily lives better than in any other site. This book offers us a glimpse into the ways in which a small Roman Empire city functioned, while raising all the questions that always come up in a search for the truth. Readers will thus have an opportunity to participate in a full-fledged treasure hunt whose solutions can only be found in history, archaeology and researchers’ discoveries.