Revealing the Risqué Art of Pompeiis House of the Vettii

Table Of Content

• After 20 years of restoration work, Pompeii's opulent House of Vettii offers glimpse into lives of former slaves
• 'My body was shaking': The fake text message that led to Jenny's family losing their savings
• It started with a plan to fly fresh Tasmanian milk to China, but now Australia's once-largest dairy is up for sale
• Cupid Frieze, House of the Vettii, Pompeii
• Clowning for Novices: History and Practice With Rose Carver
• Plan

Now, thanks to meticulous restoration efforts that lasted two decades, one of the doomed town’s most opulent homes, the House of the Vettii, has been brought back to life. Marco Cantile/LightRocket via Getty ImagesRestored frescoes in the House of the Vettii. An inscription discovered on a wall gives the name of the enslaved person who worked here in Casa dei Vetti, Eutychis, describing her as a "Greek of beautiful manners" alongside an engraving that lists her services, ranging from one to 16 asses (a local currency). After being buried under rubble for nearly two millennia, Pompeii's House of the Vettii has reopened to the public following 20 years of restoration work. The tantalising fresh insights into the everyday life of one of the most celebrated remnants of the ancient world has delighted tourists and rewarded experts.

After 20 years of restoration work, Pompeii's opulent House of Vettii offers glimpse into lives of former slaves

This painting depicts the lovers Hero and Leander who lived on opposite shores of the Hellespont. Leander wished to be with his lover so he swam the strait each night, guided by torches Hero placed in a tower on the beach. While some have hypothesized the two were brothers, there is no certainty about that. DeAgostini/Getty ImagesOne of the most astounding frescoes in the House of the Vettii is of the Roman god Priapus and his large phallus. "They evidently tried to show their new status also through culture and through Greek mythological paintings," he said. After years in slavery, the men "then had an incredible career after that and reached the highest ranks of local society, at least economically,'' judging by their upscale home and garden, Mr Zuchtriegel said.

'My body was shaking': The fake text message that led to Jenny's family losing their savings

Since Republican society operated on the basis of this patron-client relationship, the domus played a key part in the reinforcement of social hierarchy as the patron (patronus) would receive his clients (clientes) in the atrium of his domus each business day. While visiting with the patron, each client would get an eyeful of the patron’s household wealth, thus applying implicit pressure on the patron to ensure that his house was tasteful and fashionable. Leaving the residential part of the house through a doorway beside the main entrance, we come into the area where the servants worked and lived. In the small Atrium we find the Lararium, the altar to the domestic gods, on which we can see a scene depicting the Genius with two Lares dancing on either side above a serpent, the symbol of regenerative power. The House of the Vettii is one of the most important and spectacular sites in Pompeii.

It started with a plan to fly fresh Tasmanian milk to China, but now Australia's once-largest dairy is up for sale

The residence "represents the Pompeiian domus par excellence, not only because of the frescoes of exceptional importance, but also because of its layout and architecture," she said. Stefania Giudice, director of fresco restoration, said it "resulted in them becoming very blurred over time, because very thick and opaque layers formed, making it difficult to 'read' the fresco". Previous restoration work involved repeated application of paraffin over the frescoed walls in the hopes of preserving them. We believe art has the power to transform lives and to build understanding across cultures. Smarthistory’s free, award-winning digital content unlocks the expertise of hundreds of leading scholars, making the history of art accessible and engaging to more people, in more places, than any other publisher. William C. Archer, “The paintings in the alae of the Casa dei Vettii and the definition of the Fourth Pompeian style,” American Journal of Archaeology, volume 94, number 1 (1990), pp. 95–123.

Where to find The House of the Vettii of Pompeii in the Archaeological Park

Its nearly 12,000 square feet are replete with bronze and marble sculptures, and its courtyard garden once boasted 12 spurting fountains—all of them stilled by the volcanic eruption that buried the city in 79. Elaborate frescoes adorning the mansion’s walls, which depict characters and stories from mythology, have elicited careful study by archeologists, classicists and historians since the site’s excavation in the mid 1890s. And this year, after a restoration that took two decades, its treasures are newly accessible to the public, in all their colorful detail. The House of the Vettii or Casa dei Vettii (VI xv,1) is a Roman townhouse (domus) located within the ruined ancient city of Pompeii, Italy. A volcanic eruption destroyed Pompeii in the year 79 C.E., thus preserving extraordinary archaeological remains of the Roman town as it was at the time of its cataclysmic destruction. Those remains constitute a nearly unparalleled resource for the study of the Roman world.

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After a partial reopening in 2016, it was closed again in 2020 for the final phase of the work, which included restoration of the frescoes and of the floor and colonnades. In the living room, known as the Hall of Pentheus, a fresco depicts Hercules as a child, crushing two snakes, in an illustration of an episode from the Greek hero’s life. According to mythology, Hera, the goddess wife of Zeus, sent snakes to kill Hercules because she was furious that he was born from the union of Zeus with a mortal woman, Alcmena. One fresco depicts Priapus, the god of fertility and abundance, with a large phallus balancing on a scale opposite a bag full of money. Another depicts Hercules as a child crushing two snakes, which according to the Daily Mail, may have been a nod to Aulus Vettius Conviva and Aulus Vettius Restitutus’ ability to surmount challenges as former slaves during their lives.

This is interesting when we consider that achieving the status of augustalis likely indicates that Conviva made a large donation to a public works project in Pompeii. Other works of art depict various figures and stories from Greek mythology, including a scene featuring Poseidon and another featuring a young Hercules crushing two snakes. Experts think that the house was owned by two freed enslaved laborers who built their wealth in the wine business. In 79 C.E., the eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried the site under volcanic ash; archaeologists excavated it in the late 19th century. First unearthed during archaeological excavations in the late 19th century, the home was closed in 2002 for urgent restoration work, including shoring up roofing. Pompeii's architect director of restoration work, Arianna Spinosa, called the restored home "one of the iconic houses of Pompeii".

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The specific Romans who inhabited the House of the Vettii were Aulus Vettius Restitutus and Aulus Vettius Conviva, wine merchants who made their fortunes after being freed from slavery. The strongboxes, paired with a painting of the god Priapus in the vestibule, serve to underscore the wealth of the brothers Vettii. This painting, which shows Priapus weighing his own phallus against a bag of money, may represent the socio-economic ambitions of the Vettii and perhaps indicates that those ambitions were different from those of high-ranking citizen families.

Plan

It depicts Cyparissus, Apollo's lover, who was turned into a cypress tree after killing Apollo's beloved stag. The mythological scene, Wrestling match between Pan and Eros is located in the south-east triclinium, surrounding the large atrium, on the south wall. The Death of Pentheus scene is located in the southern triclinium, surrounding the large peristyle, and painted on the east wall. The scene depicts Pentheus, the legendary King of Thebes, being killed by the female followers of Dionysus. When Dionysus returned to Thebes, Pentheus refused to believe Dionysus divinity as a god and imprisoned him, banning his worship. Dionysus escaped and enchanted Pentheus to go to Mt. Cithairon, disguised as a maenad.

The construction of the house and its decorations belong to the final period of Pompeii’s occupation and therefore provides important evidence of the aesthetics of the city on the eve of its destruction. Plan, House of the Vettii, Late Republican-Early Imperial domus, destroyed 79 C.E.

Most art historians point to the house’s decorative schema as being representative of a key transitional phase, between the Third and Fourth styles of Pompeian wall painting. Some scholars consider it among the finest examples of the Fourth Style at Pompeii. Paul Zanker sees the Fourth Style wall paintings as being imitations of higher art forms, reckoning that the chosen pictures aim to turn the rooms into picture galleries (pinacothecae).

An array of newly reopened sites and exhibitions helps visitors learn even more about the doomed ancient city of Pompeii. The reopening of Casa dei Vettii is part of a broader €155 million ($137 million) restoration projected largely financed by the European Union. Named the Great Pompeii Project, the multiyear effort aims to prevent further deterioration at the ancient Roman site and continues to uncover new treasures.

The unveiling of the restored home has proved yet another sign of the rebirth of Pompeii, following decades of modern bureaucratic neglect, flooding and pillaging by thieves in search of artefacts to sell. These are just some of the many fascinating features you can explore in this unique snapshot of ancient Roman life. In ancient Roman society, homes often served dual or even multiple functions as spaces for commerce, display, and entertainment, in addition to their role as a personal retreat. As such, the House of the Vettii is a prime example of this multi-role function, standing as a silent but eloquent testament to the societal norms and practices of affluent Romans in Pompeii.

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Eventually Antiope escaped and reunited with her now adult sons but was recaptured by Dirce, who ordered that Antiope be put to death by being dragged by a bull. Amphion and Zethus saved their mother and killed Dirce in the same manner she was going to have their mother put to death. The wall facing the entrance is decorated with a Fresco of Priapus weighing his phallus on a pair of scales and a sheep with the attributes of Mercury, the god of financial income, which here serve to protect the house from bad luck and as propitiatory symbols of wealth. The Atrium is decorated with scenes depicting sacrifices, hunts and cupids while two strong-boxes are anchored to stone blocks in the floor. First unearthed during archaeological excavations in the late 19th century, the domus was closed in 2002 for urgent restoration work, including shoring up roofing.