The private and public leisure activities of Pompeii and Herculaneum
Introduction:
The private and public leisure activities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were largely abundant. Many activities could be participated in and were used often. These include Drama performances, gladiatorial games, drinking, gambling, brothels, exercise, gardens, baths and food and dining. All these were an important part of Pompeian and Herculaneum life. They were seen as important to keep the body and mind healthy in most cases. Though some opposed some of the activities like brothels, gambling and drinking. But all give a important look into the life of those in Pompeii and Herculaneum before the catastrophic eruption of Vesuvius which completely destroyed both towns and all its inhabitants.
Drama performances:
There were two theatres at Pompeii used for a variety of purposes. One of these includes drama performances. The two theatres held a large number of patrons. The largest held 5000 people while the smaller once called the Odeon held approximately 1500 people. The types of performances that where held were usually tragedies, comedies and farces. They took place in the larger theater usually during religious celebrations and in celebration of achievements.. The larger theatre was designed for comfort in mind with facilities for an awning on days that where very hot. Historians including Paul Zanker and Richard Beacham suggest that the theatres of Pompeii were as much as a political venue then a entertaining one. Entry was free in the theatre but social class assigned seating. The lower social class sat in the back of the theatre while the upper class sat at the front where the best view was. The smaller theatre known as the Odeon was ...
... middle of paper ...
...g. It is thought that the roams ate three meals a day. They were usually healthy. Dinner was a large affair for the more wealthy citizens of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Many preserved and organic remains of food are helpful in showing what the people of Pompeii and Herculaneum ate. The foods were carbonized and included bread, berries, wheat, olives, dates, figs and nuts. In 1995 a team of archaeologists found and examined household waste of two Pompeian houses. They found barley, wheat, beans, olive pits, peach stone, fish bones, grape pips, cucumber seeds, small boned fish and even remains from sacrificial offerings sheep, goats, cockerels.
Conclusion:
the leisure activities Pompeii and Herculaneum have shown the vast range of activities hat was available to all the people no matter if in the upper class or the lower class of society in Pompeii and Herculaneum
The theater of Dionysus stands at the foot of the acropolis and its date originates back to the 6th Century, B.C.. Its originally wood seats rise in tiers above one another against the slope of the acropolis, creating a natural setting for the plays (D'ooge, 231). The Greek Theater was built to house a drama which, during the festivals of Dionysus, had evolved from the long tradition of choral hymns which were presented each year. As Greek culture changed and flourished, entertainment transformed from being a series of choral chanting and dancing to placing an emphasis on the actor. As the actors' importance grew, there became a need for a stage from which they could be seen by each of the fourteen thousand spectators the theater housed. The chorus was still a very active part of the entertainment and they resided in the orchestra (Norwich, 64). The orchestra was the oldest part of the Greek theater and thus, when the actor was given
Types of entertainment is something we share with the Romans. Document 6 shows a fresco of young men playing with a ball. Today, we have many sports like basketball and soccer that we play just to pass time or competitively. Document 4 shows the Colosseum and its uses such as gladiator and animal fights. Although gladiator and animal fights are illegal today we go to massive stadiums for spectacles like concerts and soccer
On the afternoon of 24th August 79 AD, a volcano called Mt. Vesuvius erupted, which resulted in destroyed lives of citizens, it was estimated that there were 10 to 12 thousand people who occupied the city .The cities of Pompeii, Herculaneum and a few others were severely affected by the eruption. The cities are well known for its beautiful landscapes and its temperate climate.Pompeii is based in the south, close to Naples in the region of Campania in Italy.The eruption started a series of events such as pumice,rocks and ashes falling down and caused hot volcanic gases to rise high in the sky, people from around 100 miles away could see the event unfolding.The remains of Pompeii and other cities was frozen in time due to the pyroclastic surges
There are several prominent geographical features that played a major role in the daily life of Pompeii. The geographical location of Pompeii, its economic and industrial activity, entertainment and the Roman influence in the city’s architecture all convey different geographical features. These features contributed in shaping the way the city’s inhabitants went about their daily lives, and all had a profound impact on Pompeii
The Pompeii exhibition at LACMA was an astounding visualization of history. The exhibition provided all sorts of objects; from sculptures, glass figures, painted art, and more. These art pieces specify the kind of life that was taking place in the Bay of Naples during the second century. As we know the cities around the Bay of Naples, which include Pompeii and Herculaneum, became tourist attractions when the cities were excavated after they were buried from the volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius. However, the comprehension of how the art pieces made their way into the museum is just a little fact of the history behind them. With this exhibition we are able to feel like we are back in time and living in the exhilarating time of Pompeii.
The Coliseum is really cool place to look at. The Coliseum was finished around 80 A.D.; it took 10 whole years to build it. It is made of marble and limestone. Within the Coliseum they had seat around the edging of the building. It could seat about 45,000 – 50,000 people in it. People would gather to the coliseum to watch Gladiators swing swords to kill each other to death. They also came to watch warriors kill animals in the arena, and to watch animals attack each other. Along with all of the fighting, people were able to receive free food at the coliseum. Get free food and get free fights to watch. It would be a great place to have fun. But all of this is the origin of Panem et Circenses Latin for “Bread and Circuses.”
The theatre can hold up to 1500 and more people, so each performance is in front of a huge audience. Many members of the audience can watch from the grounds directly in front of the stage. Up to 3000 people can stand there to be exact.
As time passes in the eighth century B.C, Etruscan and Greek colonization encouraged the growth of Pompeii as a city. Important trade routes became a place for trading near the inland. Until the middle of the 5th century B.C, the city was run politically by the Etruscans. In the course of the 6th century B.C, the influence of Greek culture is also accepted by terracottas, ceramics and architecture. A crowd of warriors from Samnium, Samnite, invaded the area somewhere in the 400’s B.C. Pompeii continued as a...
Difference between Greek and Modern Theatres Theatre today as in ancient Greek times is a popular form of entertainment. The adage is a slam. Today’s theatres share many similarities with the Greek. predecessors, however they are also very different. There are in fact many differences for example; layout, special effects, seating.
Nearly two millenniums ago a massive eruption rocked the Roman city of Pompeii, destroying buildings and coating the town in deep layers of volcanic ash. Fortunately, this same ash served as a tool for preservation and has allowed archaeologists to discover the remains of various types of Pompeii’s art. The values, beliefs, and daily workings of Roman culture have been brought to new light through the paintings, mosaics, statues and other forms of art found in the lost city of Pompeii.
To gain a better understanding of contemporary leisure, it helps to take a look at its origins during the Classical Period. During this time, Aristotle’s teachings and philosophies were significant in not only defining leisure but also exploring its relationship within society. To better understand leisure we should look more closely at Aristotle’s definition of the word. De Grazia (1962) writes that Aristotle defined leisure as “freedom from the necessity of labor” (p.11). Aristotle believed all labor and occupation was the antithesis of leisure. The Greek translation of leisure is ‘schole.’ It is interesting to note that the Greek translation for work or occupation is ‘ascholia.’ Hence, in the Greek language, the meaning of work was essentially non-leisure. This highlights that central to Greek thought and practice was the idea of leisure and we will explore later how this concept begins to lose itself as work and society shifts.
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of entertainment is “amusement or pleasure that comes from watching a performer, playing a game, etc”. There are numerous forms of entertainment in our world today. What may be entertaining for one person may not be entertaining to the next person. Rome is known for many things and has been gone for thousands of years. This paper will cover the different aspects of ancient Roman entertainment and identify if there is any correlation to todays entertainment after all these years.
while trying to help the residents of Pompeii. Today the type of eruption that Mount Vesuvius
Pompeii is possibly the best-documented catastrophe in Antiquity. Because of it, we know now how the Pompeians lived because they left behind an extensive legacy of art, including monuments, sculptures and paintings. Pompeii lay on a plateau of ancient lava near the Bay of Naples in western Italy in a region called Campania, less than 1.6 kilometers from the foot of Mount Vesuvius. With the coast to the west and the Apennine Mountains to the East, Campania is a fertile plain, traversed by two major rivers and rich soil. However, in the early days, it was not a remarkable city. Scholars have not been able to identify Pompeii’s original inhabitants. The first people to settle in this region were probably prehistoric hunters and fishers. By at least the eight century B.C., a group of Italic people known as the Oscans occupied the region; they most likely established Pompeii, although the exact date of its origin is unknown. “The root of the word Pompeii would appear to be the Oscan word for the number five, pompe, which suggests that either the community consisted of five hamlets or, perhaps, was settled by a family group (gens Pompeia)”(Kraus 7). In the course of the eight century B.C., Greek and Etruscan colonization stimulated the development of Pompeii as a city around the area of the Forum. A point for important trade routes, it became a place for trading towards the inland. Up until the middle of the 5th century B.C., the city was dominated politically by the Etruscans.
Actors were expected to memorize hundreds of lines at a time. While one play could be performing, actors would be practicing lines for their next show. Play writers also began to make roles for the actors in the theatrical pieces. The theaters that actors performed in were roofless so that the sun could be used as lighting. Theatrical shows were held in the afternoon because it provided the best amount of light for the show. When the people gathered into the theater, the different classes of people were separated by where they could afford to sit and watch the show. The lower classmen were situated on the bare earth where it was dirty and smelly because it was never cleaned. The owners’ of the theaters found it less expensive if they did not keep high maintenance of their establishments. Higher classmen sat under a roof and for a penny more, they could buy cushions for their seats.