virtual tour pompeii

Virtual Tour of Pompeii

Wander the ancient streets of pompeii to uncover the intriguing history of the city where time was stopped with the volcanic eruption of mount vesuvius in 79ad..

When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD, spewing detritus into the air, it buried the ancient city of Pompeii under a cloud of ash where it remained untouched for over 1500 years. Uncovering the excavations has offered us a fascinating insight into the lives of the ancient inhabitants. Even if you can’t explore in person, enjoy a meander through the ancient streets to understand life of the Pompeii.

Porta Marina

Tempio di Venere

Stepping out of the Basilica takes you into the Forum, the centre of daily life in ancient Pompeii. The rectangular area was once the town square and hosted several public administrative buildings, markets for trade and various temples. Meander the ruins here, first excavated in 1813, to discover the temples of Apollo, Vespasian and Jupiter, the town hall and municipal buildings. Towering ominously over the square in the background is Mount Vesuvius which, while peaceful and picturesque today, would have been a terrifying sight for the citizens of Pompeii during the eruption.

House of Sicarus

With much of the city dedicated to housing, we can learn a lot about domestic life in ancient Pompeii by perusing the excavations of the residents’ homes. While middle and lower-class houses were small, simple structures, upper class villas often contained lavishly decorated rooms and peaceful courtyard gardens.

This virtual tour offers a small taste of what can be explored on a tour of Pompeii in real life. We hope you will join us to dig a little deeper into the history of this amazing city.

Related article: How long does it take to tour Pompeii ?

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Virtual travel to Pompeii, Italy

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History, facts and travel tips about Pompeii

The origins of Pompeii are old as the history of Rome . Pompeian people came from an ancient Italic population: the Osci . In the second half of 7th century BC, an early village was settled on the site where Pompeii would eventually emerge : it was strategically established at the intersection of three major roads. Pompeii quickly became a crossing point between the North and the South and a main trade and travel hub, but consequently an aimed prey for its powerful neighbors.

The city had a rather eventful history: it was first conquered by the Greek Colony of Cumae , then by the Etruscans , going finally back under the heel of the Greeks .

The first urban settlement dates back to the 4th century, when Pompeii was involved in the Samnite Wars and forced to accept an alliance with Rome but managing to keep their autonomy for language and institutions.

During the 2nd century BC, thanks to extensive cultivation and prodigious wine and oil exports, the city became really prosperous so that wealth gave rise to some of the most sumptuous residences in Pompeii , equal to the most famous royal dwellings from the Hellenistic period.

In 91 BC, during the Social War (91-88 BC), Pompeii allied with several cities of Campania against Rome with the aim to achieve full Roman citizenship. Unfortunately any attempt to defy Sulla was a wild-goose-chase and the city fell down almost immediately; in 80 BC, it was totally drawn into the sphere of influence of Rome. Sulla moved there a colony of veterans naming it “Colonia Venerea Pompeianorum Sillana”; people who had fought against Rome were expropriated from their land, which was then given to veterans.

In spite of military downturns, Pompeii’s wealth and especially its commercial entrepreneurship (mostly involved in exporting wines from Campania) was left intact.

Because of the salubrious climate and the agreeable landscape, the city and its surroundings became a pleasant vacation destination for rich Roman people. Among them there was Cicero himself, who owned a plot of land in Pompeii and actually didn’t dislike spending time in that lovely place.

Houses in Pompeii became famous also for their valued and unique decoration, so much so that between 2nd Century BC and 79 AD Pompeii developed its own style which came to be widely imitated, even in Rome.

Several painting techniques were used to decorate walls: frescos (pigments mixed with water on wet plaster), tempera (pigments mixed with a glutinous binder such as egg yolk or wax), encaustic painting (pigments mixed with wax). Pompeii painting has been subdivided into four styles based on Vitruvius’ treatise on painting in De Architectura.

The First style used in some houses consists of stucco reliefs , mostly red or black, but also purple, yellow-green pigments imitating marble.

The Second style consists of frames and decorations along with painted foliage to create a “ trompe l’oeil ” effect, giving the illusion of shadow and depth; false colonnades and doorways are depicted opening onto perspectival paintings representing gardens in the foreground. It was a very popular style with customers of the age. Still lives portraying fowls, fruit and vegetables were also very popular.

The Third Pompeian Style is a "decorative style" and completely overturned perspective and three-dimensionality which characterized the previous style. It used flat, dark colors resembling curtains and tapestry and painted scenes in small floating panels in the middle.

The Fourth Style is distinguishable by its fictional architectures using perspective illusion, and has strong theatrical features. It mixes decorative motifs from the previous styles, such as imitation of marble, trompe-l'oeil, chandeliers, winged figures and foliage. It was used to decorate most of the villas in Pompeii when the city was rebuilt after the catastrophic earthquake on February 5th in 62 AD.

On the morning of August 24th in 79 AD, when Pompeii people -unaware the time was about to stop- directed their gaze to the sky, they saw an ominous, dark, pine-shaped cloud hanging over the Vesuvius. At 10 in the morning, gases pressing from inside the volcano exploded, bursting the consolidated lava obstructing the crater and pulverized it: the power of the volcano covered Pompeii in lapilli (solidified fragment of lava) and a torrent of thick ashes obscured the sun.

A violent earthquake and deadly gas fumes buried the city under more than 6 meters of ashes and lapilli . At least 2,000 of the approximately 10,000 inhabitants were killed; some poisoned by gases while attempting to flee, others in their own homes, crushed by roofs collapsing under the weight of the volcanic material .

People in Pompeii could not imagine their daily life was going to be frozen in time, preserved thanks to the material spewed out of Vesuvius and the entire city was going to be rediscovered, centuries later, telling the story of the day when a volcano stopped the time.

The city was almost completely forgotten until the end of 16th Century, when Domenico Fontana , an italian architect, overseeing the construction of a canal for the Sarno River, found inscriptions and buildings decorated with frescos . Fontana, however, did not realize he had just discovered the remains of ancient Pompeii.

Today, the city is almost entirely visible bringing back visitors to the fateful day in 79 AD. The city looks like its life was interrupted just moments ago . Political campaign slogans on the walls, home furnitures, shops, everything looks alive , as it was at the moment of the eruption.

The city is transected by the majestic Via dell’Abbondanza , the central axis that corresponds to the lower decumanus. Starting at the Forum and continuing to the Porta Sarno , it is named after the beautiful fountain decorated by a bas-relief portraying “ Abundance ” as a woman holding a cornucopia . The street is 600 meters long and still today is a living and vibrant portrait of the city’s most important commercial street. Inscriptions painted on the plaster can also be found there, as the most eloquent record of city life.

Via della Fortuna (named after the temple of Fortune ) was the decumanus maximus and crosses the city from East to West.

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Pompeii Virtual Tour: Life and Death in the Buried City

Take a trip back in time to ancient Pompeii on our virtual tour of the doomed city

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duration 1,5 hours

Tour Overview

Join Through Eternity guide and art historian Andrea for a fascinating virtual journey into the lost world of antiquity as we get to grips with the ruined city of Pompeii. On this immersive exploration of the city frozen in time, learn why Pompeii was an important commercial centre in antiquity in the shadow of looming Vesuvius. Piecing together a fascinating patchwork of villas and baths, brothels, temples, amphitheatres and more, we'll get a unique insight into daily life in the ancient world. Relive the tragic tale of how an apocalyptic cloud of red-hot ash spewing from nearby Vesuvius buried the city in 79 AD, stopping time and paradoxically preserving it forever. Thanks to photos, videos, virtual reconstructions and Andrea's enthralling storytelling, our virtual tour will paint a vivid portrait of the city in all its variety - join us on this unforgettable journey from the comfort of your own home today! If the day of the week or start time of this group tour doesn't work for you, please email us at [email protected] to arrange a suitable alternative date.

• Live from Naples with art-historian Andrea
• Videos, photos and reconstructions give you the full picture of the city frozen in time
• Have your questions answered by Andrea

• Immersive virtual history of Pompeii
• Relive the explosion of Vesuvius in 79 AD
• In-depth recreation of the ancient city
• Discover the splendours of Roman art
• Learn the fate of Pompeii's doomed citizens

Tour Description

Meet your guide: andrea.

Hi I’m Andrea! A native of Naples, I’ve lived in the Campania region of Italy all my life, and I have a deep love for its art, archeology, music, architecture, cuisine, natural beauty and - of course - its people. I have shared this world with many, many visitors over the years,showcasing the vast range of this wonderful place. When I was 14 years old I started working as an actor in theatres, and this plays a central role in how I communicate on my tours today -    I always try to put something theatrical into everything I do :-)

What Exactly is a Through Eternity Virtual Tour?   

The world of travel might be on hold right now, but just because we're all staying at home to help the world overcome a common enemy doesn't mean we have to put our wanderlust on the back burner. Frustrated with not being able to get our travel fix, we decided to transform our award-winning tours into immersive virtual experiences, meaning you can still explore Italy’s spectacular archaeological sites and jaw-dropping museums from the comfort of your own home.

As a sign of our gratitude to those who are on the front line fighting the Coronavirus, we would be more than happy to invite all first responders , health workers and NHS workers to join our Virtual Tours for free. Please message our office staff directly!

* Please note that the booking times are in US Eastern Standard Time and Rome, Italy CET is 6 hours ahead *

Fun and informative , our virtual tours take the form of online  real-time presentations  led by our  expert guides . Combining videos, high-definition photos and more, our guides will be sharing their wealth of knowledge and experience with you on these interactive walkthroughs of Italy’s most fascinating sites. The  live format  of our virtual tours means you’ll be able to ask your guide anything you wish, just like on a normal tour. We really believe it's the next best thing to being here!

Please note that the proceeds from our online tours go directly to our guides, providing them with a valuable lifeline in these tough times for the world of travel. Thank you for your support!  

Discover the mysteries of the city frozen in time on our virtual tour

There is nowhere on earth quite like Pompeii. The best preserved ancient city in the world , its intricate patchwork of streets and houses, baths, bakeries and temples offers a unique and eerie insight into the daily life of antiquity. Take a virtual journey to the ancient city in the looming shadow of Mount Vesuvius , and relive the dramatic events of 79 AD when an apocalyptic cloud of molten lava and red-hot ash buried the city in an instant – stopping time and paradoxically preserving it forever. Our Pompeii virtual tour is an immersive storytelling experience that will bring this fascinating tale to life 

Gain a unique insight into daily life in ancient Pompeii with expert local guide Andrea

On our immersive webinar you’ll learn all about the ancient world, and discover why Pompeii was an important city in the Roman empire. Thanks to high-quality photos, virtual reconstructions and Andrea’s engaging narration, you’ll be able to wander through the opulent private villas of the aristocracy decorated with spectacular frescoes; learn what the ancient Pompeiians did for recreation in their spare time in the virtual surroundings of the city’s immense bathhouses , and discover what went on in the city’s innumerable brothels – still decorated today with obscene frescoes!

Learn the dark fate that awaited the inhabitants of ancient Pompeii

On our Pompeii virtual tour, you’ll also learn about the plaster casts that record the town’s doomed citizens in the poses in which they breathed their last – a touching reminder of the human scale of the ancient tragedy. Discover the intricate process that preserved their remains, and find out how the casts tell the fascinating events of Vesuvius’ eruption and the final moments of the doomed city.

Tour Reviews

5.0 (36 reviews)

We very much enjoyed the Pompeii Virtual Tour. Our guide Andrea was very knowledgeable and through with the presentation.

Ray and Grace Chow - Feb 02, 2021

It was very interesting, but I would have enjoyed hearing more about how the common people lived - not just the very wealthy

Arden Down - Jan 09, 2021

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THE DESTRUCTION OF POMPEII

In the shadows of mount Vesuvius

A special virtual tour: THE DESTRUCTION OF POMPEII

Are you ready to jump back in time until just before the Plinian eruption of 79 AD destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum? This tour will allow our digital explorers to recreate these ancient cities in detail and to dive deep into the culture, the organization and the places where the activities of an ancient Herculaneum or Pompeian citizen took place over the course of a day.

Connected from a device and just like on regular tour, visitors will have the opportunity to follow an itinerary and to interact with a tour guide in real time.

Our tour will highlight four sections:

The first part will take place among the public places of these cities: the Herculaneum Theatre, the Central Baths; Pompeii’s Forum and the “Schola Armaturarum”.

The second part of the itinerary is dedicated to the Domus (houses): “House of the Tragic Poet”, “House of the Faun”, “House of the Labyrinth” and “House of the Citharist”.

The third part will be a journey into Pompeian and Herculaneum painting. Each fresco and mosaic will be analyzed in detail, focusing on their beauty and their meaning.

The fourth, and last part of the itinerary, will be entirely dedicated to the Villa dei Papiri and its extraordinary library.

The tour will end with the reconstruction of the event that changed forever the history and geography of the Vesuvian area. The Vesuvius eruption narrated in the voice of the great actor Mariano Rigillo, reconstructed with the advice of the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology: an extraordinary document that will close our journey exactly at the point and moment when it all began.

HOW TO JOIN:

• The tour will be hosted on Zoom;
• After the registration, you will receive an invitation with the Zoom Meeting link.

Take a virtual drone tour of the fascinating new excavations in Pompeii

Apr 24, 2020 • 2 min read

A restorer working on frescos in the House with the Garden in Regio V © Marco Cantile/LightRocket via Getty Images

Those who are interested in the ancient city of Pompeii  in Italy will enjoy drone footage of sections of Regio V, a 54-acre archaeological site in the north of the city that has been excavated over the past two years.

The footage is presented in a YouTube video, narrated by director of Pompeii Archaeological Park, Massimo Osanna. We may not be able to visit Pompeii in person due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but this video takes viewers on a virtual tour of some of the fascinating discoveries that have been uncovered so far during the excavations. These include the 'House with the Garden' with its triclinium frescoes and painted portico, and the 'House of Orion' with its First Style paintings and the mosaic of Orion.

Pompeii was buried under ash and pumice after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, and the drone footage shows the "Room of Skeletons" in the 'House with the Garden.' This is where the remains of 11 victims of the catastrophic eruption were found. Mainly women and children, it appears that they sought refuge there, but sadly it was in vain.  The virtual tour also brings watchers to the ‘House of Orion’, where the most ancient furnishings have been preserved.

This includes stucco panels of various colours imitating coloured marble, recalling the luxury of the Egyptian Ptolemaic court and demonstrating where inspiration was drawn at the time. The mosaic of Orion gives the house its name and it depicts one of the more iconographically obscure myths of the ancient world. Viewers can also explore Pompeii’s smaller neighbour, Herculaneum, via interactive 3D scans, created using laser scanners and drone photography.

You can check out the drone footage of Regio V here  and 3D scans of Herculaneum here.

Keep up to date with Lonely Planet's latest travel-related COVID-19 news here.

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Paris Exhibition Recreates Pompeii’s Final Hours

Those unable to visit the show in person can access a trove of online resources related to the immersive experience

Theresa Machemer

Correspondent

When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D, its lava and ash preserved Pompeii’s last moments in stunning detail. From public buildings and private homes adorned with elaborate mosaics and frescoes to carbonized food and the remains of people entombed where they fell , excavations in the hundreds of years since Pompeii’s 16th-century rediscovery have yielded an array of insights on the doomed Roman city.

Now, a new exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris places visitors in Pompeii just hours before Vesuvius’ eruption. Fittingly titled “ Pompeii ,” the show—created in collaboration with the Pompeii Archaeological Park —uses immersive 3-D imagery to present recreations of both the ancient city and the modern archaeological site. Researchers drew on a combination of drone footage, laser cartography, infrared imagery and photogrammetry to bring Pompeii back to life, reports Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Originally slated to open in March, “Pompeii” was one of many exhibitions delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Would-be visitors received a digital preview of the show in April, when the Grand Palais released a trove of related resources, including virtual and augmented reality experiences, an audio guide, and video tours. The online portal’s in-person counterpart opened July 1 and is scheduled to run through September 27.

“[T]his show is not about the technology but about the place,” Roei Amit, head of the Paris cultural institution’s digital department, tells the Financial Times ’ Edwin Heathcote. “We have virtual reality and augmented reality of course but they are not central to the exhibition. Instead we are making a hybrid experience, about how we can tell the story in the best way.”

Speaking with AFP, organizers describe the exhibition as a veritable “time machine.” Visitors walk through a 200-foot-long alleyway surrounded by lifelike recreations of Pompeiian houses, fountains and passersby; “[l]ayers of present and past are overlaid as ruins return to pristine dwellings inhabited by slightly cheesy-looking, toga-wearing inhabitants while fountains trickle in courtyards,” according to the Times .

“Pompeii” is divided into four domus —the Latin word for home. Per an exhibition map , the first centers on Pompeii as a Roman city, while the other three explore early and recent excavations, specific discoveries, and frescoes, respectively.

Items on view include a statue of Livia, wife of Emperor Augustus; a marble rabbit; a witch’s chest filled with amulets made of glass, ivory and amethyst; gold jewelry shaped like snakes; and plaster casts of people who died under Vesuvius’ ash. The casts are flanked by frescoes depicting such scenes as the goddess Venus riding in an elephant-drawn chariot.

Above the makeshift city, Mount Vesuvius—as seen on a looming video loop—rumbles ominously. Every 30 minutes, the volcano erupts, reminding visitors of Pompeii’s inevitable end.

At the time of the eruption, between 15,000 and 20,000 people lived in Pompeii and nearby Herculaneum. The majority of these individuals managed to escape Vesuvius’ wrath, but around 2,000 fell victim to the volcano’s molten rock, flaming debris and poisonous gases, reported Laura Geggel for Live Science in 2019.

The exhibition’s reconstruction of Pompeii is “not at all a Disneyland version,” Pompeii Archaeological Park director Massimo Osanna tells AFP. "What we have shown in 3-D corresponds exactly with our scientific research.”

“ Pompeii ” is on view at the Grand Palais in Paris through September 27, 2020. Some materials from the show are available to view online .

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Theresa Machemer | READ MORE

Theresa Machemer is a freelance writer based in Washington DC. Her work has also appeared in National Geographic and SciShow. Website: tkmach.com

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Take a Virtual Tour of Pompeii on Google Street View

Pompeii, with its ancient mosaics and buildings preserved by the volcanic eruption that buried the town, is one of the world's most interesting destinations. But now you don't need to board a plane to visit: It's on Google Street View .

Google has mainly focused its 360-degree panoramic service on major living-and-breathing cities around the world like New York, San Francisco, or Rome [ USA Today ]

. But this week the service began to feature Pompeii, allowing people anywhere in the world to tour the ancient marvels on site.

Italy's culture ministry says it hopes the move will boost tourism to the site [ BBC News ]

. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried Pompeii in 20 feet of ash in 79 A.D., killing everyone there and destroying other nearby towns like Herculaneum . The disaster, however, preserved much of the city until its rediscovery in the 1700s, giving archaeologists a window into 1st-century life in the Roman world. Pompeii isn't the only historical site going live on Google Street View.

Among the foreign sites appearing Thursday were Stonehenge, Prague, the ancient city of Caceres in Spain and famous windmills in the Dutch village of Kinderdijk-Elshout [ ANSA ]

. Related Content: 80beats: Mount Vesuvius' Destructive Power May Be Diminishing Discoblog: How to Date an Ancient Volcanic Eruption: Step 1, Use Fish Sauce DISCOVER: New World Pompeii DISCOVER: Disaster! The Most Destructive Volcanic Eruptions in History (photo gallery) Image: ANSA

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Explore Two of Pompeii’s Excavated Homes in This Virtual Tour

By ellen gutoskey | apr 14, 2020.

It’s been nearly 2000 years since the eruption of Mount Vesuvius decimated Pompeii in 79 C.E., and archaeologists are still uncovering secrets about life in the ancient Roman city. As Smithsonian   reports , they’ve recently excavated two homes in Regio V, a 54-acre area just north of the Pompeii Archaeological Park —and you can see the findings for yourself in a virtual tour published by the Italian Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities.

The 7.5-minute video comprises drone footage of the houses and surrounding ruins, along with commentary by park director Massimo Osanna that explains what exactly you’re looking at and what types of people once lived there. Osanna’s commentary is in Italian, but you can read the English translation here .

The homes, both modest private residences that probably housed middle-class families, border the Vicolo dei Balconi, or “Alley of the Balconies.” The first is fittingly named “House With the Garden” because excavators discovered that one of its larger rooms was, in fact, a garden. Excavators pinpointed the outlines of flowerbeds and even made casts of plant roots, which paleobotanists will use to try to identify what grew there. In addition to the garden and vibrant paintings that feature classic ancient deities like Venus, Adonis, and Hercules, “House With the Garden” also preserved the remains of its occupants: 11 victims , mostly women and children, who likely took shelter within the home while the men searched for a means of escape.

Across the street is “House of Orion,” named for two mosaics that depict the story of Orion, a huntsman in Greek mythology whom the gods transformed into the constellation that bears his name today.

“The owner of the house must have been greatly attracted to this myth, considering it features in two different rooms in which two different scenes of the myth are depicted,” Osanna says. “It is a small house which has proved to be an extraordinary treasure chest of art."

To see what Pompeian houses would’ve looked like before Mount Vesuvius had its fiery fit, check out this 3D reconstruction .

[h/t Smithsonian ]

Pompeii For Kids: Online Virtual Tour

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Ready to live an Amazing family journey back to the past? Ready to discover the last hours of the ancient Pompeii ? Let’s live a day like an ancient roman!

Thanks to 3d reconstruction, 4k videos and pictures , you and Your kids will virtually stroll down the Ancient streets, getting inside colorful houses and lively shops: the ordinary daily life in Pompeii! Using the virtual reality , you’ll even get the chance to relax inside the thermal baths or exercise at the gym!

It can be a magic experience to spend your best quality time together: just send a message and we’ll be happy and costumize your virtual online tour!

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Institutional Portal of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii

• cambia lingua: Italiano
• cambia lingua: English

THE NEW EXCAVATIONS OF POMPEII (IN REGIO V) REVEALED IN AN EXCLUSIVE VIRTUAL TOUR BY MASSIMO OSANNA, DIRECTOR OF THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL PARK OF POMPEII.

A drone flight over the ancient city and and the new excavations leads us to discover the newly uncovered domus, including: the House with the Garden with its splendid triclinium frescoes and painted portico; the House of Orion with its First Style paintings and the mosaic of Orion, which is the only one of its kind; and in addition the settings of everyday life. It is an extraordinary cross-section of the daily life of the city.

" Good morning everyone, today we present a virtual tour of the Regio V excavations, the new excavations which have been ongoing for the last two years and which have unearthed an extraordinary part of Pompeii, including a street, Vicolo dei Balconi, with houses on both sides. Of particular note is the House with the Garden, which we are flying over at this moment, and the House of Orion, which we will take a closer look at shortly. These excavations have yielded an extraordinary cross-section of the daily life of this city. Thanks to all of the archaeologists, architects, engineers and technicians who have worked tirelessly here with us, we have been able to document this extraordinary heritage in a highly technologically advanced way, commencing with drones, the images from which have been used to create this exclusive video which we offer you.

The House with the Garden is a house that we named as such precisely because the first, very large, room which came to light turned out to be a garden, in which we have been able to excavate all the flowerbed boundaries, and make casts of the roots of the plants which had been planted there, and therefore our palaeobotanists have gathered all of the evidence in order to study the garden and understand what had been planted in it, as well as how it was laid out, and therefore it will be possible to restore it in a philologically correct manner. Facing onto the garden we have a portico with images in the Fourth Pompeian Style, and in particular a black plinth which imitated a garden, the illusion here standing alongside the true perception of nature. Facing onto the portico we have a series of state rooms, including a large triclinium decorated with beautiful Fourth Style paintings, with alternating red and yellow panels, and paintings depicting myths linked to love. On one side we have Venus and Adonis, and on the other a fishing Venus, whilst on another wall we have Hercules and Omphale.

But the house has also yielded more ordinary, everyday rooms, such as kitchens and latrines. It is indeed because it was very much a lived-in house at the time of the eruption, that eleven victims have been found here, who had all taken refuge in one of the rooms of the house. Predominantly they were women and children who probably stayed behind  while the men of the family had probably gone out in search of any escape route for all of them, but they sought refuge in this room and waited here during the final hours of the eruption. They probably then died due to the pyroclastic flows which struck following an eighteen hour rain of lapilli. The house features an atrium which was not ‘canonical’ - it is not a Tuscan atrium - because it was most likely covered. The atrium became, like in other houses, the primary ‘hallway’ onto which a series of rooms faced, including service rooms and rooms for both night-time and daytime rest. All in all it was a small house, and therefore it probably belonged not to the elite of Pompeii, but to what could be very generically called the ‘middle-class’. Yet, as is often the case at Pompeii, even these smaller houses feature high quality paintings, and above all yield treasures not only in terms of furnishings but also the most modest of objects relating to everyday life.

Regio V faces onto Via di Nola, and here you can see a nice view of it from above. Via di Nola was one of the great arteries of Pompeii, which ran parallel to Via dell’Abbondanza, and was one of the most significant streets for commercial traffic at Pompeii. Indeed a series of shops relating to all kinds of business activity faced onto the street - next to the House with the Garden there was a fullonica, as well as all kinds of rooms relating to the activities of everyday life.

Here we now enter a house in front of the House with the Garden, on the other side of Vicolo dei Balconi, the house which we have called the ‘House of Orion’, on account of two beautiful mosaics which are preserved in two of the rooms of the house. It is a house which is extraordinary from many points of view, because here the most ancient furnishings have been preserved, including the First Style decoration, as we can see in these images of the atrium, showing stucco panels of various colours imitating coloured marble, thereby recalling the luxury of the Egyptian Ptolemaic court. For example, some of these stucco panels imitate marble which is indeed typical of the Alexandria area of Egypt, helping us to understand from which models inspiration was drawn at the time. At the end of the day this house is also small, and while it does not consist of particularly large spaces, it has yielded true masterpieces, such as this mosaic of Orion for example, which gives the house its name. It depicts one of the more iconographically obscure myths of the ancient world, not just at Pompeii, but which must have had great meaning. Here too, both the iconography and the mosaic itself probably came from the Eastern Mediterranean, from Egypt. There is a cobra in the foreground, which symbolises the Earth, from which emerges the scorpion that kills Orion, imagery which clearly reminds one of Egypt. But the myth is an example of what the Greeks would call Katasterismos, that is it narrates the metamorphosis, the transformation into a constellation, in this case of the hero Orion, a Greek hero who was indeed transformed into the constellation which we can still see today. The owner of the house must have been greatly attracted to this myth, considering it features in two different rooms in which two different scenes of the myth are depicted. It is a small house which has proved to be an extraordinary treasure chest of art."