Location of Public Buildings in Pompeii Basilica Town

Location of Public Buildings in Pompeii

Basilica (Town Hall)

• The diagrams below show the two interpretations of the basilica remains. The most widely accepted version is that the Basilica was roofed because there is evidence of continuous windows in the upper walls of the side aisles.

Major Temples Temple of Jupiter

Artists impression of the Temple of Apollo

Triangular Forum of Pompeii • The diagram shows the Triangular Forum next to theatres and small palaestra. The Forum is porticoed around three sides, has a view through the columns on the fourth side overlooking the Sarno river, and contains a small 6 th Century Greek style temple. The very small Samnite Palaestra is on the east side of theatre next to the Triangular forum entrance.

Ionic columned entrance Doric columned portico around three sides

Economic Features of the Forum • The Macellum was the chief market building with shopping booths, an open space in which there was a fish market, and an exedra (room in open space) devoted to the divine Augustus and his family. • The Building of Eumachia was the showroom for the fullers who were the cloth makers, dyers and cloth traders. It had been donated by a priestess, Eumachia and a statue of this woman stood in a niche behind statues of the Imperial family members.

• The Basilica, while essentially a building for law courts, was also a place where economic exchanges and deals could be made. • The Mensa Ponderaria, a table of weights and measures was beside the wall of the temple of Apollo.

Religious Features of the Forum • The main temple in the north of the open space was the Temple of Jupiter, now considered to be the temple of the Capitoline three (Jupiter, Juno and Minerva). • The temple of Apollo, a similar structure, was on the west of the forum

• On the eastern side the Sanctuary of the city Lares opened into the portico and was dedicated to the protective deities of the home. • Next to it was the Temple of Vespasian alternatively called the Temple of the Genius of Augustus (i. e. the spirit of the deified Augustus) in honour of the deified Emperor.

Comitium

Public latrine remains near the Forum at Pompeii

Public Buildings in Herculaneum The Forum of Herculaneum is still buried under Resina. The Decumanus Maximus was the main road leading to it and this has been uncovered. A massive arched entrance has been uncovered with some columns nearby and some tunnels revealing further columns which have been tentatively labelled a basilica, but the main political, economic and religious building concentration usually found near the open space of the forum has not been uncovered.

Herculaneum palaestra with swimming pool