Pompeii & Herculaneum Terminology

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Surface features of a place or region

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Topography

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Latin word for 'street'

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via

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Household shrine dedicated to the lares

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lararium

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Roman guardian spirits of the house and fields

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lares

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Roman surveying term for North-South streets in a Roman town

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cardines

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Large rectangular building for the dispensing of justice and used as a meeting place

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basilica

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Fish sauce produced from fish guts soaked in salt

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garum

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Council made up of members of the same trade or industry

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collegium

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Latin term for washers and dyers of fabrics

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fullones

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Roman washing and dyeing workshop.

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fullonica (s) or fullonicae

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Town magistrate who looked after day-to-day administration

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aedile

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Oval-shaped arena used primarily for gladiatorial games and spectacles.

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amphitheatre

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Two-handled clay vessels for liquids, especially wine and oil.

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amphorae

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Changing room at the baths; used as a waiting room for slaves and attendants.

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apodyterium

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A structure that carries water from a distance.

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aqueduct

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Objects made by humans found on an archaeological site.

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artefacts

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A red copper coin used for everyday use.

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as (plural: asses)

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Decorated central hall of a Roman house.

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atrium (plural: atria)

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Group of freedmen who celebrated the cult of the emperor.

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Augustales

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The Latin name for the rites of Bacchus.

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Bacchanalia

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Room in the bathhouse containing the hot bath.

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caldarium

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To char or convert into carbon.

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carbonised

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Huge cistern near the Vesuvian Gate for collecting water from the aqueduct.

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castellum acquae

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Tavern; inn.

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caupona

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Underground water storage.

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cistern

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Settlement; Latin for ‘city’; name given to the excavation site before it was identied as Pompeii.

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civitas

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Multipurpose roofless building (in forum) used for public meetings and where people assembled for voting.

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comitium

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Central opening in the roof over the domestic atrium that allowed in air, light and water

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compluvium

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Small room that served various functions but which is most commonly described as a bedroom.

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cubiculum

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Kitchen of a Roman house.

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culina

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Meeting place of the city council on the Forum.

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curia

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Main axial roads on east–west axis.

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decumanus (plural: decumani )

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Member of the municipal council, often former magistrates.

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decurion

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The study of tree-ring growth in ancient wood or charcoal samples and the matching of them with dated sequences.

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dendrochronology

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Sponsors of games.

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editores munerum

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Large globular earthenware jars with a wide mouth.

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dolia (singular: dolium)

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Urban house; household.

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domus

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One of two equal magistrates elected annually to preside over the decurion with law-giving powers.

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duovir (duumvir)

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The study of inscriptions.

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epigraphy

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Roman household including slaves.

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familia

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The entrance passage leading from the street into the interior of a house or building.

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fauces

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Public latrines.

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foricae

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Goddess of fortune and personication of luck.

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Fortuna

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A public square in a Roman city used as a centre of business and justice.

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forum

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Former slaves.

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freedmen

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Wall paintings on plaster.

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frescoes

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Room in a bathhouse for cooling off.

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frigidarium

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Generating force of a person or place; the spirit present in every person, thing and place.

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genius

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A short sword.

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gladius

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Pertaining to Greek language and culture before Alexander the Great.

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Hellenic

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Pertaining to the culture in which Greek characteristics were modified by foreign elements after the time of Alexander the Great; the merging of Greek and Eastern cultural elements.

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Hellenistic

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A statue in the form of a pillar with the head of the god Hermes.

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herm

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Rainwater basin in the centre of the atrium, directly under the compluvium.

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impluvium

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In its original place.

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in situ

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Town block isolated by four streets

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insula (plural: insulae)

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Second, sauna-like, hot room in the bathhouse equipped with a brazier for creating a dry heat.

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laconicum

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Agent who trained and supplied gladiators for a show.

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lanista

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Central provision market of the Pompeian Forum.

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Macellum

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Granted freedom from slavery.

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manumitted

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Low table used in front of the couches in a dining room.

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mensa

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Picture or decoration made from tiny pieces of stone, glass, etc.

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mosaics

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‘City of the dead’, or cemetery.

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necropolis

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A grotto, usually with a fountain dedicated to the nymphs.

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nymphaeum

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Small theatre in Pompeii used for concerts, lectures and poetry recitals.

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Odeon

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Members of the city council.

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ordo decurionum

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Sports ground (from the Greek for ‘wrestling school’) with a large open courtyard dedicated to competitive athletics and training.

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palaestra

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The male head of a Roman household.

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paterfamilias

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The original Roman aristocracy.

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patrician

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A wealthy citizen who looked after the interests of poorer clients in return for their support.

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patron

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Inner courtyard surrounded by colonnades.

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peristyle

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Bakery.

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pistrina

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Common people.

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plebs

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The place of origin or ownership of a work of art.

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provenance

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A porous form of volcanic glass.

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pumice

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Composed of burning volcanic material.

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pyroclastic

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Hot avalanche of pumice, ash and gases.

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pyroclastic ow

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Cloud of volcanic ash and gases

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pyroclastic surge

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Magistrate elected every five years to carry out the census and control public morality.

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quinquennial duoviri

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Process that contributes to enhancing the visual or functional understanding of an object or building.

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restoration

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Morning ceremony during which clients attended on their patron.

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salutatio

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Bronze coins equal to four asses, used for everyday transactions

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sesterces

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Observing and recording the sequence of layers within an excavation

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stratigraphic digging

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A curved bronze or bone scraper for cleaning.

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strigil

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Shop opening onto the street with large stalls.

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taberna

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Decorated reception area off the atrium, usually richly decorated.

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tablinum (plural: tablina)

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A civic building next to the Comitium in the Forum, used for storing ofcial records.

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tabularium

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Warm room in a bathhouse equipped with a warm pool and used for the application of oil and massage.

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tepidarium

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Bath complexes; warm springs.

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thermae

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Bars serving warm snacks and drinks.

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thermopolium (plural: thermopolia)

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‘Three couch room’ or dining room.

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triclinium (plural: triclinia)

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Patron goddess of Pompeii.

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Venus

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Entrance lobby.

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vestibulum

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Villa built purely for leisure.

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villa of otium

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Country residence often connected to a vineyard or farm.

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villa rustica

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Study of volcanoes.

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volcanology