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Title: Pompeii: History, Life & Afterlife
ISBN: 0752414593
Author:
Roger Ling
Publicate Date: 2005-05-01
Publish: 2005-05-01
List Price: $30.00
Average Customer Rating: 5.0
Format: Paperback
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $18.77
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $21.09
Amazon Merchant Price: $22.80
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Popular summary of current scholarship
Pompeii was 700 years old when it and the surrounding region, were entombed during the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Because of a difference in volcanic materials in which they are buried, lapilli vs. pyroclastic flows, most of items made of organic materials (wood and fiber) at Pompeii decomposed over time while they were preserved in the adjacent City of Herculaneum. From these two cities, and the neighboring suburban villas at Oplontis, Boscoreale and Stabiae, Dr. Ling describes the fascinating picture that is emerging through modern scholarship of the physical development, daily life, economy and culture of Pompeii in the Augustan/Tiberian eras of the Roman Empire. Emphasizing the importance of the pre-empire history of the city, Dr. Ling devotes slightly more than half the book to describing the physical growth of the whole city and stages of this growth from the Etruscan, Oscan and Samnite periods through the Roman colonization. In this he is handicapped by the intentional paucity of stratigraphical excavation at the site done in order to present the city to the public as a Roman museum. The balance of the book is a synopsis of the demographics, political organization, architecture, economy, religion, art, interior decoration, and daily life of the inhabitants at the time of the destruction. Where experts disagree as to the interpretation of the physical evidence, the divergent opinions are noted and summarized. The book ends with a description of the past excavations of the ruined city immediately after the eruption and later following its rediscovery in the 16th century. The writing is crisp and clear. Line drawings, maps and illustrations are extremely helpful. The bibliography is focused by topic and limited to then recent (pre-2005) publications. I have found an excellent companion to this book to be Paul Zanker, Pompeii: Public and Private Life (Revealing Antiquity) Harvard University Press (1998). Pompeii: Public and Private Life (Revealing Antiquity)
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