1: Eroticism in Pompeii: A View of Roman Provential Life
I first used Eroticism in Pompeii as a source for a scholarly article about how Romans saw gender, sex, sexuality and the other. Of all of the texts, this one was the easiest to acquire as well as the most accessible. Moreover, because it was compiled recently, color pictures helped to sever the divide of centuries and offer a window into the lives of the Romans not covered in Pliny and Plutarch.
This is a tight, somewhat preliminary study of the Roman phallic symbol, the place of sex in Roman society, and, to a large extent, about Roman painting. Wholly, it paints a picture of Classic Romans as being somewhat bawdy and mischievous, a culture that did not hide their sexuality or their sex acts.
The text is large and is an easy read. Although Varone quotes several primary sources throughout the text, the absence of a lengthy bibliography leaves Eroticism in Pompeii somewhat isolated from similar works. Still, it is a fantastic and visually beautiful stand-alone volume.
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