Philistine with a capital F

When I first came to the UK as a Junior Year Abroad student, the professor in charge of the group used to say that we were philistines with a capital F. In other words, we were so ignorant about culture that we could not even spell the word philistine correctly.

The phrase came back to me when I read Barbara Ellen's column in the Observer yesterday. She went on about how disappointing Pompeii was and how when she went she wanted to see the plaster casts in situ and all there was was a few crumbling frescoes etc. Really dull and why would anyone want to go.

Her remarks were up there with the 18th century traveller who complained that there were no dancing girls or gaming and thus little to hold his interest!

She obviously did not go to Herculaneum as there are bones in situ -- and they are almost unbearable to see. Three people -- a man and a woman aged about 20 and a boy in his teens -- all found together in an upper room. The woman's head was resting against the man's chest when the volcanic mud over took them. We do not know if they were slaves left behind or the children of the house. They were about the only bodies found in Herculaneum until the discovery of the 250 plus in the boat houses. The boat houses are not open to the public. You can just make out the bones in this picture, but trust me when I say that I was glad to leave the room.

Personally I found it very easy to imagine the people in Pompeii and had no wish to be ghoulish. The plaster casts in the locked up area were enough. There was one where the man had sunk down and put his hands up in front of his face. Another was of a dog. But I was glad to leave them behind and to explore the site.

The major problem with both sites is the looting. Even today when people should know better, it is possible to see places where unknown individuals have tried to lift mosaics. I understand that a large museum is planned for both sites, but this is Southern Italy and these things take time. But all you have to do is look with half closed eyes at the great and terrible beauty, then back up at the Destroyer glowering behind.

Neither Pompeii or Herculaneum are dull, but they do take a modicum of imagination. I note that Ms Ellen is also not overly fond of Mills & Boon books either.

Excursions from Sorrento: Herculaneum

We took a guided tour to Herculaneum, partly because I did not know the site as well and it is a far smaller site. Plus, the costings were not too bad.
Now, Herculaneum is in what is now one of the poorer parts of Naples. In the 18th century, it was the glitzy part -- the so called Golden Mile where neo classical palaces were built and furnished, mainly with items from the various digs. In fact, it was when in 1709 Prince D'Elboeuf, an Austrian purchased some land for a villa and had an artisan well dug. The digging of the well uncovered some fragments of the theatre and thus, Herculaneum was rediscovered.
On the way out, we saw the bags and bags of garbage lying in the street. Naples still has its rubbish collection problem...But the site itself is clean.
Unlike Pompeii, Herculaneum was covered in volcanic mud. This means it is far harder to excavate, but certain things like wood were preserved. Also, Pompeii's covering was far less. Herculaneum lies under something like 25 -30 metres of tufa. In some places, white hot lava from the 1644 eruption also lie on top. There are no plaster casts from Herculaneum as such things only happen when people/animals are covered in ash. There are bones (mostly discovered in the boathouses) and some other organic matter survived in the sewers. Thus, a clearer picture of what life was actually has appeared.
No one is quite sure how big Herculaneum is. They know the south boundary was the sea and they have found the western wall, but the north and east lie under a built up area. And while tunnels have been dug, not all is revealed.
One of the most famous early excavations -- The Villa of the Papryii still lies underground. After initial investigations, the tunnels were sealed in 1765. They were reopen and the are was re-excavated in the late 1980's. Among the finds are the carbonised remains of one of the greatest libraries in the ancient world. The Hewlett Packard foundation is working with the Italian government and it is hoped that some day, some more of the scrolls will be able to be read. The whole thing intrigues me -- what is there there? Why were the tunnels sealed? The Getty Museum in LA is a reconstruction of the villa.
Anyway, what is there is magnificent. Staircases remain intact. Roofs have been reconstructed. Many more frescoes are there. The mosaics glitter with brilliant colours. The photo to the right is a mosaic.
You can tell a shop, rather than a dwelling as there were grooves in the stone where the sliding doors were shut at night. Good ideas stand the test of time. The left photo is of a fast food shop, Roman style.
Again, like Pompeii, Herculaneum surpassed my expectations. I would not like to have to make a choice between which of the two to visit, but suspect that Herculaneum is more digestible.