News In the Shadow of Vesuvius: Year 11 students explore ancient Roman sites in the Bay of Naples 07.11.2024

At the beginning of half-term, Year 11 Classical Civilisation and Latin students set off on a study trip to the Bay of Naples. The trip involved visits to Pompeii, Herculaneum, Mount Vesuvius and the National Archaeological Museum in Naples. This trip promised to give the students first-hand experience of many of the artefacts and buildings they have studied for GCSE Classical Civilisation. However, the experience went well beyond the syllabus, offering wonderful insights to all of the students involved.

After driving through the lemon groves around Sorrento and climbing the spectacular coastal road out of the town, they spent their first day in Pompeii. Pompeii never ceases to amaze and the experience was all the more powerful as they began their visit with the ‘Garden of the Fugitives’ and saw the casts of some of those who had died while trying to flee the town. Students were able to appreciate many aspects of life in a Roman town – including the well appointed amphitheatre where they considered the fate of gladiators and beasts; sat on the steeply raking seats in the theatre, and wandered through the impressively well preserved rooms of the Forum Baths. They also explored the ‘House of Menander’ and appreciated the luxury and culture of the elite inhabitants of Pompeii. A further treat was the ‘Villa of the Mysteries’, where the magnificent room of the mysteries (perhaps showing initiation ceremonies into Dionysiac cult) comes as a visual surprise after the other rooms in Pompeii. However, one of the highlights of the day was finding the villa of Gaius Caecilius lucundus.

The next day the group scaled Vesuvius to fully appreciate the power of the volcano and reflect further on the tragedy which had destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum. The threat that Vesuvius poses even now was brought home by the view from the mountain over the densely populated Bay of Naples. After this sobering visit, students moved on to Herculaneum. They looked down on the town from the walkway as they entered and so had a clear view of the ordered streets and houses – and also the boatsheds where over 300 had gathered in vain to escape by sea. In the town, students were able to compare the Baths with those in Pompeii. As the eruption had affected Herculaneum differently from Pompeii, some wooden items in Herculaneum carbonised and were preserved. This is clear in the ‘House of the Wooden Partition’ – where a chic wooden partition would have enabled the paterfamilias to screen off his tablinum from lowly clients in the atrium.

The final day was spent in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples. This museum is a treasure trove of artefacts excavated in Pompeii and Herculaneum and students spent some time examining the numerous frescoes. One student reflected on how overwhelming it would have been to visit a first-century AD villa in Pompeii or Herculaneum – as barely a wall was free of painted decoration of some sort. As well as the paintings, there were intricate mosaics and well-preserved objects of daily life – such as flawless glassware and silver found in the ‘House of Menander’. 

It was a very rewarding and informative trip made all the better by the exemplary behaviour of the students.