Public Buildings: basilicas, temples, the forum, amphitheatres, theatres

Question 1

what are the 4 categories of public buildings?

Answer 1

administrative (political)
religious
social
economic

Question 2

list 3 examples of economic buildings:

Answer 2

shops (tabernae)
macellum (market) and vegetable market
Building of Eumachia?

Question 3

examples of religious buildings:

Answer 3

temple of apollo
capitoline triad 
Vespasian/augustus
venus
isis

Question 4

examples of social buildings:

Answer 4

brothels
baths
theatres
palaestra 
bars and taverns

Question 5

examples of admin buildings:

Answer 5

basilica (law court)

comitium (voting hall)

Question 6

What is at the top and bottom of forum?

Answer 6

top - temple of Jupiter/capitoline triad

bottom - municipal offices

Question 7

right hand side buildings from top to bottom at the Forum in P?

Answer 7

1. macellum
2. Temple of the City Lares
3. Temple of Vespasian (genius of Augustus)
4. Building of Eumachia
5. Comitium (voting hall, centre of political activity)

Question 8

Left hand side buildings from top to bottom at Forum

Answer 8

1. Latrine
2. vegetable market
3. Temple of Apollo
4. Basilica (law court)

Question 9

Amphitheatre:

Answer 9

• used as first masonry display (gladiatorial)
• dates from 60BC (earliest permanent stone arena structure - some wooden ones found earlier in Rome)
• Held approx. 20 000 ppl.
• designed for gladiatorial games (teams: pompeii and neighbouring towns like Nuceria)
• probs had retractable awnings to cover around, shown in fresco.
• Nero banned games as riot with Nuceria and out of control in 59AD.

Question 10

Odean (small theatre) and large theatre?

Answer 10

• Nero performed in Odean when AD64 earthquake struck.
• large theatre has retractable awnings
• food and refreshment available outside theatre in rectangular areas as long performance
• most performances were semi-religious also entertainment
• performances all day event
• various greek style plays/odes performed, influenced by Greeks.

Question 11

what was the palaestra?

Answer 11

training ground for athletes/gladiators - no women could enter

• exercise/game field for citizens of P
• swimming pool in centre.
• many italian towns have one outdoor style gym.
• open area surrounded on 3 sides by colonnades

Question 12

what was applied to skin exfoliate?

Answer 12

olive oil, volcanic sand and ash. Strigils used to scrcape off the mixture and dead skin with it.

Question 13

How many bath houses did P and H have?

Answer 13

P = 3
H= 1
have been excavated so far. e.g. Stabian baths

Question 14

What pattern did bath houses follow?

Answer 14

roman baths with hot room - calidaria, warm room - tepidarium and cold room- frigidarium

Question 15

what did baths houses have?

Answer 15

swimming pools sometimes

• officially men and women bathed separately
• for fee, room could be booked for co-ed parties
• change rooms, cubby holes for patrons to put clothes in
• clothes often got stolen, slaves guard clothes
• in comedic performances, patrons often go home naked (mocked in them)

Question 16

Features of brothels?

Answer 16

stone benches, sexual scene painted on wall indication.
- often have various depiction of sexual activity on internal walls

scattered thruout P and H

Question 17

what was comitium and function?

Answer 17

centre of political activity.

Assembly of voting citizens would gather here to discuss and vote on partic. issues

Question 18

Basilica?

Answer 18

• law court building where magistrate sat as judges

- public discussions and debates

Question 19

Temple of Apollo?

Answer 19

worship of Apollo, greek god.

also contained a table of weights and measure

Question 20

the temple of jupiter was once?

Answer 20

at the end of Forum closest to Vesuvius, was probs once a most prominent site of worship in P at one time.

Question 21

The Macellum (market)?

Answer 21

selling of goods, stalls set up within or outside the walls.

Question 22

Building of Eumachia?

Answer 22

names and built after prominent Roman citizen, Eumachia (woman) at her expense. She was a priestess. Patroness of guild of fullers
dedicated to Guild of Fullers (cleaned and treated fabris) and for fuller themselves (social space?)

Question 23

What is purpose of building of Eumachia?

Answer 23

unknown

Question 24

Stabian bath?

Answer 24

• near the gate of P, ran road to Stabiae
• compound had larger palaestra and lost of small private rooms
• some believe that baths also hosted prostitutes

Question 25

what was the Pompeian forum?

Answer 25

public buildings associated with admin, religion and commerce clustered in or around forum, the chief meeting and trading place in town.

Question 26

What does the forum reveal?

Answer 26

the inscriptions in forum provide evidence of local identities and magistrates, as well as revealing the Pompeians’ rel/ship with Rome.

Question 27

What does the forum look like?

Answer 27

brightly coloured
ppl cover forum walls, esp. basilica, with painted notices in vivid colours and large letter to draw attention.

large rectangular blocks in ground to prevent wheeled traffic.

Question 28

Forum at H?

Answer 28

still buried under town of Resina

Question 29

What were the 2 forums at P?

Answer 29

• triangular forum

- main forum

Question 30

Basilica how many entrances and where did judicial tribunal sit?

Answer 30

5 entrances from the Forum and sat at rear to be separate from commercial dealings

Question 31

What was the large theatre used for?

Answer 31

• performances in open air in daylight
• velarium to shade audiences
• greek and roman plays performed

Question 32

What was the small theatre, odeon, used for?

Answer 32

• mime, music and poetry performed

- permanent wooden roof