Posted on 04/28/2022 8:05:44 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
In the 19th century, the archaeologists tasked with excavating Pompeii and Herculaneum ran into a problem: Everywhere they turned, they found erotic art, from frescoes of copulating couples to sculptures of nude, well-endowed gods.
At a time when sex was widely considered shameful or even obscene, officials deemed the images too explicit for the general public. Instead of placing the artifacts on view, staff at the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli stashed them in a secret room closed to all but scholars and, according to Atlas Obscura, male visitors willing to bribe their way in. Between 1849 and 2000, the works remained largely hidden from the public...
The show’s marquee attraction is a fresco of the myth of Leda and the swan. Discovered in 2018, the scene depicts the moment when the god Zeus, disguised as a swan, either rapes or seduces Leda, queen of Sparta. Later, legend holds, Leda laid two eggs that hatched into children: Pollux and Helen, whose “face … launched a thousand ships” by sparking the Trojan War.
(Excerpt) Read more at smithsonianmag.com ...
It’s because they didn’t have porn.
Interestingly, STDs weren’t a problem until the late Middle Ages.
“If you had been brought up and lived in Pompeii at the time, you would have understood it in a much deeper way than your ‘new religion’ has taught you to understand it now.”
That’s a leftist, godless philosophy. So you then would think the bloody Aztec culture was a acceptable thing as well?
Who writes and edits this drivel? When was sex considered shameful or obscene? It was all but commanded in the first pages of the Bible.
This is what you meant to say, Ms. Solly:
"At a time when depictions of sexual intercourse were widely considered shameful or obscene..."
Perhaps the most annoying thing about liberals is that they think they invented sex and understand it the best, when in fact they understand it the least.
That was cool.
Yes, and it was centuries before the invention of aspirin, so, imagine their discomfort. :^)
The number of known human remains from the 79 AD eruption rose a bit a few decades ago when the former dockside area of Herculaneum was excavated, revealing dozens of huddled skeletal remains. They'd died from the temp spike or even before, from poisonous gases, then the incoming hot material caused, well, as you said.
Same goes for Neolithic art. So in a sense, it’s always been available. It seems likely that most of the prurient stuff was on perishable materials, such as carved into trees and such.
The Roman Empire lasted 1800 years, ending only 39 years before Columbus set sail. It was a civilization, it wasn't a decaying one.
Spot on -- until the streaming services like Netflix figured out how to make money doing it, most of the internet's traffic volume was off-color stuff.
That must be why he just smote the one city, along with all the 100s of 1000s of volcanoes he smote much of the surface of the Earth, and the ocean floor, over billions of years.
Laz too.
One of the popular things to view at the cities? The remains of the cat houses.
Yup. One puzzler for the cave artists is, what did they use for illumination?
Yup.
LOL.
We have been to both -- 5 hour personal guide tour -- starting with Herculaneum in the morning. They are very different. Herculaneum was mostly destroyed by the lava flows whereas Pompeii was destroyed by ash. In my opinion, Herculaneum is better preserved. Also, Herculaneum was a blue-collar city, whereas Pompeii was considered wealthy with many part-time residents from Roma during the summer months.
After touring both places, you must go to the National Archeological Museum in Napoli, where most of the original frescos and artifacts from Herculaneum and Pompeii are on display.
One difference is, the heat from pyroclastic flows preserved a lot of the wood (in carbonized form) in H, leaving doors that still swing on their hinges, upper storeys of buildings, etc. It’s probably a good thing that Ercolano is atop the ancient site, making it unlikely most of the ruins will ever be exposed to the open air, modern weather, and acid rain.
I will argue that the Christian outlook or at least a biblical outlook has always existed. No question most or many were raised without, say, the Ten Commandments on the wall. But I think we still pretty much knew.
A bit sticky but sums it up:
“ 12 For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law 13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) 16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.” (Romans 2)
I was raised an atheist - admittedly in the US which is generally a Christian culture. I pretty much knew when I did wrong as a kid. Not perfectly. But overall.
I am certain when a slave owner anally raped a servant boy or orgies of some sort were held or murder over an adultery was committed they knew they were doing evil.
I don’t look down on them like we are so great. I just don’t glorify or accept their behavior as somehow ok.
I will argue that the Christian outlook or at least a biblical outlook has always existed.
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Then that POV would be against all historical evidence for the time, the place, and the prevalent cultures.
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