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Why Was Erotic Art So Popular in Ancient Pompeii?
Smithsonian ^
| April 28, 2022
| Meilan Solly
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 ...
TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: fauxiantroll; fauxiantrolls; godsgravesglyphs; ledaandtheswan; meilansolly; pompeii; romanempire; smithsonian; vesuvius
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To: unlearner
https://int.icej.org/news/headlines/jews-saw-pompeii-retribution-destruction-temple
[snip] Jews saw Pompeii as retribution for destruction of the Temple
Hershel Shanks, the editor of the Biblical Archaeology Review, has recently published findings indicating that Jews living in the Roman Empire in 79 AD when the southwestern Italian city of Pompeii was destroyed by a massive eruption of the Mount Vesuvius volcano, believed that it was Divine retribution for the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Roman general Titus nine years earlier. Citing archeological evidence in a paper entitled “The Destruction of Pompeii – God’s revenge?” in the July/August edition of the magazine, Shanks told the Jerusalem Post that Book 4 of the Sibylline Oracles, an ancient mystical text, includes a passage which says in part; “When a firebrand, turned away from a cleft in the earth [Vesuvius] In the land of Italy, reaches to broad heaven It will burn many cities and destroy men. Much smoking ashes will fill the great sky And showers will fall from heaven like red earth. Know then the wrath of the heavenly God.” He also points to ancient graffiti scrawled on the walls near Pompeii which includes references to “Sodom and Gomorra.” The eruption of Vesuvius “attacked the core of Roman society,” Shanks concluded. “There’s very good reason to conclude there was a perceived connection and in the eyes of some, God was clearly at work.” [/snip]
dead link, so try this search:
cache:https://int.icej.org/news/headlines/jews-saw-pompeii-retribution-destruction-temple
81
posted on
04/29/2022 8:44:16 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: SunkenCiv
If I ever get there, I’d like to start the day in Herculaneum, and then, if there’s time, see part of Pompeii.Good plan; two days to see it all. I've been to both. If you go off season, you would be more squeezed for time in fewer hours of daylight. If you go in summer, you could see more; but it would be a long day in the heat, so take water. Also, there are lots of videos on YouTube and elsewhere to pre-view the sites, so your tour would be more comprehensible once you get there.
I went more or less blindly the first time, but it was a long time ago before a lot of the excavations and restorations were done. The second time 15 years later revealed a lot more; and that, too, was many years ago, so by now there's really a lot to see.
Also, the Archaeological Museum of Napoli is outstanding!
82
posted on
04/29/2022 8:46:10 AM PDT
by
Albion Wilde
(If science can’t be questioned, it’s not science anymore, it’s propaganda. --Aaron Rodgers)
To: Jamestown1630
83
posted on
04/29/2022 8:46:30 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: carcraft; Persevero
Unwanted kids weren’t a problem, they were placed near woods. If a passerby chose to take the child fine, if not animals ate the child.Or on the church steps. That's where the Italian surname "Esposito" came from—it means "exposed", as in "to the elements" or "to fate."
84
posted on
04/29/2022 8:48:07 AM PDT
by
Albion Wilde
(If science can’t be questioned, it’s not science anymore, it’s propaganda. --Aaron Rodgers)
To: SunkenCiv
If I ever get there, I’d like to start the day in Herculaneum, and then, if there’s time, see part of Pompeii. I was able to visit Herculaneum a few years ago. It was indeed impressive. It's amazing to see life as it was about two thousand years ago.
To: SunkenCiv
“Well, they were masters of their domain.”
Until suddenly and without warning they weren’t.
Kinda like in Noah’s day, except they had lots of warning, and chose to ignore until they couldn’t.
86
posted on
04/29/2022 9:01:44 AM PDT
by
wita
(Always and forever, under oath in defense of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.)
To: SunkenCiv
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. An Italian archaeologist friend of mine sent me and my travel companions (three young women) into the Museo Archeologico on my first trip to Naples, and the museum tour guard was having an admittedly mild crisis of conscience about how much to show us, since American women can make a scene. Up on a high pedestal in the center of one of the more public rooms, there was a large nude male sculpture, which had a small hole in the fig leaf area. The guard took a happy-to-see-us sculpted phallus out of a drawer and inserted it for our viewing pleasure—LOL! We were rather naïve, middle-class gals and he got a kick out of embarrassing us! A memorable tour.
87
posted on
04/29/2022 9:01:45 AM PDT
by
Albion Wilde
(If science can’t be questioned, it’s not science anymore, it’s propaganda. --Aaron Rodgers)
To: HereInTheHeartland
Good grief. I’m saying that you have to try and understand ancient cultures in context, to understand them at all.
There are things in the Old Testament and even the New that we find strange and even barbaric today; and yet we think those cultures produced very advanced philosophies. We appreciate them while at the same time we recognize certain things within the context of their times.
You’re verging on the same prejudice that the ‘wokeists’ display when they tear down statues of slaveholders, Confederate leaders, etc.
88
posted on
04/29/2022 9:06:12 AM PDT
by
Jamestown1630
("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
89
posted on
04/29/2022 9:07:14 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
The rest of the Pompeii keyword, sorted:
- Archaeologists Created a VR Rendering of an Ancient Pompeian Home That You Can Walk Through [03/25/2022]
- The mystery of the Elder Pliny's skull [12/05/2021]
- Archaeologists find victim of Vesuvius eruption on Herculaneum beach [12/05/2021]
- Roman Priest's Exceptionally Well-Preserved Remains Found in Pompeii [11/14/2021]
- Slave room discovered at Pompeii in 'rare' find [11/07/2021]
- Pompeii: ancient remains are helping scientists learn what happens to a body caught in a volcanic eruption [03/30/2021]
- Ancient ceremonial chariot unearthed in Pompeii [02/27/2021]
- Pompeii's most amazing fresco returns to its former glory! Scientists use lasers to remove stains on stunning 2,000-year-old painting of a hunting scene in the garden of the House of the Ceii [02/25/2
- What's On The Menu In Ancient Pompeii? Duck, Goat, Snail, Researchers Say [12/29/2020]
- Ancient snack stall uncovered in Pompeii, revealing bright frescoes and traces of 2,000-year-old street food [12/26/2020]
- Pompeii excavation unearths well-preserved bodies of wealthy man and slave [11/21/2020]
- Mystery surrounds 'little Mummy' in Pompeii [06/06/2020]
- The Art of Pompeii to the music of Neruda and Haydn [05/08/2020]
- The Art of Pompeii's Temple of Isis [05/06/2020]
- The mosaics and sculptures from the House of the Faun in Pompeii to the music of Michael Levy [05/02/2020]
- The Watercolors of Pompeii by Luigi Bazzani (1836-1927), to the music of Vaughan Williams [05/01/2020]
- The House of the Vettii in Pompeii, to Michael Levy's "Temple of Venus" composition for lyre [04/28/2020]
- Art from the House of Mysteries in Pompeii [04/25/2020]
- Take a Virtual Tour of Two Recently Excavated Homes in Pompeii [04/14/2020]
- Mount Vesuvius eruption melted victim's brain to glass [01/23/2020]
- Mysterious scrolls linked to Julius Caesar could be read for first time ever [10/04/2019]
- Pompeii archaeologists uncover 'sorcerer's treasure trove' [08/12/2019]
- Pompeii 'fast food' bar unearthed in ancient city after 2,000 years [04/01/2019]
- Mount Vesuvius Didn't Kill Everyone in Pompeii. Where Did the Survivors Go? [03/01/2019]
- Stunningly preserved fresco of Narcissus discovered in Pompeii [02/15/2019]
- 'Erotic' fresco of Leda and the Swan unearthed at Pompeii [11/27/2018]
- Mary Beard: It doesn't really matter if tourists damage Pompeii [10/27/2018]
- 5 skeletons found at Pompeii [too late to dial IX-I-I] [10/27/2018]
- Pompeii: Vesuvius eruption may have been later than thought [10/17/2018]
- A tour of parts of the ancient Roman City of Herculaneum [07/30/2018]
- Dramatic volcano death: Huge flying stone crushed man in Pompeii, archaeologists discover [06/01/2018]
- 'Alley of balconies' uncovered at Pompeii in rare find [05/29/2018]
- Pompeii: New find shows man crushed trying to flee eruption [05/29/2018]
- Ancient Remains of Horse Discovered at Pompeii [05/15/2018]
- Extraordinary Pompeii discovery: Racehorse remains found among ancient city's ruins [05/14/2018]
- Coins from destruction of Second Temple found in time for Passover [04/03/2018]
- New Pompeii excavations a revelation 270 years after discovery of first ruins [03/26/2018]
- Archaeologists Virtually Recreate House of Caecilius Iucundus in Pompeii [10/09/2017]
- Today is the anniversary of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and destruction of Pompeii in A.D. 79. [08/24/2017]
- X-Ray Reveals Ancient Roman Portrait Covered in Mt. Vesuvius Ash [08/22/2017]
- Old Photos: American Soldiers Observing Eruption of Mount Vesuvius 1944 [04/14/2017]
- Three D animated reconstruction of Pompei [10/11/2016]
- Virginia man hospitalized day after Trump Tower escapade [08/11/2016]
- Skeletons and Gold Coins Found in Pompeii Shop [06/24/2016]
- Huge Roman Villa Found Under Amalfi Church Set To Open [05/21/2016]
- How Ancient Rome's 1% Hijacked the Beach [04/08/2016]
- Excavations at Idalion, Cyprus: Crossing Cultures in the Eastern Mediterranean [April 6, 2016] [04/01/2016]
- How Pompeii brought ancient Roman wine back to life [02/27/2016]
- Watch the Destruction of Pompeii by Mount Vesuvius, Re-Created with Computer Animation (79 AD) [02/03/2016]
- 'A bronze age Pompeii': archaeologists hail discovery of Peterborough site [01/13/2016]
- A 2,000-year-old ancient Roman laundromat open to public for first time [01/05/2016]
- Scans show Pompeii victims 'in good health' [other than being dead] [09/30/2015]
- Archaeologists discover a Pre-Roman era tomb in perfect condition at Pompeii [09/22/2015]
- [from January 3, 2014] Giraffe Was on Menu in Pompeii Restaurants [07/02/2015]
- The Fall and Rise and Fall of Pompeii [07/01/2015]
- ...Bizarre new pyramid ... opens in Pompeii to house volcano exhibition [05/26/2015]
- Pictured: The 2,000-year-old gladiator's helmet discovered in Pompeii's ruins [03/15/2015]
- X-ray technique 'reads' burnt Vesuvius scroll [01/20/2015]
- Mould for minting Roman coins found in Talkad [India] [05/30/2014]
- Buried city of Pompeii unveils three new houses [well, not new...] [04/20/2014]
- Thieves pry off ancient fresco from Pompeii walls [03/19/2014]
- Pompeii-like volcanic ash kept dinosaur remains fresh [02/04/2014]
- Diets of the middle and lower class in Pompeii revealed [01/05/2014]
- Italian mafia boss 'fed alive to pigs'--- Police believe Francesco Raccosta was kidnapped...... [12/29/2013]
- Unlocking the scrolls of Herculaneum [12/21/2013]
- Unlocking the scrolls of Herculaneum [12/20/2013]
- Getty Villa Examines Life and Legacy of Roman Emperor Tiberius [10/19/2013]
- Construction Magnate Donates Millions To Restore Pompeii As UNESCO Criticises Italian Government [07/12/2013]
- Herculaneum Panoramas [05/10/2013]
- The Unsolved Mystery of the Tunnels at Baiae [10/04/2012]
- Italian 'Super Volcano' May Threaten Millions: Scientists plan to drill deep below Romans'... [08/06/2012]
- "Come Back To Sorrento" [06/12/2012]
- Pillar at Pompei villa collapses [12/24/2011]
- Mount Vesuvius [ erupted and buried Pompeii et al, August 24-25, A.D. 79 ] [08/27/2011]
- Pompeii ruin collapses amid claims site mismanaged (House of the Gladiators) [11/11/2010]
- Pompeii's House of Gladiators collapses [11/07/2010]
- Pompeii's Mystery Horse Is a Donkey [11/03/2010]
- Archaeologists find 'mini-Pompeii' [ Norway, 3500 BC ] [10/04/2010]
- Walk the Streets of Roman Pompeii On Google Maps/Earth [08/25/2010]
- Reading the Writing on Pompeii's Walls [08/01/2010]
- The Destruction of Pompeii—God's Revenge? [06/24/2010]
- Lethal Thermal Impact at Periphery of Pyroclastic Surges: Evidences at Pompeii [06/18/2010]
- South Indians in Roman Egypt? [04/07/2010]
- Pompeii snack bar re-opens...nearly 2000 years after it was destroyed by eruption of Mt Vesuvius [03/20/2010]
- More evidence unearthed at ancient port of Muziris [03/19/2010]
- Ancient city of Pompeii added to Google Street View [12/04/2009]
- UQ archaeology digs into the life behind Pompeii [latrines] [11/25/2009]
- Roman Statues Found in Blue Grotto Cave [09/28/2009]
- Digging deeper: Archaeologists race to show Pompeii daily life [07/16/2009]
- UK to 'unroll' papyrus scrolls buried by Vesuvius [Kentucky prof has non-invasive scanning technique [05/24/2009]
- Digital images reveal the secrets of Roman painting [04/10/2009]
- ISIS Examines Origins Of Pompeii-Style Artifacts [02/25/2009]
- Pompeii Family's Final Hours Reconstructed [12/15/2008]
- Pontiff Puts World in Mary's Hands [Catholic Caucus] [10/20/2008]
- Pope: in Pompeii to entrust the synod and missionaries to the Virgin Mary [Catholic] [10/19/2008]
- Prehistoric Disaster: An Alpine Pompeii from the Stone Age [10/11/2008]
- Fish Sauce Used to Date Pompeii Eruption [ garum / liquamen] [09/30/2008]
- In search of Western civilisation's lost classics (Herculaneum) [08/19/2008]
- In search of Western civilisation's lost classics [08/11/2008]
- Ancient tannery in Pompeii to undergo restoration this year [01/22/2008]
- In pictures: Ancient Roman paintings [12/21/2007]
- Ancient Romans Preferred Fast Food [06/19/2007]
- Archaeologists Unearth Roman Era Artefacts In Kerala (India) [03/25/2007]
- Ground Rises Near Ancient Italian Volcano [02/25/2007]
- "Korean Pompeii" Discovered on Jeju Island [02/04/2007]
- 'India's Pompeii' uncovered [12/11/2006]
- Ancient Indian port linked to Roman Empire faces extinction(India) [08/22/2006]
- Search For India's Ancient City (Muziris - Roman) [06/11/2006]
- Fossil "Pompeii" of Prehistoric Animals Named U.S. Landmark [05/16/2006]
- Brooklyn College Anthropologist Identifies New Prehistoric Monkey [03/30/2006]
- Think Pompeii Got Hit Hard? Worse Eruptions Lurk [03/07/2006]
- Villa Buried By Pompeii Eruption Is Unearthed [11/21/2005]
- Oldest noodles unearthed in China [10/12/2005]
- Archaeologists Unveil Pompeii Treasure [07/18/2005]
- Archaeologists offer tastes of Pompeii [05/26/2005]
- Pompei Discovery For Swedish Archaeologists [04/17/2005]
- The Pacific's Pompeii [09/11/2004]
- Early volcano victims discovered [09/03/2004]
- Etruscan Engineering and Agricultural Achievements: The Ancient City of Spina [08/17/2004]
- Alaska Volcano West of Anchorage Stirs After 12-Year Slumber [07/28/2004]
- Latin Course Stage 6 (Pompeii Slave Girl) [07/18/2004]
- Pompeii Find Shows Secrets Of The Samnites [07/04/2004]
- Viking 'Town' Is Ireland's Equivalent Of Pompeii [06/13/2004]
- Archaeoligists: Iraqi Dam Threatens City [02/05/2003]
- Clues to Roman Illnesses in 2,000-Year-Old Cheese [10/10/2002]
- Herculean task for modern scholars - More on the Discovered Roman Literature being unearthed. [04/05/2002]
- [Note: This thread is from November 14, 2001] Ancient unisex bathhouse dressing room, decorated with [11/16/2001]
90
posted on
04/29/2022 9:07:48 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: Jamestown1630
More like pagan cultures are often pornographic. Our own culture is growing more pornographic and pagan by the day, but it is nothing procreative either with birthdates dropping as fast as Christian moral structures. Remember pagan Roman society was also one that would put infants out to die of exposure if they weren’t deemed worthy.
To: Apple Pan Dowdy
92
posted on
04/29/2022 9:09:48 AM PDT
by
Jamestown1630
("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
To: ifinnegan
93
posted on
04/29/2022 9:10:39 AM PDT
by
Jamestown1630
("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
To: Albion Wilde
Hey, if you had been Europeans, he’d have used his own, instead of the sculpted one. ;^)
94
posted on
04/29/2022 9:12:29 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: wita
Except that in Noah's day, there must have been plenty of warning, since building the Ark as described would require 3000 man-years of labor.
95
posted on
04/29/2022 9:13:59 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: Apple Pan Dowdy; Jamestown1630; Red6
96
posted on
04/29/2022 9:17:55 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: Claud
> When was sex considered shameful or obscene?
When the artifacts were found, obviously. That’s why they were kept out of public display in the museum. Helps to read.
97
posted on
04/29/2022 9:20:19 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: PIF
Well, your point of view would be against scripture.
As I was pointing out, the Bible says we actually do know better. Not to all particulars. But we know what sin is.
98
posted on
04/29/2022 9:23:01 AM PDT
by
Persevero
(You cannot comply your way out of tyranny. )
To: Repealthe17thAmendment
It's interesting how the ordinary aspects of life at that time have remained common.
99
posted on
04/29/2022 9:23:02 AM PDT
by
SunkenCiv
(Imagine an imaginary menagerie manager imagining managing an imaginary menagerie.)
To: SunkenCiv
Maybe the Baghdad Battery was older than we think :-)
100
posted on
04/29/2022 9:24:38 AM PDT
by
Jamestown1630
("A Republic, if you can keep it.")
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