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Daily
Life in Ancient Rome:
Our interests in
the daily life of ancient Romans lie in the daily activities
of individuals of all classes of society, from bakers to Caesars.
One of the best sources of information about daily life in ancient
Rome comes as a result of a natural disaster! In 79 A.D., the
cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were destroyed by the eruption
of Mt. Vesuvius. The cities were buried without warning, then
lay untouched and preserved until their discovery in the 18th
century and excavation beginning in the 19th century.
Archaeologists at
Pompeii have uncovered shops for serving food (called tabernae),
bakery ovens, and mills for grinding flour. Several types of
theaters and bath houses have been found. Most Romans didn't
have private baths. They went to a public bath house, which
was a place to get clean, as well as a place to meet friends
and excercise. Women and men went to separate baths or used
the same facility during different hours of the day.
Most Romans lived
in small apartments - two or three rooms in a tall building
with shops on the ground level - known as insulae. These
quarters were crowded, and often a fire hazard. Wealthy Romans
lived in private houses. The front door often opened into a
large hall, called an atrium, which had an opening in
the ceiling to let in light and a pool in the floor to catch
rainwater. Various rooms opened off the atrium, for example
storerooms, bedrooms, or a library. There was also plenty of
space for entertaining guests and an open courtyard with a garden
at the back of the house. Brightly painted walls and mosaic
floors decorated these homes, which were lit by oil lamps made
of clay, bronze, or glass. Olive oil was poured into the the
lamp, and a cloth wick was placed inside and lit.
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