ns. He directed the firstuncovering of the whole city block by block. The Italian government has provided fundingmoney for this project. After many years of work, we can now walk in Pompeii asPompeians did.After standing in line for quite a while and paying for a ticket, the touristexperiences what are about to live are quite unique. When walking in Pompeii, you canclose your eyes and feel the magic of the city, because it seems like the time has not goneby. Visitors can see the buildings as they stood 2,000 years ago. They can walk in and outof houses and up and down narrow streets, see the Temple of Jupiter, which was anancient ruin at the time of the eruption, or sit in a tepidarium (part of a Roman publicbath). Tourists can also visit the Antiquarium and see the casts of some of the bodies,houseware, the remains of food such as carbonized loaves of bread, eggs and other thingsthat also date back to ancient Rome.The center of public life is called the Forum, and it played a fundamental role in thepolitical, religious and economic life of the city. It had the Temple of Apollo, the Templeof Vespasian, the Sanctuary of the Lares Publici, Macellum, a Basilica, public buildings,etc. In Pompeii, there are two theaters, gladiators barracks, an amphitheater, private andpublic baths, temples, gates, houses and villas, and even a bakery.Pompeii attracted many wealthy Romans. They built great villas near theMediterranean shore, where they could enjoy the mild, sunny climate. It is in the houseswhere wall paintings are founded, and, believe it or, not Pompeii owes its fame to themural art preserved because they were hermetically sealed by hardened lava and slimefrom all destructive atmospheric influences(Kraus 156). Because of that, the houses ofPompeii have given us a treasure of mural paintings, the most complete record of thechanging fashions in interior decoration in the entire ancient world. The quantity of thepaintings, tells us about...
