3 Investigating, reconstructing and preserving the past

Past HSC Question 2012

Using Sources A, B and H, and your own knowledge, explain the different ways in which archaeologists have reconstructed the past in the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Source A: (Photograph of) Plaster casts of bodies in the Garden of the Fugitives at Pompeii.

Source B: (Photograph of) Skeletal remains from the seashore at Herculaneum.

Source H: (Photograph of) Virtual reconstruction of a section of the Via dell’Abbondanza.

Past HSC Question 2007

Using Sources 5 and 6 and your own knowledge, assess the different methods used by archaeologists over time to investigate the sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

Source 5: (photograph of) Nineteenth-century excavations at Pompeii

Source 6: (photograph of) 1993 tunnel excavation under Herculaneum

The Vesuvian sites were under Bourbon (name of the royal family which ruled southern Italy and Sicily) control until 1860.

The archaeological work until that time consisted of treasure hunting with poor documentation of the sites uncovered and no attempt to interpret the cities as a whole.

In 1860, the Bourbons were overthrown, Italy was unified, and a new era in the archaeological discovery of Pompeii and Herculaneum began.

For this section, you need to assess the contributions of the three archaeologists who oversaw the excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum: Giuseppe Fiorelli (1860-75); Vittorio Spinazzola (1910-1923); and Amadeo Maiuri (1924-1960).

It [Pompeii] is at once the most studied and the least understood of sites. Universally familiar, its excavation and scholarship prove a nightmare of omissions and disasters. Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum, 1996 p.65

Focus questions:

• Explain the contributions made by Fiorelli, Spinazzola and Maiuri to our understanding of Pompeii and Herculaneum.

• What are some criticisms that can be made of each of them?

Archaeologists

Giuseppe Fiorelli (1860 - 1875)

Unification of Italy brought to an end Bourbon control of the sites. Fiorelli appointed inspector of excavations.

Fiorelli arguably remains the individual who had the greatest impact upon the way in which Pompeii has been both excavated and perceived. (AE Cooley, Pompeii, p96)

• Introduced numbering system. Divided Pompeii into nine regions. Each building could be identified by three numbers: Region / insula / doorway.

• More systematic approach - excavated along line of roads, connecting the excavated sections and then beginning to move east.

• Different methodology - slowly uncovering houses from the top down.

• Plaster casts: he realised that cavities were the remains of decayed organic matter. Used plaster to reveal human figures and other organic objects.

• New system for recording work in progress.

• Focus on overall history rather than individual objects, buildings and artworks.

• Established school of archaeology.

• Opened the site to more visitors.

• Gave the streets of Pompeii their modern names.

Other developments during his time:

• Catalogue of all painted panels (W. Helbig 1868)

• Graffiti and inscriptions recorded as part of Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL) (K. Zangemeister 1871)

• August Mau’s classification of Pompeian painting styles (1882). He believed paintings should be left in situ to maintain their context within the wall’s full artwork.

Fiorelli’s successors

• Michele Ruggiero (1875 - 1893)

• Giulio De Petra (1893 - 1901)

• Ettore Pais (1901 - 1905)

• Antonio Sogliano (1905 - 1910)

Proceeded more slowly than Fiorelli - took more care with preservation and restoration. Focussed on northern parts of the city.

Vittorio Spinazzola (1910 - 1923)

The picture above shows Spinazzola entertaining friends in the triclinium of the House of the Moralist.

Below is a reconstruction of part of the via dell'Abbondanza from Spinazzola's posthumously published book on his work in Pompeii, Pompei alla luce degli scavi nuovi di Via dell'Abbondanza (anni 1910-1923).

• “New Excavations” focussed on Via dell’Abbondanza, linking the Forum with the Amphitheatre. Unearthed numerous shops and workshops and some fine houses.

• Meticulous excavation method.

• Reconstructed facades and windows, balconies and roofs of upper floors.

• Occasionally dug past the façade - e.g., Houses of the Cryptoporticus and Octavius Quartio.

Criticism: had to support facades to prevent their collapse from the weight of earth behind. The unexcavated material behind facades and buildings on the north side of via dell’Abbondanza is now one of the main reasons given for the collapse of buildings including the recent (2010) collapse of the Schola Armaturarum.

The picture above shows Spinazzola entertaining friends in the triclinium of the House of the Moralist.

Below is a reconstruction of part of the via dell'Abbondanza from Spinazzola's posthumously published book on his work in Pompeii, Pompei alla luce degli scavi nuovi di Via dell'Abbondanza (anni 1910-1923).

The Casa del Menandro was excavated between November 1926 and June 1932. The excavation reports of the 1920s and 1930s often recorded the state of the volcanic deposit; whether it had been disturbed or consisted of stratified ash and lapilli; whether finds were related to an upper floor; and at what level above the pavement finds were made. Given that the excavators considered this large and reportedly "noble" house important, they were probably even more careful in excavating and recording here than they were with houses they considered less significant.

Nevertheless, Amedeo Maiuri has published only the finds from this house that he considered spectacular. In addition, the Giornali degli Scavi serve to demonstrate that some objects were inaccurately provenanced in the inventories, and that Maiuri often published these incorrect provenances. They also indicate that many discoveries that were smaller in size, of less artistic merit, or from less interesting rooms were left out of the inventories and therefore by Maiuri. Many of the finds, particularly the skeletons, seem to have been moved to a display area after excavation, adding to the interpretative nature of the published recording. Maiuri also confused some of the room numbering, which sometimes changed as excavation proceeded. This is particularly so for rooms numbered 16 and 21 in the Giornali degli Scavi. Because these room numbers seem to have changed during the excavation, it has been difficult to allocate all finds to specific rooms.

Penelope M. Alison: http://www.stoa.org/projects/ph/house?id=9

Successors of Maiuri:

• Alfonso de Franciscis (1961 – 1977)

• Fausto Zevi (1977 – 1981) All new excavations were suspended. Needed to preserve and document what had already been excavated.

• Giuseppina Cerulli Irelli (1981 – 1984)

• Baldassare Conticello (1984 – 1995)

• Pietro Guzzo (1995 – 2009)

• Mariarosaria Salvatore (Sept. 2009 – April 2010)

• Giuseppe Proietti (interim Superintendent April 2010 – Sept 2010)

• Jeanette Papadopulos (Oct 2010 - Dec 2010)

• Teresa Elena Cinquantaquattro (Dec 2010 - Dec 2013)

• Luigi Malnati (interim Superintendent Dec 2013 – Jan 2014)

• Current superintendent: Massimo Osanna (Jan 2014 - )

2012 Question (above) - notes from the marking centre:

Answers could include:

With reference to Source A:

• Fiorelli’s dramatic plaster cast technique has had a profound impact on our understanding of how people died in Pompeii. The technique has also been used on plant remains and other perishable materials in more recent times.

With reference to Source B:

Discussion surrounding the discovery in the 1980s of the bodies at Herculaneum could include:

• the causes of death

• the anthropological study of the bodies (Sara Bisel)

• research of the skeletons – health, diet, age, gender, disease, occupation, status in society

• issues surrounding the difficulties and accuracy of reconstructing the past.

With reference to Source H:

• Discussion of new technologies, including digital reconstructions of Pompeii and Herculaneum, and developing computer science.

Own knowledge:

Answers could include discussion of:

• various archaeologists or archaeological techniques ranging from: Fiorelli, Spinazzola, Maiuri and Mau to more recent archaeologists such as P Allison, J Mackenzie-Clarke, E Lazer, S Bisel, A Wallace-Hadrill

• projects such as the Philodemus Project, Pompeian Forum Project, The Houses in Pompeii Project.

Areas of discussion could include:

• stratigraphic investigation, scientific developments (DNA, X-ray), analysis and reconstruction of buildings, gardens, flora and fauna, wall paintings, streetscapes

• experimental archaeology – the reproduction of food, glass and textiles.