A recent find that brought ancient Pompeii to life

Mount Vesuvius obliterated the city of ancient Pompeii in 79 AD, yet life in the great archaeological site 14 miles Southeast of Naples still amazes us. It may sound like an oxymoron, but even though the Roman colony dedicated to the goddess Venus was destroyed in a fiery cataclysm, it remains a living gift that keeps on giving.

Discoveries of emotional impact are still being found at Pompeii. They offer unparalleled insight into details of the residents’ public and private lives.

Recently, a large four-wheeled ceremonial chariot was unearthed at a large villa, a “Domus” situated in Civita Giuliana just outside the walls of the famous site. The latest excavations began after “tombaroli”, or looters, dug tunnels that reached the depth of five metres in search of antiquities they could sell illegally.

When we picture ancient Romans moving from place to place, we imagine them riding in a horse-drawn chariot, the most common form of transportation. They were known to be extremely mobile people.

“In the past, we have uncovered many vehicles, but nothing like this. The Civita Giuliana chariot is unique,” notes Massimo Osanna, the outgoing director of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii. He refers to it as a “pilentum”, what ancient sources describe as a ceremonial chariot, a vehicle used only by the Roman elite and solely for ceremonial events.

The polychrome carriage (0.90 x 1.40 m) emerged almost intact in its astounding elegance and complexity. “The extraordinary find provides that extra element of knowledge about the history of the Civita Giuliana house,” he says. The chariot was found inside a bi-level porch opening onto the outside courtyard not far from the stable. There, in 2018, archaeologists had unearthed petrified remains of three horses: one lying down on its right side, one on its left, and a third that was saddled and harnessed, presumably ready to go at a moment’s notice when Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2000 years ago.

But was the owner of the villa a high-ranking military officer? Last November, in the same house, archaeologists found the bodies of what are thought to be a wealthy man and his slave. They were fleeing the catastrophe as well.

And about the chariot, again: is it richly embellished?

It has lively decorations on both sides with sheets of bronze and red wooden panels. At the back, there are various stories engraved onto bronze and tin medallions depicting erotic scenes of a man and a woman making love. This constitutes the leitmotif of the relief decorations.

Ancient Roman poets Virgil and Claudian described a “pilentum” as a splendid four-wheeled carriage furnished with soft cushions that meant to convey the bride. And it was almost exclusively reserved for upper-class weddings.

“It was also used for carrying the bride to her new household,” says Osanna. Any “pilentum”, in fact, could be painted in blue or red, as in the case of the Pompeian discovery.

Sometimes, it could be used by Roman matrons during sacred processions or even by priestesses.

Eric Poehler, a Pompeii scholar from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, says he was “astounded”. “Many of the vehicles I’d written about before are your standard station wagon for taking the kids to soccer. This is a Lamborghini. This is an outright fancy, fancy car.”