Pieces of Pompeii

I was struck with a sense of wonder looking at the details of Pompeii.

 

Doesn't it make you wonder who stood among those columns and carved every curvature in the stone?  Who painted that fresco and laid those bricks? What could each of these objects tell us if they could talk?

Stepping back and looking at everything as a whole is also quite thought provoking. You can almost imagine a city bustling around you with shop keepers, politicians, and poets all moving about their business.

 It probably has something to do with the years I spent in speech, debate, and drama, but the forum/ public square and theater were two of my favorite spots to consider what life would have been like in this ancient city.

And then there were the spots that put the two views together...

Rows and rows of jugs, pots, and other artifacts are a stark contrast to the casts of individuals whose bodies left impressions in the ash.  You realize there were this was a large society and yet, as with most major events, the impact of the eruption truly highly individual.