October 7, 2008
Naples, Italy – POMPEII
I have wanted to visit Pompeii since Grade 11 Ancient History Class when I was 15 years old. It was worth the wait. Totally amazing! I could have spent all day visiting this Roman City, instead I had 2 hours.
There were so many highlights; I saw the Forum, Temple of Apollo, the casts of the victims and so on. In addition to the standard sights and information, our guide taught us about Eros, which is, in essence, Roman dedication to erotic pleasure. The following is a brief summary of what I learnt:
Pompeii was a port town and had many foreign visitors. Brothel’s in an attempt maximize their business and satisfy their foreign clientele would make finding and using their establishment as simple as possible.
A person seeking such pleasure in Pompeii, as in most Roman towns would follow the phallus “arrows” to the local brothel. Another phallus standing erect above the door brothel door informed would be patrons that they have arrived in the right location. The Brothel matron would greet all customers at the door and assist them with their selections.
A “menu” drawn on walls aided the clients in selecting their individual pleasure. Once the customer had selected their style, they proceeded to choose a partner from a line up (both male and female were available), they were then permitted to use one of the brothels many rooms, which was equipped with a stone bed. Archaeologists believe these beds were covered with skins or moss to make them more comfortable.
Customers were charged based the partner and style chosen along with the time spent indulging.
Fascinating really, the naughty side of Roman Empire.
