VIII.7.20 Pompeii. Teatro Grande, ingresso. Passaggio graffito.

Large Theatre, entrance. Graffito passage. Also see VIII.7.21 for other photos.

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This entrance also provided access to the two rear entrances to the Little Theatre or Odeon.

For more details of the Large Theatre:

See Mau, A., 1907, translated by Kelsey F. W. Pompeii: Its Life and Art. New York: Macmillan, pp. 141-152.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. May 2005. Entrance to Large Theatre.

The passage also has the rear entrances to the Little Theatre or Odeon.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii, 1968. Looking west to Theatre exterior wall on Via Stabiana, on south side of entrance doorway. Photo by Stanley A. Jashemski.

Source: The Wilhelmina and Stanley A. Jashemski archive in the University of Maryland Library, Special Collections (See collection page) and made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial License v.4. See Licence and use details.

J68f1171

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2015. Looking west along entrance passage or passage with graffiti.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Entrance passage or Graffito passage.

Passage looking west towards large theatre, Little Theatre or Odeon to left of image.

Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Gell, this passage was known as “the great passage” –

“This passage is full of inscriptions, scratched with nails and knives by people waiting for admittance.

Amongst them is an

These were, of course, not always regulated by the strictest rules of propriety.

They are very faint, and every day become less visible.

See Gell, W. and Gandy, J., 1852. Pompeiana: Third Edition. London: Bohn. (p.183)

This passage is often called the "Graffito Passage" because of many graffiti found on the walls.

Fiorelli quoted 3 of the most complete as being the following -

the first was written in one single line on the south side of the corridor in the theatre complex:

    Methe Cominiaes(!) atellana amat Chrestum corde [si]t utreisque Venus Pompeiana propitia et sem[per] concordes veivant    [CIL IV 2457]

    Varone translates this as “Methe of Atella, slave of Cominia, loves Chrestus. May Venus of Pompeii smile favourably on their hearts and let them always live in harmony”.

See Varone, A., 2002. Erotica Pompeiana: Love Inscriptions on the Walls of Pompeii, Rome: L’Erma di Bretschneider. p.164.

the second was

    A(nte) d(iem) VI Novembres praebuit Surus Petilius ornamenta / M(arco) [Faust]o Siloni honoris causa Suri liberti     [CIL IV 2455]

the third which he says in 1875 “was recently taken to Naples Museum” was

    A(nte) d(iem) XI K(alendas) Decembr(es) a(ssibus) XV

    Epap(h)ra Acutus Auctus

    ad locum duxserunt(!)

    mulierem Tychen pretium

    in singulos a(ssibus) V f(uit?)

    M(arco) Messalla L(ucio) Lentulo co(n)s(ulibus)     [CIL IV 2450]

See Pappalardo, U., 2001. La Descrizione di Pompei per Giuseppe Fiorelli (1875). Napoli: Massa Editore. p.133 [354]

Varone translated an inscription on the north wall of the corridor as:

    I’m hurrying to you! Hello, my Sava. Try and love me.

    Propero vale mea sava / fac me ames    [CIL IV 2414]

See Varone, A., 2002. Erotica Pompeiana: Love Inscriptions on the Walls of Pompeii, Rome: L’Erma di Bretschneider. p. 40.

There were many more inscriptions, in all summed up by one quoted by Fiorelli:

    AD MIROR PARIIIS

    RVi NA

    TII NON CIICIDISII

    Admiror paries / te non cecedis(s)e / ruina    [CIL IV 2461]

See Pappalardo, U., 2001. La Descrizione di Pompei per Giuseppe Fiorelli (1875). Napoli: Massa Editore. p.134 [356].

Jacobelli translated this as,

    “It is a wonder O wall that you haven’t collapsed under the weight of such nonsense”.

See Jacobelli, L., 2003. Gladiators at Pompeii. Rome: L’Erma di Bretschneider.  p. 41.

Similar inscriptions were also found on two other walls, CIL IV 2487 from the amphitheatre, and CIL IV 1904 from the Basilica.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. Graffiti seen in the passage of the Theatre, and also scratched into the Theatre walls.

Lower right, wordings from the tomb of Calventio Quieto, and not the Theatre.

See Gell, W. Pompeii unpublished [Dessins de l'édition de 1832 donnant le résultat des fouilles post 1819 (?)] vol II, pl. 94 verso.

Bibliothèque de l'Institut National d'Histoire de l'Art, collections Jacques Doucet, Identifiant numérique Num MS180 (2).

See book in INHA Use Etalab Licence Ouverte

The Epigraphic Database Roma records these inscriptions as being from VIII.7.20 -

Ἀλέ̣ξανδRος      [CIL IV 2432]

See W. Gell, Pompeiana: the topography, edifices and ornaments of Pompeii, the result of excavations since 1819, London 1832, vol. I, p. 30 (2)

and

Faustus      [CIL IV 2442]

M(arcus) Aquis Faustus   [CIL IV 2419]

C(aius) Alleius Astraga[l]us / curator / fuit IV Non(as) Dec(embres) us<q=C>(u)e ad / VI Eid(us) Dec(embres) M(arco) Agrip(pa) T(ito) Stat(ilio) co(n)s(ulibus) / Ce[3]ria C(ai) Iuli Heleni turma / C(ai) Iuli Hilari     [CIL IV 2437]

Dasius      [CIL IV 2439]

[---?] A̲urelius   [CIL IV 2423]

C(aius) Ovi̲us   [CIL IV 2428]

Faustus FO+[+5?+]A̲N̲ṆVṢ    [CIL IV 2429]

O(---?) Mucius   [CIL IV 2431]

C(aius) Ovius   [CIL IV 2434]

------
C̣ẹac̣l̲i̲ 〈:vacat〉 C
Sex 〈:vacat〉 C XXV C
V̲̂a̲l̲e̲r̲ 〈:vacat〉 XXV XXV
S̲e̲c̲[u̲]n̲ 〈:vacat〉 LXXV LXXV
A̲m̲o̲n̲ 〈:vacat〉 L 〈:vacat〉 XXV
S̲i̲t̲i̲o̲ 〈:vacat〉 [- - -]
Scava 〈:vacat〉 L̲X̲ [- - -]
Sedlatus 〈:vacat〉 [- - -]
Ispanus 〈:vacat〉 [- - -]
Iut̲to 〈:vacat〉 L̲ [- - -] L̲ [- - -]      [CIL IV 2426]

a(nte) d(iem) XI K(alendas) Dec(embres) Geryones
trimembres aerus senos
comperendinaruntv       [CIL IV 2440]

Faụṣtus TR      [CIL IV 2444]

And on a Great Tomb –

Calventio quieto….. (see Tomb at HGW20)

See also - Epigraphik-Datenbank Clauss/Slaby (See www.manfredclauss.de)

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall at east, Via Stabiana end of passage.

Start of sequence of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

VIII.7.20 Pompeii. September 2010. Graffito passage. South wall.

Sequence moving east - west of remaining fresco work. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

Part 2      Part 3      Part 4      Part 5      Part 6      Plan