噴火で埋もれた古代の町－ポンペイとヘルクラネウム Ancient towns buried by a volcanic eruption - Pompei and Herculaneum

ＡＤ７９年、ヴェスヴィオ火山が噴火し、ポンペイ、ヘルクラネウムなど、周辺の古代ローマ帝国の町は火山灰、火砕流に飲みこまれました。１８世紀に発掘が開始され、現代によみがえったこれらの町は、初期ローマ帝国の生活が垣間見える世界でも類を見ない貴重な遺跡です。

When Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, the nearby ancient Roman towns, such as Pompei and Herculaneum were engulfed by volcanic ash and pyroclastic flows. They have been excavated since the 18th century. The remains, which are peerless in the world, give us a glimpse of life in the Early Roman Empire, .

はじめにポンペイを訪れました。ナポリから電車で30分ほど。当時人口約１万人の町を一日がかりで歩き回りました。個人的には、ナポリの考古学博物館で発掘された遺品を見てからポンペイを見るのがおすすめ。博物館には、多くの壁画、床のモザイクのなどが素晴らしい状態で保存されており、とても約2000年前のものとは思えません。余談ですが、エロティックな壁画やオブジェが並ぶ秘密の小陳列室も存在します。ポンペイは当時の豊かな生活を想像しながら回らないと、歩き飽きてしまうくらいの広大な遺跡でした。

First we visited Pompeii, about 30 minutes away from Naples by train. It took us the whole day to walk around the town whose population used to be about 10,000. I would recommend you to go to the National Archeological Museum in Naples before visiting Pompeii. The museum stores many frescoes and mosaics in excellent condition which I could hardly believe were about 2000 years old. Incidentally, there is a secret room in the museum, which has the towns' erotic frescoes and objects. Pompeii's ruins would have been too large for me to walk through without getting bored, if I hadn't seen the museum collection, which kindled my imagination of the sophisticated lifestyle at that time.

翌日、ヘラクラネウムに向かいました。こじんまりして保存状態がよく、壁画、モザイクなどもその場に残っており、古代の洗練された文化をより感じとることができました。ポンペイが商業都市だったのに対して、ヘラクラネウムは裕福なローマ人のホリデーリゾートだったとか。

The following day we went to Herculaneum, which was smaller and better preserved. There were some frescoes and mosaics left on the spot, which gave us a more vivid impression of the ancient civilized culture. It is said that Pompeii was a commercial town while Herculaneum was a holiday resort for rich Romans.

男女別の公共風呂（着替え室付き）や、ワインや食べ物を提供する大理石カウンターがあるパブ、食堂（当時昼食は家ではとらない習慣があった）などがあり、電気がないこと以外現代の村と変わらない感じ。

There were public baths for males and females separately, with a c

hanging room and pubs for serving wine and food with marble counters. There were also some dining places as it was not customary to have lunch at home at that time. The ancient city life looked little different to modern village life without electricity.

後でオプロンティスの遺跡も見に行きましたが、壁も床も見事に装飾されていたであろう建物がある一方、奴隷が住むエリアにつながる白黒しましま模様の使用人用廊下がありました。

Later we also visited Oplontis, a villa near Pompeii. There were buildings with sumptuously decorated walls and floors, while there were areas for slaves where the service corridors were painted with black and white stripes. 

悲劇以外の何物でもない火山の噴火が町の時をとめたおかげで、今2000年前の生活を垣間見ることができる。なんか壮大な体験でした。

The eruption must have been nothing other than a tragedy at that time. Nevertheless, because it stopped time in those towns, we could see their lifestyle 2000 years later. What an exciting experience !