The vestibulum was the main entrance hall of the Roman domus. Roman houses lay on an axis, so that a visitor was provided with a view through the fauces, atrium, and tablinum to the peristyle. If the master of the house was a banker or merchant, the study often was larger because of the greater need for materials. The triclinium often was similar in size to the master bedroom. The triclinium had three couches surrounding a table. In each of the other bedrooms there was usually just a bed. As the domus developed, the tablinum took on a role similar to that of the study. In the master bedroom was a small wooden bed and couch which usually consisted of some slight padding. Only two objects were present in the atrium of Caecilius in Pompeii: the lararium (a small shrine to the Lares, the household gods) and a small bronze box that stored precious family items. Surrounding the atrium were arranged the master's family’s main rooms: the small cubicula or bedrooms, the tablinum, which served as a living room or study, and the triclinium, or dining-room. To protect the family from intruders the entrance would not face the street, this left more room inside. Thus a wealthy Roman citizen lived in a large house separated into two parts, and linked together through the tablinum or study or by a small passageway. Glass windows were not readily available: glass production was in its infancy. In cities throughout the Roman Empire, wealthy homeowners lived in buildings with few exterior windows. On the outside, and without any internal connection to the atrium, were tabernae (shops facing the street). Leading off the atrium were cubicula (bedrooms), a dining room triclinium where guests could eat dinner whilst reclining on couches, a tablinum (living room or study), and the culina (Roman kitchen). The vestibulum (entrance hall) led into a large central hall: the atrium, which was the focal point of the domus and contained a statue of or an altar to the household gods. The domus included multiple rooms, indoor courtyards, gardens and beautifully painted walls that were elaborately laid out. Interior Ī late 19th-century artist's reimagining of an atrium in a Pompeian domus As Rome became more and more prosperous from trade and conquest, the homes of the wealthy increased in both size and luxury, emulating both the Etruscan atrium house and Hellenistic peristyle house. This could have been the beginnings of the atrium, which was common in later homes. The huts were probably made of mud and wood with thatched roofs and a centre opening for the hearth's smoke to escape. It is believed that the Temple of Vesta was, in form, copied from these early dwellings because the worship of Vesta began in individual homes. They were small familiar huts constructed on the axial plan of a central hall with an open skylight. The homes of the early Etruscans (predecessors of the Romans) were simple, even for the wealthy or ruling classes. These multi-level apartment blocks were built as high and tightly together as possible and held far less status and convenience than the private homes of the prosperous. Many poor and lower-middle-class Romans lived in crowded, dirty and mostly rundown rental apartments, known as insulae. The elite classes of Roman society constructed their residences with elaborate marble decorations, inlaid marble paneling, door jambs and columns as well as expensive paintings and frescoes. Many chose to live primarily, or even exclusively, in their villas these homes were generally much grander in scale and on larger acres of land due to more space outside the walled and fortified city. Along with a domus in the city, many of the richest families of ancient Rome also owned a separate country house known as a villa. The word dom in modern Slavic languages means "home" and is a cognate of the Latin word, going back to Proto-Indo-European. The modern English word domestic comes from Latin domesticus, which is derived from the word domus. It was found in almost all the major cities throughout the Roman territories. In Ancient Rome, the domus (plural domūs, genitive domūs or domī) was the type of town house occupied by the upper classes and some wealthy freedmen during the Republican and Imperial eras. Patrician, senatorial class, equestrian class, plebeian, freedmen In the older parts of the city the rich could not build out, so they built up. A Roman domus was limited in size because of the confines of the city walls.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |