Tuesday, August 26, 2014

Tuesday, August 26, 2014 -- Mattie died 259 weeks ago today.

Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2007. While out in Los Angeles, between sight visits and running around, there were always fun projects for Mattie to do in between. Mattie loved digging through clay and sand. In this particular case Mattie unearthed a green dinosaur buried in sand! He loved projects like these and whatever toy he found he would always play with and typically carry it around with him from place to place as if it needed to experience his journeys alongside him. 


Quote of the day:  I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. ~ Maya Angelou

This is a photo of Mt. Vesuvius in the Gulf of Naples, Italy. It is volcano which is best known for burying the ancient city of Pompeii in 79AD. When I was a little girl, I traveled with my parents and grandmother to Italy often. On many occasions I saw Mt. Vesuvius and during one of our trips we even walked inside the crater. Of course as a child I had NO IDEA the dangers of a volcano nor understood the devastation such a natural structure could evoke on an entire community. Now as an adult and walking through today's exhibit at the California ScienCenter, I had a completely different appreciation for Vesuvius. 

I would have to say that "Pompeii The Exhibition" at the California ScienCenter is a VERY unique show. In many ways, walking into the exhibit is a bit like walking into the ruins itself. Well NOT quite, but they are definitely trying to transport you to Italy. The space is intimate, not cavernous! The lights are dim and it is not just a visual experience! It is sensory in every sense of the word! As an attendee, we had the opportunity to have video simulations of roman life within each room, so we could see what a roman forum was like, or what a roman home or bath was like and so forth! They really helped bring Pompeii alive for us. So not only did we see the artifacts that were unearthed in Pompeii, uncovered from 14 feet of volcanic ash, but we got to see simulations of how such items may of been used in roman times. The whole recreation in each room was fascinating! If that did not get you, then I have no doubt that the introduction to the exhibit itself or the exit from the exhibit most definitely will remain with museum goers for quite some time. The introduction basically started by putting visitors in a small room with a video (we did not sit, we had to remain standing). It oriented us to the time period and walked us back to 79AD and what life was like in Pompeii right before the eruption. After the video was over, another door opened up and we got to walk into what looked like Pompeii. It was a surreal experience! Very clever, very Hollywood in a way. The exit was just as thrilling, if not more SO! Upon existing, we were bought to another room and enclosed into another standing video which walked us through the 24 hours of the eruption of Vesuvius. As if we were in 79AD! It was terrifying with dry ice being piped in to represent the smoke of the ash! Once the video was over another door opened up and we saw the body casts of the victims left behind from the volcano. I have to tell you this was not only an informative exhibit but it was an emotional roller coaster ride as well because it is hard not to walk through these rooms and not imagine the devastation caused from the deaths of innocent people whose lives were swept away!

I am going to give you some facts about Pompeii below that I hope you will find interesting and then include some photos from my trip to the museum!

HISTORY

Pompeii was a cultured and vibrant city rich in architecture, complex infrastructures, and exquisite works of art, and was home to 25,000 inhabitants. Its location also allowed for it to become a rich agricultural center, a vital seaport, and a booming commercial hub. The city hosted theatrical and sporting events and built luxurious public baths. Wealthy Roman visitors came to enjoy the lavish Mediterranean lifestyle that Pompeii offered.

GEOGRAPHY

The ancient city of Pompeii was situated in southern Italy’s west coast region of Campania, near the bay of Naples. Today, the ruins of Pompeii are located inland near the modern suburban town of Pompei (now written with one 'i').

KEY DATES
62 A.D. – An earthquake rattled Pompeii but citizens rebuilt the city not suspecting the looming disaster. They were largely unaware of the mighty power of Mount Vesuvius.

August 24, 79 A.D. – Mount Vesuvius erupted in the morning and the surrounding landscape had been changed forever. Within a span of 24 hours, Pompeii was completely buried under 12 feet of ash and stone, the river and port were gone, and Vesuvius was a crater.

1709-1711 – A farmer, sinking a well, struck Herculaneum’s ancient theater, in which he found ancient marble sculptures. An Austrian general acquired the land, had deep tunnels dug and for two years plundered the site for antiquities.

1760 - The first to attempt a methodical approach at Pompeii was German art historian, J.J. Winckelmann, considered the father of archaeology. He catalogued Pompeian loot, and because the city was buried under a shallow layer of lightweight pyroclastic matter, speedy excavation was both possible and a priority to limit the number of thefts.

1860-1875 - The archaeologist Giuseppe Fiorelli, director of excavations at Pompeii for a newly unified Italy, introduced innovative excavation methods. From hollows left by decaying organic matter he made plaster casts that reconstruct bodies of dead people, and also those of animals and trees.

1997 – Pompeii declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO

2010 – National Archaeological Museum of Naples opened a new wing, dedicated to the display of paintings from the Vesuvian sites. Later that year, torrential rains reduced two houses in Pompeii to rubble.

Present day – Pompeii takes up a quarter of a square mile and has seen over 25 million visitors. Large-scale excavation has now ceased, and one-third of the city remains underground. Archaeologists oppose undertaking fresh excavations while they focus on conserving existing buildings and re-examining and understanding earlier discoveries.

In the year 79 A.D., Pompeii vanished beneath thick layers of volcanic ash left by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. But what nature destroyed, it also preserved.

Pompeii: The Exhibition features over 150 precious artifacts on loan from the Naples National Archaeological Museum in Italy, which offer a glimpse into the opulent lifestyle and tragic end of this ancient Roman society forgotten for centuries until its rediscovery over 250 years ago.

From garden frescoes and marble statues to gladiator armor, coins and currency to religious altars and shrines — all set in their original surroundings — experience daily life in this once vibrant Roman city. Then, as the floors shake and the walls rumble, relive the volcano’s catastrophic eruption through an immersive CGI (computerized graphic images) experience, culminating in the reveal of full body casts of twisted human forms, asphyxiated by extreme heat and noxious gases and forever frozen in time.

Through excavated artifacts, multimedia experiences, and hands-on science exhibits, guests will learn the science of archaeology, volcanology, and Roman engineering while exploring the ancient civilization of Pompeii.

Like all Romans, the Pompeians worshiped many gods and goddess. In their homes, people had shrines or larariums to honor their own "lares" or particular gods that they chose to worship. These figures represent the lares that were found in Pompeii. 

The exhibit featured many wonderful descriptive posters such as this! This described what "fine Living" entailed. The beauty of this is I have seen such a recreation of such an elite roman home at the Getty Museum here in LA! The Getty in Malibu literally designed their museum to look just like the photo in this poster. It is absolutely exquisite and when I saw this today I was able to put two and two together.  

The Oasis From Public Life! The beauty of Roman style gardens! 

I tried to take a photo of one of the display rooms so you could get a feeling for what I was talking about!

The Romans LOVED water and were the first to develop aqueducts and pipes. Such systems were seen even in Pompeii with this fountain and their elaborate bath houses.

Dining in Style! Food has always been a large component of Italian life. However, this is what dining used to look like. There were NO tables, plates, and so forth! 

Frankly I took a photo of this because it seems to me we have come full circle. This "eating out" concept is where our society is now! We no longer have the time to eat at home or to even sit down to eat! Apparently this was true in the Pompeian days too! 

I had never heard of an Amphora! But these vessels were used to transport all sorts of things from wine, olive oil, to something called Garum (which was a fish sauce made from fish intestine and eels in salt). 

Tree shaped oil lamp with three lights were used to light dinners and banquets. The design was based on famous works of art, mythological characters, and complex geometric shapes. 

The information about the public baths and the simulated video just GOT ME! I am not sure what part I found worse, the public forum associated with this, or my concern for the people having to clean up after this mess. Either case I was perplexed by the whole notion. 

























If you are intrigued by Pompeii and want to learn more, I included a BBC video below. I do think that Volcanoes and other nature disasters do make us pause and help us realize just how fleeting life is and how out of control our destiny really is. Pompeii is just such a perfect example. Within 24 hours, an amazing and vibrant city was demolished and vanished. But fortunately was preserved in time for us to find centuries later. Yet thousands of lives, young and old were destroyed. It is a sad commentary and it seems to me that understanding Pompeii means much more than learning about the things that have become unearth, it means also respecting that it is a grave site of thousands of people who are just like you or me, living their lives in peace never suspecting that in the next minute their lives were going to be in grave danger and forever changed. 


BBC Pompeii: The Mystery of The People Frozen in Time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e3RYWLwbYqI