Pompeii, Its Life and Art

by August Mau

New discoveries and the progress of research will sometime, perhaps, make it possible to present a general survey of the Pompeian paintings from the historical and critical point of view. No such comprehensive treatment is yet possible, however, and we must content ourselves with offering a few observations in regard to the distribution of the paintings among the different decorative styles and the classes of subjects represented.

The Incrustation Style, as previously remarked, left no place for paintings upon the walls. Nevertheless, in isolated cases, we find a simple pictorial representation upon the surface of one of the blocks painted in imitation of marble, as if the veins of the stone had run into a shape suggestive of an object, as a vase or a bird; in one instance, curiously enough, a wrestling match is outlined, between Hercules and Antaeus. In the Tufa Period the desire for paintings was satisfied by the mosaic pictures upon the floor.

The earlier walls of the second style in this respect resemble those of the first; the examples in the house of the Labyrinth have no paintings. The later walls, however, are rich in pictures, but those of Pompeii are not so abundantly adorned as those in Rome ([p. 462]). The elaborate painting shown in the pavilion frame in [Plate XII] is exceptional among the Pompeian remains of this style.

The great majority of the paintings are found upon walls of the third and fourth styles. On the older walls of the third style, as we have seen, the principal painting appears in a frame, the design of which is taken from that of the conventional pavilion of the second style. In later examples the close relation between the picture and the frame is no longer maintained; the frame simply encloses a large panel of uniform color, in the middle of which a relatively small picture is seen. This arrangement was carried over into the fourth style, but the conception of a pavilion frame is entirely lost sight of; the painting is in the middle of a large panel of brilliant color, around which the architectural framework is extended. A Pompeian room well decorated in either of the later styles contained four of these prominent paintings, in case there was no door at the middle of one of the sides; if a door interfered, there were only three.

Paintings were also placed in the divisions of the wall at the right and the left of the central panel. In [Plate XII] we noticed a single figure on either side of the pavilion, but such additions are rare in the second style. In the third style the side panels are uniformly adorned with paintings. In [Fig. 263] the small figure in the middle of the panel at the left is a Cupid; frequently a flying swan is seen, or a landscape lightly sketched in monochrome on the ground of the panel. Sometimes the painting is set off by a separate frame; if this is round, a bust is usually represented. Groups of two figures were preferred for the side panels of the fourth style, the favorite subject being a satyr and a bacchante, as in [Fig. 265]; these sometimes appear as busts, but are more often represented as floating figures.

Characteristic of the fourth style, in respect to the distribution of paintings, is the use of single figures and simple compositions to add life to the fantastic architectural designs in the upper part of the wall and in the divisions between the large panels. Here we may see satyrs and bacchantes, young girls and solemn-visaged men with implements of sacrifice; the figures appear in great variety of type and subject. Sometimes groups are broken up, and the elements of a mythological scene, as that of Admetus and Alcestis, are distributed as single figures in the architectural framework.

At the time of the eruption the fondness for pictorial representations was increasing, and they were being introduced into every part of the decoration, including the frieze of the main part of the wall, the use of which in this way commenced in the time of the third style ([Fig. 263]), and the stripe below, between the main part of the wall and the base ([Fig. 265]); how elaborate this intermediate decoration might become we have already seen in the case of the house of the Vettii.

Frequently in the fourth style the lower part of the architectural framework separating two large panels appears to be closed, as in [Plate XIII], by a narrow panel, above which a painting is seen. The pictures found in these places often represent still life. Seafights are also a favorite subject; such may be seen in the temple of Isis, the Macellum, and one of the rooms in the house of the Vettii. Generally on the walls of the fourth style, wherever there is available space, we find small pictures in great variety, the most common being landscapes, simply painted, with the use of few colors.

It is by no means easy to make a satisfactory classification of Pompeian paintings according to subject. Nevertheless, with a few exceptions, they may be roughly grouped in four general classes, mythological paintings, genre paintings, landscapes, and still life. Most of the large and important pictures belong to the first class. The mythological paintings will therefore be discussed at somewhat greater length; the other three classes will require only a brief characterization.