Social_Structure_in_Pompeii_and_Herculaneum

Cities of Vesuvius, Social Structure In the third and second centuries B.C. Pompeii was a Samnite town, but by AD 79 it had become a Roman town for almost two hundred years. Herculaneum had become a popular Roman resort, the area was strongly romanised and the social structure reflected this . There are three primary divisions of the population in a Roman area, was made up of three broad groups, Citizens (or freeborn), Slaves, and Freedman (Slaves who have been granted or bought their freedom). The Freeborn citizens from Italic towns were granted Roman citizenship several centuries before 79 A.D, and as a result, adopted Roman social practices . All citizens had the right to vote but not all were eligible for political office. So within this group there was a distinction between those who had prestige, wealth and who had privileges such as being eligible for political office, and ordinary citizens. This can be seen at the theatre, where the privileged sat near the front and the non-privileged sat behind them. The theatre is a good example of segregation between the social classes. The status of roman citizens can be seen by their cloths. The privileged wore the Toga and the non-privileged wore clothing of a loosely belted tunic was not differentiated from that of slaves . Source B was originally seen as bakery selling bread, however the puzzling thing about this source is the mans cloths seem too formal to be that of a baker, as well as no sign of ovens or mills of a bakery. Rather the fresco is now interpreted as a candidate for a local election, giving out free bread to win more votes. In both Pompeii and Herculaneum there is a considerable amount of evidence to support their widespread presence in the region. Slaves were used in a wide variety of enterprises, such as commercial businesses. Slaves were part of the familia or household and worked in the home, workshop or in the shops of their owners. On agricultural villas, slaves worked in the fields, ploughing and harvesting . It is suggested that slaves made up 20-33% of the Roman population, indicating how crucial they were to the society. Many high class houses had slaves in various professions and services. They had slaves as cooks, tutors, nurses, washers and servants. However if the slave had a high level of education, they would work as secretaries or tutors and were more privileged than those who do manual labourers. Evidence for slave activity can be found at Villa Regina at Boscoreale in the form of slave chains. Even in art, frescoes show slaves depicted as being smaller, to indicate their status, as seen in this banqueting scene source C. In Roman societies such as Pompeii and Herculaneum wealth was less important than birthright. Even the wealthiest freedman/woman could not aspire to be a citizen, but their descendants could . However there is evidence of social mobility prior to the A.D 79 eruption. Such as the House of Vetti in Pompeii, in which two freedmen gained wealth through wine trade, their house reflected this . Freedmen also were known to of owned their own slaves, The Vetti Brothers are suggested to of had slaves. As well as a waxed tablet that refers to Poppaea Note, who was a freedwoman who had slaves of her own, in Herculaneum. Freedmen and slaves were not clearly distinguished from each other in frescoes. Most frescoes of show freedmen and slaves in a variety of situations, such as in source E, the men are either citizens or freedmen; however the smaller figure on the right is most likely a slave, as I mentioned earlier slaves were depicted as being smaller. Not all slaves or freedmen were treated poorly; there have been accounts of slaves or freedmen who are fond of their masters and vice-versa. To support this, source F Shows an Epitaph from a freedman’s grave in Pompeii. This was erected by the freedman’s former master, which suggests to us that some freedmen and slaves were trusted members of the master’s family. One could perhaps suggest that the freedman, after he was granted his freedom, chose to say with his master. http://class.lism.catholic.edu.au/ahist-dvd/ahist-hsc/Pompeii/site%20pages/7.source%20society.htm 3/3/11 http://class.lism.catholic.edu.au/ahist-dvd/ahist-hsc/Pompeii/site%20pages/7.source%20society.htm 3/3/11 http://class.lism.catholic.edu.au/ahist-dvd/ahist-hsc/Pompeii/site%20pages/7.source%20society2.htm last accessed 11/3/11