Coen Ayres
Religion in Pompeii and Herculaneum
This response seeks to assess the following quote, “the study of Pompeii (P) and Herculaneum (H) provides us with a wealth of sources-however we are faced with issues regarding their limitations, reliability and usefulness”, in regard to four different levels of religion. Those four levels are household, foreign, local and state. In regard to the statement it can be agreed upon that the first half of the quote is true and that there are a wealth of sources, but the second half of the quote which states that there are issues of limitations, reliability and usefulness in these sources is only semi-true as it depends on the type of religion being discussed. Religion will be examined from the least problematic to the most problematic in regard to wealth of sources, reliability, limitations and usefulness; household religion, foreign religion, local religion and state religion.
There is a wealth of sources regarding household religion in P and H and there are no issues regarding their reliability and limitations. One could relate this due to the fact that there has been evidence of most households practicing religion in their homes. The focus of household religion was the worship at a shrine called a lararium. These larariums were often depicted in an architectural style, such as the one found in the house of the Vettii (P) and the house of the Black Salon (H) which both resemble a temple in their style. The larariums could have also been painted and hung on the wall of a home such as the one found in the House of the Centenanry (P). There were three different household gods that were depicted on the larariums, these three were the Genius (spirit of the family), Lares (the guardian spirits of entry) Penates (protective of the food supply). The Penates and Lares were similar in depiction as they were both portrayed as young dancing men in short tunics who held a drinking horn in one hand and a plate in the other. The Genius was also shown holding a drinking horn, but was depicted as a priest with a covered head. The lararium in The House of the Vetti is an example of where all three household gods are depicted in a household shrine. There are also examples of more local and state gods that played a role in household religion in P and H, such as god Bacchus who is featured on a wall painted lararium in the House of The Centenary (P). With the implementation of these household gods into every lararium in every house in P and H, frequent prayers were made at one’s individual lararium. These household prayers involved the whole family and family owned slaves and the ritual was led by the paterfamilias. Regarding the sources which describe the role of household religion in P and H, one can conclude that there is a wealth of sources and that the sources is useful as it often contains no issues regarding their reliability and limitations due to the large range of evidence of primary artefacts and sources which are in most houses in P and H.
There are a wealth of sources regarding the study of foreign religion in P and H, and only occasional issues of limitations and reliability. This small issue is raised due to a lack of citation in author’s writings on P and H foreign religion. Foreign religion in P and H often took influence from cities and countries such as Greece (Apollo and Venus) and Egypt (Isis). The attraction of these external religions came at the appeal that the belief in these gods would lead to a close relationship with the gods and a happy afterlife for the good. The cult of the Egyptian goddess, Isis, was a widespread religion in P and is an example of a foreign religion in P and H. The Temple of Isis which is situated near the Theatres in P was one of the first temples to be rebuilt after the earthquake of 62CE. The Cult was open to a both sexes though a large majority of the worshippers were female due to Isis being a goddess and seen as a universal feminine principle, the mother goddess. One major issue we have with the study of the Isis cult is that most of the information that we have about the cult comes from literary sources written in a later period. Even though these sources help us understand the appeal of the ceremonies, it means that a lot of the information provided could be unreliable. Even though there wasn’t a large focus on Isis in the region of H, there is evidence for the worship of Isis at H, with a wall painting being found in H (location unknown) that depicts one of two religious daily ceremonies that would have taken place on the steps of the Temple of Isis (P). The wall painting features palm trees, Sphinx statutes and Ibis birds, three major contributors of Egyptian culture and society. Standing atop of the stairs of the temple of ISIS is mostly likely a priest, as the man is depicted with white robes and a shaved head. One of the more unreliable examples of foreign religion comes with the theory that Christianity had a presence in P and H. A majority of the theories come with the finding of a possible ‘cross’ shaped mark in the upper story of the House of the Bicentenary (H). This mark has universally been interpreted as a private Christian shrine, when it’s likely just support for a cupboard. Overall, we might conclude that there is no definitive evidence for the presence of Christians at either P or H Regarding the sources which address and describe the role of foreign religion in P and H, it can be concluded that there are wealth of sources for foreign religion and that often they feature no issues of limitations and reliability. But it must be noted that in some instances, sources of information have had issues of limitations and reliability by not providing evidence of their information.
There are a wealth of sources regarding the study of local religion in P and H, and with the study of local religion in P there are often little issues of reliability and limitations, this likely due to the large number of artefacts found in P of Venus. Unlike P, H does have issues of reliability and limitations and this likely due to large area of H still is unexcavated and unearthed. In P and H, there were two patron deities that were extremely important to the cities culture and lifestyle. The main patron deity of P was Greek goddess Venus (Goddess of love and nature) and H was Hercules (Patron of entrepreneurs and the mythical founder of H). After the introduction and founding of the Roman colony in P in 80BCE, Venus became the town’s new patron goddess. Venus was promoted to the public as a goddess who would protect the city and bring the people of P luck and prosperity. The temple of Venus resides close to the entrance to the city and Marine Gate of Pompeii and was built and rebuilt a total of three times before the eruption of Vesuvius in 79CE, this signifies its importance to the city. One way historians and archaeologist have distinguished Venus being the biggest patron deity in P is the wealth of statuettes (houses I.2.6 and I.2.17) and wall-paintings (Shop facades IX.8.1and IX.11.1) of Venus that have been found in houses and streets of P. The story and legacy of Hercules (Herakles) in H is slightly harder to grasp and understand due to the nature of most of H still being underground. Similar to Venus in P, the vast collection of artefacts found in H have proved Hercules popularity in H. Evidence such as wall paintings of Hercules have been found in many households (House of the shopkeeper C) and also figures/statues of Hercules (found in the Garden of Hercules). Suggestions of the practice and worship to Hercules in H households have been found with the discovery of a liberation bowl, devotional lamp and sacred oil container in the House of the shopkeeper C. But this can’t fully be considered reliable; as it’s still just a suggestion. There is no definite evidence of a temple to Hercules in H, but with the remnants of a Doric-style temple in P which is believed to be have been dedicated to Hercules, it can be assumed due to the popularity and importance of the figure, there would have likely been a temple to the Hercules in H. Regarding the sources which address and describe the role of local religion in P and H, one can conclude that there are a wealth of sources regarding the religion and that there is often no issue of reliability when it comes to the study of Goddess Venus in P. But, in regard to the worship of Hercules as a local religion in H, it can be considered that the sources are at times limited and unreliable due to the fact that the majority of H is still underground.
There are a wealth of sources regarding the study of state religion in P and H, but when compared to the other levels of religion it can clearly be seen that it not as popular or well known, it can also be said that an issue of reliability and limitations is quite frequent in this religion. We can link these issues due to the fact that the majority of the information about the religion is still unknown and at times based off opinion and authors own conspiracies. From the second century BCE, the Romans dominated the southern Italian region of Campania from a religious, political and cultural standpoint. Although P and H likely maintained its independence as an allied town, it was quickly subjected to Roman influences. In the height of this ‘domination’ of religious activity, Roman gods began to be a major part of P and H lifestyle. One man who implemented many of these new religions into P and H was Roman emperor Augustus. From his time as Roman emperor, Augustus would implement several different cults, religions and gods into P and H lifestyle. One of the state’s largest religious following was the worship of patron deity Apollo (god of colonist, archery, medicine, prophecy and poetry, among other things). Apollo’s worship in P and H has been dated back to sixth century BCE, with the use of stratigraphic excavations on the Temple of Apollo (P). The problem with the study of Venus in P and H is that information is quite limited on how the people of the cities worshiped the god and at times quite unreliable as the sources often use words such as; possibly, suggesting and debated, which means the author is quite unsure and sceptical in their writings. It was common after the Roman colonisation in P and H that the people of the two cities began to worship their newly found emperors as gods. The Temple of Fortuna Augusta (P), located close to the forum in P, is an example of a holy worship place to an emperor. In this case Emperor Augustus. Its difficult to understand what was worshipped in the temple and what religious practices that was undertaken, but what is known is that through the findings of several statutes of Augustus, which refer him to the pater patriae. Similar to a lot of the other sources, there is no equivalent or definitive example of a temple to Augustus in H, due to the city mostly being underground. But there is evidence from the Collegium of the Augustales (P) that shows that emperors were being worshipped in the H at the time, meaning it was likely that Augustus was worshiped and had a temple dedicated to him in H. Regarding the sources which address and describe the role of state religion in P and H, once can conclude that there is a wealth of sources regarding the religion, but it is clearly quite limited when compared to the other religions. It can also be noted that this religion has the most issues of reliability and limitations as much of the information on state religion is still unknown and at times quite sceptical.
In conclusion, the study of different levels of religion in P and H has provided us with a wealth of sources that are at times have no issues of limitations, reliability and can be considered useful for the reader. This is likely due to the fact that are plenty of sources regarding the topics that are written by professionals who often source and identify evidence of their writings. But, counteracting that, it must be noted that there are frequent times where sources are limited and not reliable. This could be relatable to how most historians and archaeologist still don’t have a clear understanding on the religions in P and (mostly) H due to information still not been discovered.

Bibliography
Berry, J. 2007. The Complete Pompeii. Thames and Hudson, Ch VII
Brennan, B. 2012. Herculaneum: A Sourcebook. New South Wales: Ancient History Seminars, Ch 5
Brennan, B and Lazer, E.2005. Pompeii and Herculaneum : interpreting the evidence. [Sydney]: Ancient History Seminars, pp 84-97
Demovic, M, and Hayes M. 1996. Deir El Medina And Pompeii. Melbourne: Longman Australia, Ch 27-8
/Zarmati, C. 2005. Pompeii and Herculaneum. Port Melbourne : Harcourt Education, Ch 10, pp 114-166

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[ 1 ]. I missing/incomplete information
[ 2 ]. Primary or secondary? Does the source have issues of bias?
[ 3 ]. Religious practices held in the private households of the people of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
[ 4 ]. Religious practice and worship not native to Pompeii and Herculaneum
[ 5 ]. Religion worshiped by all Roman society
[ 6 ]. Patron Deities of the cities (P and H)
[ 7 ]. Zarmati, L. 2005. Pompeii and Herculaneum. Port Melbourne : Harcourt Education, Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 8 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E.2004. Pompeii and Herculaneum : interpreting the evidence. [Sydney]: Ancient History Seminars, pp 84-97pp 89
[ 9 ]. Zamati, L - Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (Page one of source material booklet one)
[ 10 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E- pp 90
[ 11 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E- pp 89
[ 12 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. 1996. Deir El Medina And Pompeii. Melbourne: Longman Australia, Ch 27-8 pp57
[ 13 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 27-8 pp57
[ 14 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 27-8 pp56
[ 15 ]. Zarmati, L Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 16 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E. pp 90
[ 17 ]. Also known as Dionysus or Dionysos, Bacchus was the god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine, ritual madness and ecstasy.
[ 18 ]. Zamati, L Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (Page one of source material booklet one)
[ 19 ]. Berry, J. 2007. The Complete Pompeii. Thames and Hudson, Ch VII (original page missing from booklet two) (page fourteen of source material booklet two)
[ 20 ]. Oldest living male in the household
[ 21 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 22 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 23 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 28 pp4
[ 24 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 25 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E ,pp 93
[ 26 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 27 ]. Brennan, B and Lazer, E pp 92
[ 28 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 28 pp4
[ 29 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 28 pp4
[ 30 ]. Brennan, B and Lazer, E. pp 95
[ 31 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 28 pp201
[ 32 ]. Demovic, M, and Hayes M. Ch 28 pp201
[ 33 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 34 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 35 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII pp194
[ 36 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E pp 88
[ 37 ]. In order of built and rebuilding; initial building of temple in early years of the Roman colony, rebuilt in the time of emperor Claudius, destroyed in 62CE due to earthquake, was in process of being rebuilt when 79CE Vesuvius eruption occurred.
[ 38 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E pp 88
[ 39 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 40 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 41 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (page eleven of booklet two)
[ 42 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10 pp 114-166, (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 43 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 44 ]. Zarmati, C Ch 10, pp 114-166 (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 45 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, E. pp 84
[ 46 ]. founder of the Roman Empire and its first emperor
[ 47 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII (original page number missing of booklet two) (loose page of booklet two)
[ 48 ]. Berry, J. Ch VII pp189
[ 49 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10, (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)
[ 50 ]. A popular goddess associated with luck and success.(Zarmati, C. Ch 10, [original page number missing from booklet one] [page two of source material booklet one])
[ 51 ]. Brennan, B. Lazer, Epp 86
[ 52 ]. Father of the nation
[ 53 ]. Zarmati, C. Ch 10, (original page number missing from booklet one) (page two of source material booklet one)