Dr Sophie Hay

@pompei79

Just an archaeologist who works at the Archaeological Park of Pompeii

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Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jul 24

The fresco decorated the vaulted ceiling of an upper floor room above the tablinum in the House with the Bakery of Aulus Rustius Verus. During the excavation the fragments were reassembled in the finds hut as they came out of the ground and as the dig went on so the puzzle grew.

Fragments of fresco in a finds crate fresh from the excavation

Fragments of fresco arranged on a table.

Fragments making up the mask and part of the still life garland

Fragments with colourful border decorations

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jul 24

Other details: griffins and crabs in hues of blue, Psyche, and a Nilotic scene. The central emblema is of Dionysus & Ariadne. The reconstructed part constitutes just over one quarter of the arced ceiling & the fresco is of Fourth Style - painted in the last decades of the city.

Winged griffin with a crab framed by cornucopia in beautiful hues of blue

A winged Psyche wearing a pink chiton holding a long torch in her left hand.

Nilotic scene with a building with steps, an amphora leaning against a tree, two musicians sitting on a rock, and an erotic scene

The reconstructed arced ceiling representing just over one quarter of the entire fresco

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jul 24

What an immense joy and satisfaction to see the fragments of the ceiling fresco from Region IX excavations reassembled. The vibrant colours and the intricate details of the highest quality are mesmerising. Currently on display in the Large Palaestra, #Pompeii

Part of the still life garland with mask and geometric borders framing a personification of Spring

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jul 4

Celebrating the 250th anniversary of American Independence and wishing Americans a happy 4th of July with ancient Roman paint pigments from #Pompeii. 🇺🇸

Three small ancient ceramic pots with the original paint pigments inside. The colours in order are red, white and blue.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jun 28

Oh that’s lovely! I’d not seen that detail in the Synistor fresco. Interestingly this fountain in Oplontis was painted much later than the original scheme. It mimics the—now badly damaged—one on the facing wall as it covers the blocking of an original door. So possibly 3rd Style mimicking 2nd Style.

Damaged facing wall fresco with spout and water jet marked. The basin is totally missing

Detailed image marked in red rectangle on wider view of fresco on facing wall
Photo: https://pompeiiinpictures.com/pompeiiinpictures/VF/Villa_055%20Oplontis%20Villa%20of%20Poppea%20p06.htm#_Room_15:_Oecus

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jun 27

I utterly adore the fresco of a fountain that was revealed in recent excavations in #Oplontis (room of the peacocks). The three spouts fixed on the wall each with a jet of water filling the marble basin which is supported on those beautiful curved legs. It silently creates an air of fresh coolness.

Fresco detail: Against a red wall a presumably white marble basin is being filled with water from a jet of water arcing out of a gold coloured spout fixed into the wall.

Fresco detail: Against a red wall a presumably white marble basin supported curved legs ending in animal paws is being filled by a jet of water arcing out of a gold coloured spout fixed into the wall.

Against a red wall a presumably white marble basin supported curved legs ending in animal paws is being filled by three jets of water arcing out of gold coloured spouts fixed into the wall. There is a gentle sense of perspective as the basin is at an angle to the viewer

Fresco detail: A jet of water is coming out of a gold coloured spout fixed into the red wall

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jun 13

This book is epic in so many ways. I urge you to embark on an adventure into @carolawrence.bsky.social’s brilliantly inspiring & creative world of Homer’s Odyssey. Caroline’s unceasing passion & energy for Classics & fun bounces off the pages in her inimitable style. www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...

Book cover with partly coloured in drawing and title page

Explanatory book page about the author and her mission

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Apr 25

The colours of Italian liberation spotted in the frescoes of #Pompeii 🇮🇹 Wishing all Italians a very happy #FestaDellaLiberazione

Red background with a green border on right side and a green and white tendril of foliage curling across the image

Red background with a green border in a rhomboid shape containing a white boss at its centre

Red background with a vertical stem with green and white foliage and flowers

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Apr 12

Just nosing around the neighbours’ amphitheatre. The Roman amphitheatre at Pozzuoli (Puteoli).

Looking through one of the passages under the seating area into the arena and the seating on the far side. The statue in the foreground is of a (headless) female figure possibly that of the Goddess Fortuna.

View from the exterior of the amphitheatre at the arched passages (vomitoria) that would have provided access to the seating area. The brick and stone structure is dripping in plants. The arena can be seen on the left

Looking down one of the principal entrances to the arena along a brick and opus reticulatum block wall. The seating can be seen in the background on the left.

A Bourbon inscription on a red painted wall reading ANFITEATRO PUTEOLANO at the entrance to the site.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Apr 5

Happy Easter! Life imitating art. Fresco of dish of eggs from the Praedia of Julia Felix, #Pompeii and an exhibit of eggs that astonishingly survived the AD 79 eruption in Herculaneum. 🥚🥚🥚

Detail of a fresco showing a dish of eggs and some dead birds hanging above it

Four near complete eggs sitting in a black dish

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Apr 4

End of the day in #Pompeii

View up a deserted via Stabiana with a water tower on the right hand side, stepping stones at the crossroads and the shop and house entrances lining the road that leads to the outline of mount Vesuvius above which a large white cloud forms against a blue sky.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Mar 15

One of the most remarkable objects in #Pompeii is a marble table support with P. Casca Longus inscribed on it. Longus was the 1st assassin to stab Julius Caesar on #IdesOfMarch (today in 44 BC). On his death Longus’ possessions were auctioned & this table was bought by a Pompeian

A white marble table leg in the form of a lion head and descending into a claw as the foot. The view is from above and since there is no table top the inscription of P. Casca Long can be seen engraved into the table top support.

View across an atrium of the so-called House of Casca Longus (he never lived here!). To the left a blue painted wall. In the centre-right an impluvium basin with a circular ceramic cistern head nearest to us on one side. On the far side the white marble tripod table support.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Mar 11

A day filled with poignant reflection as the permanent exhibition dedicated to the plaster casts of ancient Pompeians opened in #Pompeii. At last they are given context: where, when and how they were found, what they were found with, and details such as their sex and approximate age.

View down the portico of the Grande Palaestra of the display cases housing the casts

One of the casts lying on his back. Behind him the Grande Palaestra is bathed in sunlight.

A reflection of one of the casts on display

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Feb 21

Such a perky little day to be on site. #Pompeii

The view up a back street of pompeii leading from left to right and ending with a white travertine public fountain. The sky is blue and the few puffy white clouds seem lined up in an oblique line to mirror the perspective of the road

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Feb 17

No light quite like that produced against gathering clouds after a day of sunshine. The pinky-hues drenching the road paving and walls of Pompeii are magical.

View of Vesuvius looming over the Porta Nocera gateway of Pompeii with the paved road wending its way into the city. Above clouds gather and lit bright orange melting into shades of pink. The same hues illuminate the stones of Pompeii

Close up of the Nocera gateway into Pompeii drenched in pink lighting. The same hues seen on the clouds above Vesuvius in the background

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Feb 13

An undeniably emotional experience seeing the other half of the ‘peacock room’ in Oplontis being excavated and meeting their counterparts: the two peahens that graced the facing wall. What a delightfully playful idea by the artist. Compliments to my colleagues, excavators & conservators. Spectacular

Fragments of fresco retrieved during excavations of one the peahens striding along the yellow cornice against a backdrop of a colonnade.

Two excavators digging the other half of the peacock room in Oplontis. Behind them the facing wall being revealed and the fresco that mirrors the known wall coming to light. One of the peahens can be seen in situ on the the left side above a panel of bright red.

The excavation site from above showing where the excavators are working in the foreground in relation to the known half of the peacock room behind the hoarding in the background.

The peacock from the well known peacock room in Oplontis. It stands on the yellow cornice with its tail draped over the edge. Behind it the colonnade painted in perspective.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Feb 3

A chink of light falls across the wall of the caldarium (hot room) in the women’s section of the Stabian baths in #Pompeii.

A sliver of light illuminates the ribbed stucco relief of the barrel vault and decorative cornice as well as a small patch of the red plaster and a decorative pilaster. The rest of the room is shrouded in darkness.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jan 11

Then, in addition, what to make of the woman who is seated? I look forward to your interpretation. But in my mind there is always room for these women to be working rather than being clientele.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Jan 5

Hello old friend. Good to be back. #Pompeii #Vesuvius

On the right a vestige of a Roman wall slightly spotlit by the sun and beyond it vegetation of different shades of green, yellow, brown, and red. In the background Vesuvius looms.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Dec 19

But as many are already discussing: is it too good to be true? Is it a fake? Perhaps. However, architectural perspective is well known in Roman frescoes especially of the Second Style and that includes those with a central vanishing point. First image: www.metmuseum.org/it/art/colle...

Fresco from Boscoreale (Villa of Fannius Synistor) of an edicule with an altar in front of a building with an entrance closed off by a wooden screen.

Fresco from Oplontis showing an ornate gateway and including a central vanishing point - the colonnades of columns disappear to a central point behind the circular building.

Fresco from Oplontis with an ornate building viewed from the front with perspective elements

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Dec 19

The fresco is relatively unknown since it was one of the many antiquities seized from collector Robin Symes and returned to Italy - it seems to be a looted fresco hence its unknown provenance. Thought to be from the Vesuvian area and is in the Second Style (~50 BC).

Detail of the upper part of the temple showing the Corinthian capitals, the relief in the pediment and the decorative figures adorning the edge of the pediment.

Detail of the screen with lattice work that sits behind the first colonnade.

The offerings being burnt on the altar with a quirky shadow falling on the steps - perhaps not the artist’s finest hour.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Dec 19

Possibly the most sublime Roman fresco of a temple. The architectural detail of the spiky-topped wooden barrier, the painted relief in the pediment, & the offerings burning on the altar; it’s a symphony of observations. Archaeological Museum of Capri (no provenance) #FrescoFriday

Fresco of a facade of a Roman temple. A short flight of steps leading up to a portico with Corinthian columns. Between the double colannade is a decorated wooden barrier with lattice work and a spiky top. The wooden doors to the temple are closed. The pediment contains a painted relief. In front of the steps is an ornate altar on which offerings burn.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Nov 2

Reclining is definitely a common position at mealtimes - the ‘triclinium’ or dining room is so-named for its three couches on which you’d recline and dine. And this skeleton is from such a room. As for the arm… I saw that relaxed pose in a fresco from Stabiae and not sure what it infers.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Oct 31

Happy #Halloween! A wonderful 2nd century AD Roman mosaic found near Antioch, Turkey showing a skeleton, cup of wine in hand, reclining on the floor of a dining room in a house reminding guests to enjoy life: ‘ευφρόσυνος’

Detail of a black mosaic with a white skull, the boney arm of the skeleton raised, and a few ribs.

Mosaic with black background, reclining skeleton with cup of wine in hand with two loaves of bread and an amphora upright in a stand.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Oct 25

I particular like the colours of Vesuvius looking as though someone has fashioned it out of a lump of smooshed-together-different-coloured Play-Doh.

View from up high looking down into Pompeii with the via Nocera gently winding its way up the slope under the arch of the Nocera Gate. Beyond Vesuvius looms with its peak in shadow and its foothills are speckled greens and browns.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Oct 9

Was too busy admiring the bricks & marvelling at the fact cars can drive over the Roman road paving beneath the Arco Felice (Bacoli) this evening to take a photo of the Roman arch but it seems forgivable all things considered. Here’s an 1896 photo instead (fotografia.cultura.gov.it/iccd/item/MP...)

A sepia photo of the 20m high 6m wide Roman arch straddling the basalt paved via Domitiana

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Oct 5

Surprisingly yet pleasingly complex - the tile elements required to reconstruct a Roman roof over the House of the Faun, #Pompeii. Beautiful watercolour, pencil, and ink illustrations by Pasquale Maria Veneri dating to 1843 on display in the National Archaeological Museum In Naples.

Watercolour showing different tile elements both flat (tegulae) and curved (imbrices) and antifixes and water spouts needed for a Roman roof

Plan of the House of the Faun in watercolour showing the reconstructed rooflines.

Reconstruction of a roofline in plan and section

Full image of the three elements as one watercolour illustration

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Sep 22

That magical moment when the pumice is gently cleared away revealing, for the first time in nearly 2000 years, a white mosaic. #MosaicMonday #Pompeii

Most of the image is of a white mosaic and the top part is small pumice stones

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Sep 19

The fragments of the Forma Urbis – the marble map of Rome made towards the end of Emperor Severus’ reign – set into Nolli’s beautiful 18th century map of the city is breathtaking. Fun to spot existing monuments but wondrous to see the now missing buildings. www.sovraintendenzaroma.it/content/il-m...

A printed map of the Colosseum with incomplete marble fragments of the monument overlying it

A printed map of the area around the Theatre of Pompey with incomplete marble fragments of the monument overlying it. Nolli’s map forms the floor surface around it.

A printed map of Nolli’s Rome with incomplete marble fragments with a plan of a monument, set into it

A printed map of the Circus Maximus with incomplete fragments of the monument overlying it.

Dr Sophie Hay@pompei79· Sep 9

#Pompei by night A wonderful initiative by the Archaeological Park of Pompeii inviting visitors to visit a few houses by night. It’s an incredibly evocative experience as from the depths of darkness, light glows from rooms as if someone is at home. Info here: pompeiisites.org/comunicati/i...