I.2.28 Pompeii. Casa dell’Atrio tetrastilo or Casa della grata metallica or House of Cassandra.

Excavated 1873. Linked to I.2.27 and I.2.29. 

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I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking north through doorway at rear of tablinum into south portico and garden area.

Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. South wall of south portico. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking west across south portico, towards doorway to small room on south side of triclinium.

The doorway on the left leads from the tablinum.  Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Jashemski, the wall on the right would have had an entrance through the wall into the garden opposite the tablinum doorway.

See Jashemski, W. F., 1993. The Gardens of Pompeii, Volume II: Appendices. New York: Caratzas. (p.25)

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking west along south portico garden wall. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Jashemski, this originally would have been the site of an entrance through the wall into the garden.

I.2.28 Pompeii. December 2006. Looking west towards north-west corner, over the peristyle garden towards site of garden triclinium.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking east along south portico. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Jashemski, the peristyle garden (excavated 1873-4) had a portico along the east side and part of the south.

Three stuccoed brick columns and two engaged ones which supported the portico were joined by a low wall.

The columns were red up to the height of the low wall, white above.

See Jashemski, W. F., 1993. The Gardens of Pompeii, Volume II: Appendices. New York: Caratzas. (p.25)

According to CTP, this house suffered badly from the earthquake of 1980, so many of its earlier features have been lost.

See Van der Poel, H. B., 1986. Corpus Topographicum Pompeianum, Part IIIA. Austin: University of Texas. (p.4)

I.2.28 Pompeii. December 2006. Looking north-east from south side of peristyle. Entrance into garden, with remains of one column and low wall.

I.2.28 Pompeii. March 2009. Looking west towards garden triclinium. Taken from I.2.20.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking west across garden area towards triclinium area. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Jashemski, the triclinium built against the west wall had a circular table.

There were four niches in the inside of each couch.

In the south couch, the last niche, which was of larger size, was separated from the other three by the mouth of the cistern.

Along the north wall there was a small masonry podium which was reached by steps. 

Opposite the lectus summus was a round tufa altar.

See Jashemski, W. F., 1993. The Gardens of Pompeii, Volume II: Appendices. New York: Caratzas. (p.25)

I.2.28 Pompeii. 1931. Looking west towards triclinium.

See Warscher T., 1935. Codex Topographicus Pompeianus: Regio I.2. (no.54), Rome: DAIR, whose copyright it remains.

(According to Warscher, No.54, Triclinio nella parte occidentale del pseudo-peristilio (h). La negative appartiene all’Istituto Arch. Germ. 1931; 2853.)

DAIR 31.2853. Photo © Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Abteilung Rom, Arkiv.

According to Warscher –

“Il triclinio occupa la parte occidentale del pseudoperistilio.

Si vedono quattro buchi rettangolari che illuminavo il sotterraneo; l’ingresso a questo ultimo è dalla stanza adiacente – a sinistra nella fotografia no.54 (stanza “L”).

(translation: "The triclinium occupied the western part of pseudoperistyle.  There are four rectangular holes which lit the underground area; the entrance to this last was from the adjacent room – left in photo No. 54 ("L")”.

Warscher wrote, quoting Bull. Inst.1874, p.251/52, that –

“Il triclinio murato sta appoggiato al muro occidentale del peristilio, dimodochè verso la sera non vi poteva arrivare il sole, e, come quei ritrovati prima, è più alto verso la tavola, il cui posto è segnato da un sostegno rotondo, ove senza dubbio mettevasi la tavola di legno colle vivande.

Più lungo degli altri è il letto a sinistra di chi sta avanti al triclinio, perchè a tavola si appoggiavano sul braccio sinistro, stendendo a destra la parte inferiore del corpo.

Precisamente lo stesso si osserva nel triclinio della casa di Sallustio.

Dalla parte interna di ciascuno dei letti sono quattro piccole nicchie, alte m. 0,24, larghe 0,19, profondo 0,20, più grande l’ultima del letto più lungo, separata dalle altre da una apertura del pozzo.

Al triclinio si accedeva per un scalino alla estremità del letto settentrionale, dimodochè per arrivare al suo posto ciascuno doveva passare dietro ai posti degli altri.

Ecco le misure del triclinio: letto meridionale, lunghezza esterna m.3,75, interna 2,35, larghezza 1,30; lunghezza interna del letto occidentale 1,37; letto settentrionale, lunghezza interna 1,30, esterna circa 2,50, larghezza 1,50. –

Aggiungo ancora che accanto allo scalino è un piccolo rialzo di materiale, che poteva servire di tavola, e che accanto all’estremità del letto più lungo sta un’ara di tuffo, tonda, più grossa nella parte inferiore, con margine sporgente di sopra e di sotto, - finalmente che nel sostegno della tavola dalla parte di S si è fatto una specie di taglio verticale e piuttosto profondo, che non arriva fino alla superficie e di cui non ho saputo indovinare lo scopo”.

(translation: "The masonry triclinium was leaning against the western wall of the peristyle, so towards the evenings the sun would not reach it, and, like those found before, it was higher towards the table, whose place was marked by a round support, where without doubt the wooden table with foods was placed.

Longer than others was the couch on the left, which is next to the triclinium, because one ate at table supported on the left arm, extending to the right the lower part of the body.

Precisely the same can be observed in the triclinium of the House of Sallust.

From the internal part of each of the couches are four small niches, m. 0,24 tall, 0,19 wide, 0.20 deep, the largest the last in the longest bed, separated from the others by the opening of the well.

The triclinium was entered by a step at the end of the north bed, so to get to his place each would have had to pass behind the places of the others.

Here are the measurements of the triclinium: southern bed, external length 3,75 m, 2,35 internal, 1,30 width; internal length of western bed 1,37; northern bed, inside length, 1,30, outside about 2,50, width 1.50. –

I add that nearby to the step was a small rise of material, which could serve for the table, and next to the end of the longest bed was a tufa round altar, largest at the bottom, with projecting edge above and below, finally that in the support of the table from the south was a kind of vertical cut and rather deep, that doesn't come up to the surface and for what use,  I could not make a guess.”).

I.2.28 Pompeii. 1903. Looking west towards triclinium, and north-west corner.

Against the north wall was a small masonry podium, which, according to Jashemski, was reached by steps.

Photo by Esther Boise Van Deman © American Academy in Rome. VD_Archive_Ph_218.

Described as Triclinium and altar near Stabian Gate 1903.

See Jashemski, W. F., 1993. The Gardens of Pompeii, Volume II: Appendices. New York: Caratzas. (p.25).

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. South-west corner of triclinium, detail of well opening or mouth of cistern.

Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

I.2.28 Pompeii. 1935 photo taken by Tatiana Warscher.

“Il sostegno della tavola”. (Translation: the table support).

See Warscher T., 1935. Codex Topographicus Pompeianus: Regio I.2. (no. 55), Rome: DAIR, whose copyright it remains.

Warscher wrote –

“Il sostegno della tavola è perforato verticalmente per uno tubo: si poteva farne una fontana, si capisce nelle ore in cui non si mangiava nel triclinio.

L’ambiente sotto il triclinio dove si trovavano i tubi del’acquedotto merita una investigazione speciale”.

(translation: "The support of the table was perforated vertically by a pipe: one understood you could make a fountain for the time in which you ate at the triclinium. The area under the triclinium where the water pipes could be found deserved a special "investigation”.)

I.2.28 Pompeii. March 2009. Looking west towards garden triclinium. Each couch had four niches on its inside wall. 

The four from the couch against the west wall are visible here.

Taken from I.2.20. A second cistern-mouth can be seen on the right of the photo.

I.2.28 Pompeii. March 2009. Looking west towards wall on south side of garden triclinium. Taken from I.2.20.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. South wall of triclinium area with window to room overlooking it. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking south across triclinium towards rear room with window, and doorway to tablinum (on left).

Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

According to Warscher, “Il triclinio occupa la parte occidentale del pseudo-peristilio.

Si vedono quattro buchi rettangolari che illuminavano il sotterraneo; l’ingresso a questo ultimo è dalla stanza adiacente (a sinistra nella fotografia no.54 (stanza L)”.

(translation: The triclinium occupied the western part of the pseudo-peristyle. There were four rectangular holes that lit the underneath area; the entrance to this last area was from the adjacent room (on the left in the photograph above”.)

According to Warscher, quoting Mau in Bull. Inst, 1874, p.250/51, she wrote –

“Il peristilio, situate più alto dell’atrio a causa del terreno inuguale, ha corridoi di 3 e 3 colonne sui lati S ed E, mentre verso N ed O confina con le case adiacenti (I.2.17; I.2.22; I.2.24). 

Le colonne sono di mattoni e di stucco rozzo, color di carne fino all’altezza del muriciuolo che le congiunge, bianco di sopra.

La parte occidentale del portico meridionale, posteriormente soltanto, come ci fa testimonianza lo stucco delle colonne, coperto dal muro, ne fu separato e trasformata in una camera, che mediante una porta corrisponde colla camera a sinistra del tablino, mentre verso N con una finestra larga, distante dal suolo m.1,52, si apre sul peristilio.

Sotto il pavimento di questa camera v’è un cavo, largo m. 0,98 + 0,67, profondo m. 1,32, rivestito di stucco e di sopra a metà coperto, mentre l’apertura che rimane evidentemente doveva chiudersi con un coperchio.

Sifatto cavo, il primo di questa sorta che si sia trovato a Pompei, serviva senza dubbio per conservare tutto ciò, che si voleva difendere dal caldo, facendo così le veci d’una piccola cantina.

Sul lato meridionale del peristilio vi è ancora un armadio stretto, aperto verso O, ed il cui fondo viene formato dal muro occidentale della camera a destra dell’atrio, la quale sporge un poco nel peristilio”.

See Warscher T., 1935. Codex Topographicus Pompeianus: Regio I.2. Rome: DAIR, whose copyright it remains.

(translation: "The peristyle, situated higher than the atrium due to the uneven ground, had a walkway of 3 and 3 columns on the south and east sides, while towards the north and west it was bordered with the adjacent homes (I. 2.17; I. 2.22; I. 2.24).

The columns were of brick and rough stucco, red coloured up to a height of a wall that joined them, white above.

As could be seen by the stucco of the columns covered by the wall, the western part of the south portico at the rear only, was separated and transformed into a room, that by means of a door joined with the room to the left of the tablinum, while towards the north, 1,52 m distance from ground,  a large window opened onto the peristyle.

Under the floor of this room there was a pit, 0,98m + 0.67 width, 1,32 m deep, faced with stucco and half covered above, while the opening that remained obviously would need to close with a lid.

Such a pit, the first of its kind to be found at Pompeii, was undoubtedly to preserve everything, that you wanted to protect from the heat, thus making this the place of a small cellar.

On the south side of the peristyle there was still a narrow cupboard, open towards the west, and whose base was formed by the west wall of the room to the right of the atrium, which protruded a little onto the peristyle".)

I.2.28 Pompeii. September 2010. Looking east from triclinium across garden area.

The remains of the cistern-mouth can be seen on the lower right. Photo courtesy of Drew Baker.

I.2.28 Pompeii. March 2009. Looking west towards garden triclinium, and room with window overlooking it. Photograph taken from I.2.20.

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