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VERBAL AND VISUAL LITERACIES OF ANCIENT ROME
Rebecca Benefiel: "The presence of writing in elite residences: graffiti and space in ancient Pompeii"
Wednesday May 02, 2012 | 12:00 -02:15 PM | Room 380

Why would someone scribble a note on the wall inside a wealthy home? In the first century AD, it wasn't just someone but virtually everyone who took stylus in hand and inscribed a name, thoughts, a favorite poem, or greetings on ordinary wall surfaces. No town illustrates the phenomenon better than Pompeii, which has yielded more than 11,000 wall inscriptions so far. Where did these inscriptions appear? Who was responsible for creating them? What do they reveal about attitudes toward public and private space, or toward the act of writing? In this hands-on workshop, we will focus on three large Pompeian residences and examine how wall inscriptions can contribute to our understanding of activity in the Pompeian house as well as a lively popular interest in communicating through the act of writing.