A Bronze Hook with Chain

This was found together with other objects (hooks, net weights, a knife, remains of a wicker basket) that were part of the fishing tackle (instrumentum piscatorium) belonging to an inhabitant of a country house located in the southern outskirts of Pompeii.

A Fishbone Helmet

Part of a fish skeleton from the species Dactylopterus volitans L., the flying gurnard, found inside a building in Pompeii.

Rock with Mussels

A portion of marine rock with date mussels (Lithophaga lithophaga L.) originating from the Pompeian coast.

Wall Painting with Aphrodite

Frescoed panel showing a deity on a transport vessel. At the bottom there was a Greek inscription, no longer visible, naming her 'Aphrodite the protectress'. The painting was found in the House of Lesbianus in Pompeii.

Fragment of a Clay Amphora Containing Garum

Part of the body of a transport amphora with remnants of its contents of scales, fishbones and a solid residue of garum which is a fish-sauce made through the maceration of small fish, also produced in Pompeii and widely used in Roman cuisine.

Pine Needles, Cones and Pine Nuts

Plant remains found in the excavations of the city of Herculaneum, attesting the presence of the species Pinus pinea L.

Basket Made of Plant Fibre

Small miniature reed basket, with a lid, found in a domus in Pompeii.

The Plain
South of Pompeii and crossed by the Sarno river, a large plain expanded which was cultivated and fertile in places while marshy in others. The land was divided into plots by the agrimensores (land surveyors) and was cultivated with iron tools such as hoes, shovels, and rakes.

Iron Hoe

A work tool found in a building in Pompeii used to shape the soil. A wooden handle would have been fitted through its eye.

Marble Tombstone

Reused in a tomb in the Pompeian necropolis at Porta Nocera. The epigraph commemorates Popidius Nicostratus, an agrimensor (land surveyor), as proven by the tools sculpted on his tombstone: a groma, stakes, and a plumb line, of which only the cord is still preserved.

The Hilly Region
The slopes of Mount Vesuvius and the overlooking Lattari Mountains were dedicated to the cultivation of vines and olives, two particularly widespread and profitable crops.

Wine Amphora

Clay transport amphora, which can be ascribed to the type Dressel 2-4, used to transport wine.

Oil Amphora

Clay transport amphora, which can be ascribed to the type Ostia LIX, used to transport oil.

Fruit Amphora

Clay transport amphora, which can be ascribed to the Pompeian type Schöne 4. The inscription painted on its neck describes its content (mal(a) cum(ana) ver(a) meaning real apples from Cumae), the weight, and the initials P.C.Z. which could possibly be those of the producer.

Olives

Olives (Olea europaea L.) with the seed and part of their pulp still intact. They were used as food.

Peach Stone

A peach stone found in a domus in Pompeii. The plant remains document the cultivation in the Vesuvian area of this botanical species (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) which, according to ancient sources, was indigenous to Persia.

Mountains

The peak of Mount Vesuvius was covered with woods inhabited by wild animals. Hunting, picking berries, plants and mushrooms, and wood cutting, were the main human activities carried out in the area.

A Set of Four Bone Dice

Found in a building in Pompeii which served as hotel, these are one of the many objects that could be produced with bone and horn available thanks to hunting.

Corna di cervo

Palco di cervo, rinvenuto in una bottega di Pompei, ai piedi del bancone di vendita ed utilizzato probabilmente come trofeo.

Wax Tablet 
A wooden tablet with a wax- coated surface with accounts inscribed with a stylus was found in a building excavated south of Pompeii at Moregine, together with other specimens that composed the archive of the Sulpicii, a banking family from Pozzuoli.

Billhook

A billhook with an iron blade and a wooden handle still preserved, used for pruning branches and trunks. It was found in the House of the Menander in Pompeii.

Urban Green

In the Vesuvian cities, the houses had green spaces of various sizes. There were small vegetable patches for officinal plants, or large gardens populated by domestic animals and decorated with marble furnishings.

Wall Painting with Garden

The frescoed panel reproduces the layout of a garden and highlights the attention the ancient population of Pompeii paid to topiary.  It was originally on the external portico on the west side of the Villa Imperiale in Pompeii and can be ascribed to the third Style.

Marble Statue
A statuette depicting a greyhound attacking a small hare. Together with other statues this decorated the edge of a fountain in a Pompeian domus, that of Loreio Tiburtino or D. Octavius Quartio.

Clay Feeding Trough

A clay feeding trough for small courtyard animals that populated Pompeian gardens.

Cast of a Leaf

The mark of a holm-oak leaf (Quercus ilex L.) remained on a layer of compact cinerite dating back to the 79 A.D. eruption. The tree had decorated the garden of a Stabian villa.

Crops and Livestock

The finds displayed show the breeding of several domestic and wild species and that of the cultivation of cereals, fruits and vegetables in the Vesuvian area.

Glirarium

A lidded, clay, cylindrical container with holes on its walls was used for breeding dormice.

Iron Shears

Iron shears used for fleecing was found in a Pompeian domus. Similar to those that are still in use today, they were used for cutting wool and widely traded in Pompeii.

Cast of a Pig

Plaster cast made of a pig skeleton during the excavation of the country villa located at Villa Regina in Boscoreale. It testifies to the presence of pig farms in the Vesuvian area.

Cast of a Dog

Plaster cast of a dog made during the excavation of the domus of Vesonius Primus in Pompeii in the 19^th century. The collar is still intact and was used to tie the dog onto a chain. It prevented the dog from running away during the 79 A.D. eruption.

Iron Scythe

A scythe with a long, pointed blade and a wooden handle which is still preserved. It was used for harvesting and cutting the grass.

Carbonised Bread
A carbonised loaf of bread found inside a Pompeian building.

Handmill Made of Volcanic Rock
A handmill consisting of a fixed element (meta) and a moveable one (catillus) used for the domestic grinding of cereals.

Figs
A specimen of a large quantity of figs (Ficus carica L.) found in the city of Herculaneum.

Nuts
A sample of a group of nuts (Junglans regia L.) found in the city of Herculaneum.

Pomegranates
A sample of a huge amount of pomegranates (Punica granatum L.) found in Oplontis, in the ‘Villa B’, laid on wicker mats for their preservation.

Donkey Millstone made of Volcanic Rock
A donkey millstone, composed of a fixed (meta) and a movable, hourglass-shaped part (catillus), which also functioned as a hopper. It was found in a villa of the Vesuvian area.

Medicine
On display are finds that document the medical and pharmacological practices of the people of Pompeii, and of which plant and animal species were used.

Bronze Scalpel Handle
The handle of a surgical instrument, and a similar one along with its wooden case were found in a Pompeii domus.

Glass Vase
A glass, pear-shaped container for liquids, used to preserve medicine.

Perfumes and Make Up
Finds of substances made based on plant extracts and used for the Pompeians’ personal care are on display. 

Bone Comb
A fine-toothed comb with second row of larger, short, shaped edges found at the ‘House of Marcus Fabius Rufus of Pompeii’.

Bronze Mirror
A small, circle-shaped bronze mirror with a short baluster handle, decorated on the back with concentric grooves was found in Pompeii.

Glass Unguentarium
A pink-purple, pinecone-shaped unguentarium was found with a similar one in a building of Pompeii.

Glass Unguentarium
A sky blue unguentarium, found in Pompeii.

Glass Unguentarium
A yellow unguentarium with a peculiar pointed bottom was found in Pompeii.

Sacred Plants and Animals
Plants and particular animals were also used for religious rites.

The ‘Magical Vase’
A clay olla with small censer bowls as handles, and rich sculptural decoration on the body portraying various animal and plant species. It was used for religious practices and comes from the ‘Complex of magical rites’ of Pompeii.

Bronze Bust
A bust portraying a young priest, as the sash draped over sides of his face tells, and a member of Marcus Fabius Rufus’ family, in whose house it was found.

Types of Textile and Dye-works
Samples of fabrics, and animal and plant fibres, hailing from the excavations of Vesuvian towns, are on display

Esparto Sandal
A plant fibre sandal sole, hailing from the city of Herculaneum.