Friday, October 31, 2008

Herculaneum: House of the Skeleton

 It is about this time that we notice everyone has a tour guide device around their neck with earphones. Deciding this would be a nice thing to have, we start heading for the exit to find the rental kiosk. On the way out, we pass the House of the Skeleton.
 The entry to this house is pretty nondescript from the street. It has been reinforced for stability and has nice tilework on the floor.
 Here is a close-up of the sign on the way in. Note it says Casa dello Scheletro, which is House of the Skeleton in Italian. The house was given this name because a skeleton was found upstairs when the home was escavated. It was one of the few skeletons found in town - most of them were found in the boat houses as residents attempted to flee.
 A close-up of the painting above the niche in the first photo.
A close-up of another painting in the same area. This photo and the previous photo were found on the web.
Finally we start our trek out the exit to find the kiosk. Note the width of the street. Herculaneum, unlike Pompeii, was likely a fairly tidy city as it had underground sewers.


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