Herculaneum, a Roman City Frozen in Time

Scavi di Ercolano, entrance to the excavations of Herculaneum

Naples, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in Europe and also one of the largest, of which Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said “see Naples and die,” is truly amazing.  Founded in 470 BC by Greek traders, called Nea-Polis meaning “new city” in Greek, Naples has been ruled by Romans, Ostrogoths, Byzantines, Normans, Swabians, Angevin French, Aragonese, and Bourbons, until Garibaldi united Italy in 1860.  Our short walk in the old part of Naples that we could reach on foot from the harbor gave us the briefest of tastes of this magnificent history.  I so wanted to break away from the tour and visit Cumae, the mysterious site of the Cave of the Sybil, the prophetess of the Roman kings and the site of the entrance to the Underworld in Roman mythology, which was a mere 15 miles west of Naples,  perhaps another time…

Soon we were back on the cruise ship, and for the last time we gathered in the auditorium to join our Herculaneum tour group.   Pompeii and Herculaneum -- the cities of Vesuvius, alive in my imagination for years. The destruction and burial of these two Roman cities on 24 August 79 AD by the volcanic eruption of Mt Vesuvius is so well known, and has been the subject of TV movies and travelling museum exhibits.  But however much one has read, or how many movies seen, or museums visited, there is no substitute for being there.  And how real it felt, seeing Vesuvius looming over the city, a mere 10 miles away, double-peaked now after many explosions, with the scars of lava flows down the sides.

Herculaneum, with the volcano Mt Vesuvius in the distance

 

Herculaneum paved street.  Note depth the city had been buried in 79 AD.

After a 20 minute ride, the tour bus pulled into a non-descript parking lot at the edge of a non-descript town, no sign of ancient city ruins that I could see.  However, once we entered the gate to the “Scavi di Ercolano” and looked down into the excavation area about 30 ft. below street level, we beheld the ancient city of Herculaneum.  Called by some the Beverly Hills of Ancient Rome, it was the resort city of the wealthy Romans, of large two-storey homes decorated with magnificent frescoes, mosaics, and peristyle gardens, of public baths, a huge 25,000 seat theatre, boat docks, and most telling, paved streets free of the wheel-ruts that one sees in Pompeii, a more commercial and industrial city.

Herculaneum two-storey house, with some wall decorations still intact

Elegant home with a peristyle garden

 

There is a theatre buried within this wall of volcanic soil

Herculaneum was re-discovered in 1709 by some workmen digging a foundation for a nobleman’s villa, and for years after the site was subjected to rampant tunneling and pilfering of marble statues and bronze artifacts.  Systematic exploration and preservation only starting in the late 19^th century, hampered by the fact the modern town of Risina was built on the soil above the ruins.  Even now, most of Herculaneum is entombed beneath Resina (renamed Ercolano) including the theatre.  Today Herculaneum is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Herculaneum fast-food joint, the large jars held the food kept warm from the nearby furnace

 

Spectacular mosaic of Neptune and Amphitrite on the wall

 

Lararium for the household gods

Dr G in the atrium of the Samnite House

 

Labrum (wash basin) in the baths

Our tour guide walked us through bakeries, cereal shops the thermal baths, aristocratic homes, and showed us a corner shop that sold hot food and beverages from large terracotta jars, a sort of 2,000 year old fast food joint.  We saw one house with a mosaic floor that had buckled from the hot pyroclastic material that buried it.  We saw charred timbers in the walls of another building, amazingly preserved.  We saw the boat houses on what had been the sea shore, where hundreds of skeletons were discovered in the 1800’s, dispelling the common belief up to that time, that most of the citizens had escaped the volcanic eruption.

The boat houses, where hundreds of skeletons were discovered, victims of the volcano

Tired, parched, and foot-sore, we climbed back on the tour bus, almost solemn with the realization of what happened here 1,934 years ago.  To the east double-peaked Vesuvius served as a reminder of the awful forces of Nature, and how easily a paradise can be swept away.

We four explorers spent our last evening together, the cruise completed.  After dinner and an evening nightcap, we bade each other farewell, with L & G catching a flight back home, and C and I off to spend three days in Rome.  Then I planned to continue my travels to Zurich while C caught a return flight.  Our Mediterranean / Greek Island cruise dream was over -- but what a wonderful time we all had!

Luggage lined up on the dock at the port of  Civitavecchia, with buses ready to transport us back to the Rome airport.  Cruise over   *SIGH*

To be continued…

Last stop, Naples

The day after leaving Santorini we spent at sea, relaxing and reading in lounge chairs by the pool.  A bit sad to realize the cruise was coming to a close.  That evening was a “Formal Night” with the passengers all dressed to kill, and dinner especially elegant.  We splurged on the wine, enjoyed our meal and dessert, and after dinner strolled along the decks admiring all the tuxedos and evening gowns, stopping for a drink in one of the bars in an effort to prolong the experience. 

Naples harbor

The morning found us moored in the ancient port of Naples, and since our guided tour of Herculaneum was scheduled for the afternoon, the four of us walked off the ship and through the Stazione Maritima to do some exploring.  The first edifice we beheld was the massive stone fortress, the “Castel Nuova” built in the days of Charles of Anjou, the first man to claim the title “king of Naples.”  Charles, a Frenchman, the younger brother of King Louis IX (Saint Louis), was a hyper-ambitious, power hungry nobleman who wanted to be king.  His life story -- so intertwined with the history of Sicily and Naples, his overthrow from the throne of Naples and Sicily sparked by the Sicilian Vespers in 1282, and his wars with the German Hohenstaufen rulers – require a skilled historian to unravel.  Try reading the excellent book The Sicilian Vespers by Sir Stephen Runciman, it’s a fascinating story.

 

 The Castel Nuovo from the time of Charles of Anjou

 

The statue of Charles of Anjou, from the Palazzo Reale among the statues of all the kings of Naples.


After a few minutes, we found ourselves in the expansive Piazza del Plebiscito, a public square designed in 1808 by Joachim Murat, a later king of Naples, to honor Napoleon Bonaparte, who was also his brother-in-law.  On the western side of the piazza stood the 17^th century Palazzo Reale, where the Bourbon kings of Naples had their residence.  The long façade was decorated with niches containing huge statues of the Kings of Naples, including Roger of Normandy, Frederick II Hohenstaufen, Charles of Anjou, Alphonso V of Aragon, the Habsburg HRE Charles V, Charles III of Bourbon, Joachim Murat the Bonapartist, and ending with Vittorio Emanuele II.  What a history! 

 The flags and shields of the city of Naples over the great gate of the Palazzo Reale

 The Hohenstaufen Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, another King of Naples.

 The Palazzo Reale from across the Piazza Plebiscito.

 



 

Dominating the eastern side of the piazza was the huge neo-classical church of San Francesco del Paola flanked by long, curving colonnades, also started by Murat for Napoleon, and finished by King Ferdinand II.  We entered the church and at once realized it could have been a full-scale replica of the Pantheon in Rome!  The marble floors, walls, statues, altars were most impressive, and an unexpected treat.







 

 The 19th century church of San Francesco di Paola, looking like an ancient Roman temple.

 Interior of San Francesco di Paola -- remind you of the Pantheon in Rome?

I fell in love with this lion!

With time running short, we strolled over to the famous Galleria Umberto I, the covered shopping zone that was built in the 1880’s with all the glitzy stores and cafés.  Advertising placards outside the shops reminded us that Naples is the cultural home of spaghetti, pizza, and Sophia Loren. All this in the shadow of Vesuvius. 

Galleria Umberto I

 

Next:  Tour of Herculaneum

Enchanted with Santorini

Santorini!!

Doorway to the Archipelagos Restaurant, the tables are many steps below on the side of the cliff.

The Akrotiri tour bus dropped us off at the southern edge of Fira, near an impressive Greek Orthodox monastery.  I immediately set off to find an ATM, while C. chatted with Gerogina the tour guide.  I came back hoping to give Gerogina a nice tip for her great tour, but she had left already, so C. and I started walking through the town center to meet up with L. and G.  Our pre-arranged meeting place was near the cable-car entrance, so we headed there, following the signs painted on the walls of the shops.  What a bustling, crowded town!  The streets were narrow, steep, and at odd angles, and with colorful shops-- we passed several shops that looked very interesting, and made mental notes to return after lunch. 

 Whitewashed walls of a Greek Orthodox monastery in Fira, Santorini

 

The town of Fira -- living on the edge in Santorini.

The crowds became quite thick as we neared the cable-car entrance.  Why the cable-cars?  Because Fira is a town perched on the edge of the steep volcanic cliff, 1150 ft above the sea.  Visitors landing on the shore have a choice of either climbing the 600-odd steps on the zig-zag cobblestone road, or hire a donkey to ride on.  The local donkey owners make a nice living off the tourists too tired to make the climb.  The other alternative is the cable-car, which is not cheap, involves long queues of grumpy passengers, and takes about 15 minutes for the ascent and descent.  When C. and I waited for L. & G. we could observe the short-tempers of the tourists waiting for the cable-car to take them back down to the shore, one fist-fight nearly broke out when some women tried to cut into the line!  Fortunately we avoided any melee and found our friends, all four of us hot, thirsty and hungry.  We stopped at a lovely taverna just at the entrance of the zig-zag cobblestone path down to the shore and grabbed a table which gave us a perfect view of the sparkling Aegean below with the numerous ships, including our cruise ship, at anchor in the bay.  Lunch was a sampling of the salads, dolmades, hummus and pita bread, with ouzo and Greek beer.  For dessert we had the best baklava ever.  L. & G. had been to a wine-tasting tour that morning and came away with a bottle of Vinsanto, meaning Holy Wine, which they promised to share at our post-cruise reunion.  Our waiter was so friendly, he offered to take our photo, a rare pic of what we all agreed was our favorite day. 

 Kastr Taverna near the cable-car entrance, and the site of a lovely lunch.

The dazzling view from our table at the Kastr Taverna.  The bay is deep enough for several cruise ships.  Note the crater-island in the center of the bay.

Refreshed, and after doing some shopping, we debated whether to walk down or fight our way through the queue for the cable-cars.  I think the vote was three against one to walk, so we reluctantly left that lovely town, not wishing to miss the last tender back to the cruise ship.  We had been warned to expect a strong aroma of sweaty donkeys and donkey dung on the zig-zag path.  It was tricky to watch where you step when you can’t take your eyes off the view.  The donkeys were adorned with leather pack saddles and colorful blankets – “kilimia” – and colored beads on their harnesses, very picturesque.  They were also a hazard, being ridden by overweight tourists unskilled at donkey-handling -- I was nearly crushed against the wall by more than one out-of-control donkey. 

 The start of the 600-step path back down the cliff to the shore.

 

Donkeys for hire.

 On the path from Fira back down to the tender dock on the shore.

 

Come to me all ye who are burdened.

The lightweight tender bounced us over the waves on the bay back to the cruise ship, with the view of Fira clinging to the edge of the cliff above us.  The path we had descended from Fira to the shore was clearly visible, and we all sighed with a tinge of regret.  Santorini was a wonderful stop on this cruse, and for me a wonderful diverse spectrum of the history of the Aegean region, a panorama of the beginnings of Western Civilization, and I will certainly return.

Next:  Naples and a tour of Herculaneum...

Santorini -- the Islands of the Volcano

Perhaps it was the plan all along to leave the best to last, but even if not planned, that is what happened.  Over the years I had read about Santorini, and the story of the enormous eruption of the ancient volcano that destroyed the Minoan Civilization in (around) 1650 BC, and about how that catastrophe was linked to the legend of Atlantis.  The prospect of visiting this mythical island was irresistible, and may be what first attracted me to this cruise. 

Santorini, whitewashed churches with blue domes.

The island has had a number of names over the centuries, from Stronghyle, meaning "round", later Calliste, then Thera after an ancient hero, finally to Santa Rini, named by foreign sailors for an island church dedicated to seafarers.  The official name is Thera. Initially the shape of Santorini was round, an inactive volcano on the same violent geologic formation as Mt Etna in Sicily, and Mt Vesuvius and Stromboli near Naples. 
Santorini is one of the southernmost islands of the Cyclades in the Aegean Sea, about 130 miles from Athens, 68 miles from Crete, and 147 miles from Rhodes.  What is left of the island after the eruption is a caldera, the outer walls of the volcano, a land area of about 30 sq miles, with a population of about 8,000.  The largest island is the horseshoe shaped Thera, with small Therasia and smaller Aspronisi at the western opening to the Aegean.  Interestingly, Nea Kameni, the little cone-shaped island in the middle of the bay, is the crater of the present volcano and tourists can visit and climb up to the rim of the crater to get a whiff of the noxious fumes.
When the volcano erupted in around 1650 BC, the center of the island sank (giving rise to the Atlantis legend) to a depth of about 1200 feet, deep enough for all but the largest ships.  Our ship moored in the bay, and we took a tender to the small dock at the foot of the cliff below the main town of Fira.  These cliffs rise about 1150 ft above sea level, and are marked by varying layers of sediment of black, red or grey.  At the top is the whitewashed string of houses and churches of Fira and neighboring villages.

Again, my travel companions L. and G. took a separate excursion to one of the villages for wine-tasting, while C. and I caught the tour bus for the archaeological site of Akrotiri, with first a stop at the highest point of the island -- the monastery Mikros Prophitis Elias.  At 2000 ft above sea level the view was tremendous.  Our tour guide Georgina was most delightful, and regaled us with jokes to relieve our anxiety watching the bus driver maneuver around the tight mountain curves, with no guard rails. 

On top of Santorini at the Monastery of the Prophet Elijah.  Windy, and what a view!

 

The archaeological site of Akrotiri is what I came here for.  Having never visited Crete, this was my first chance to visit a Minoan-era site of antiquity.  Of course "Minoan" refers to the culture of Bronze Age Crete from 2700 BC to 1500 BC, named for mythical King Minos by the British archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans who first explored Crete in the 1920’s.  The Minoan culture has been called the first European civilization, with the earliest cities, written language, agriculture, metallurgy, commerce.  In the late 1400’s BC, the Minoan cities were overrun by Mycenaean Greeks from the mainland, and the center of civilization shifted away from Crete.  The ease of this invasion has been attributed to some natural catastrophe that disrupted the Minoans’ ability to defend themselves.  By the mid-20^th century, archaeologists, geologists, and seismologists were proposing theories that the earthquakes and volcanic eruptions of  Bronze Age Thera (Santorini) were responsible for the decline of the Minoan civilization.
The excavations at Akrotiri started in 1967 by the famed Greek archaeologist Prof. Spiros Marinatos.  He had waited for 30 years to test his hypothesis that the volcanic eruption of Thera had caused the destruction of Minoan Crete, 68 miles to the south, through earthquakes, dust and ash, seismic waves, and a massive tsunami 70 meters high crashing into the coastal cities on Crete.  Prof Marinatos found much more at Akrotiri, a Pompeii-like preserved Bronze Age city encased in volcanic ash and pumice, with intact walls of three-story houses, pottery, frescoes, furniture, even remnants of food.

The 3,700 year-old archaeological site of Akrotiri, protected under this modern building

Were these large pottery vessels for storing food for the community?

Looking down on a building, with the rain gutters still intact, and evidence of the sewer line under the street.

Clay pipes from the aqueduct that supplied water to the city.

The site has had a new million-euro enclosure constructed to protect it while archaeological studies continue.  Georgina herded our tour group around, explaining, directing our attention, offering the latest theories, speculating with us in answering our questions. 

Even with only about half of the Bronze Age site excavated, some details of life at this site may be inferred from archaeological evidence.  For instance, the people who lived here prior to the volcanic eruption numbered from 3,000 to 5,000 (I've read estimates of up to 30,000 inhabitants), in an egalitarian social structure with women enjoying the same rights as men.  They built a city of two and three story multi-purpose houses, with workshops on the ground floor, and living quarters above, no temples and no palaces. The buildings had indoor plumbing and sewer pipes carried off the wastes.  The interior walls were decorated with frescoes of such brilliance and, unlike Egyptian art, was so natural and free that they look quite modern.  The ladies depicted in the frescoes have elegant coiffures, clothing, and signs of lipstick and nail polish!
No written records have been discovered, and the name of the city is unknown, called Akrotiri now because of the modern town nearby. To date, and unlike at Pompeii, the excavations have not uncovered any human skeletons buried in the ash and pumice, and no objects of value except a small gold figure of an ibex. Archaeologists have theorized that the residents heeded the warning signs, whether small earthquake rumblings, or perhaps the volcano had been sending out clouds of smoke.  It may be the people interpreted these signs correctly and gathered up their valuables and escaped the catastrophe -- to where, no one knows.

As we filed back out into the sunshine and on the bus, Georgina told us another interesting tidbit, that centuries after the volcano's eruption provided the remaining population with an unexpected industry, that of quarrying pumice.  She told us there would be samples of pumice rocks for sale in Fira, and that Santorini had a booming business exporting very fine pumice, low enough density to float, and very valuable for making an insulating concrete.  She said the pumice quarries on Santorini supplied the pumice for making the concrete for the Suez Canal in the 1860's.

The morning excursion over, the tour bus left us off in Fira at the top of the cliff overlooking the bay, near the beautiful Greek Orthodox monastery, and C. and I started looking for L. and G. for the afternoon of exploring -- and, naturally, a café for some ouzo!

Next: wandering around Santorini!

More photos of Ephesus

On our short visit to the western coast of Turkey, the port of Kusadasi and the ancient Greco-Roman city of Ephesus, we also had a brief tour of the Basilica of St John the Apostle.

 Basilica of St John the Apostle - Signs in English for the tourists.

 In around 565 AD the Roman Emperor Justinian built this enormous church over what was believed to be the tomb of St John, who survived the persecutions of Domitian and spent his final years at Ephesus, writing his Epistles and the Book of Revelation before dying around 100 AD.  Not much is left of the Basilica, once so huge and magnificent, a rival to Istanbul's Hagia Sophia. The ruins are near the citadel in Selcuk, now a jumble of brick and stone, very difficult to detect the original cross-shape of the building. 

 Built around 565 AD, and destroyed by the Seljuk Turks in the 12th century

 

 Exterior of the Basilica of St John

 

 Interior of the Basilica...

 

 The Tomb of St John the Apostle

 

 Impressive ruins of the Basilica

 

 Part of the exterior wall and some examples of carved stonework

 

 Can't resist posting another photo of the beautiful Turkish carpets, hand-woven in silk and wool.

 

 Back in Ephesus, two local women are trying to do their shopping and avoid the tourists.

 

 The long, straight paved Roman road through Ephesus, leading to what was the port.

 

 I just loved how artistically the proprietor of this concession stand displayed these oranges

 

The cats of Ephesus, oblivious to the dust, heat, and mobs of tourists.

 

 

After the return bus ride through quaint hillside villages surrounded by olive groves and fruit orchards, we made it back to the cruise ship, and set sail for the next stop:

SANTORINI!!