Roman HousingBy: Leah Miller

Layout of Common Upper-class Home (domus)

Taberna

(shop)

Vestibulu

m

(entrance

hall)

Atrium

(formal entrance hall)

Cubiculum (small room or

bedroom)

Triclinium (dining room)

Exedra

(garden

room)

Ala (wings

off atruim)

Culina (kitche

n)

Tablinum (office or study)

Peristylium

(columned garden)

Vestibulum• Long hallway• Connected house to outside

street• Many wall paintings• Pompeii- Priapus god of fertility

• Mosaics on floor• Messages such as:• “Greetings”• “Welcome”• “Welcome money”• “Beware of dog”

Atrium and Ala• Open, airy room• Formal entrance room• Main room with many rooms surrounding• Gathering place of guests and clients• Family occasions• Square hole in center roof• Square pool under hole• Collect rainwater

• Paintings along walls• Myths• Family occasions

• No furniture

Cubiculum• Normally used as bedrooms (inner and upper

level)• Sometimes used as (off atrium):• ‘Conference’ room• Library

• Only furnished with sleeping couch and wooden chest

• One window, maybe two if larger room• Lavish wall paintings

Culina

• The kitchen• Usually in corner or to side• Hot, small, dark, smoky, poor ventilation• Slaves cooked• Brick and stone ovens heated by embers• Top of oven used to keep food warm

Peristylium • Garden surrounded

by columns• Equivalent of lawn• Near back of house• Inner walls covered

in paintings• Pompeii- ‘Venus on the

half-shell’

• Contains lararium- shrine to the gods

• Flowers, shrubs, fountains, benches, fish ponds

Exedra• Garden room• Large and elegant• Off of peristylium• Formal entertainment and dinner parties• Nature-themed wall paintings and

mosaics

Taberna• Shops

• Rented out by masters of house

• Separate doors• Sometimes not even

connected• Shops include:• Wine• Poultry• Bakery

• Helped shield outside noise

Tablinum• Office-like room• Designed to see through atrium and tablinum into the peristylium• Contained:• Family records• Family finances• Busts of famous ancestors• Master of house greeted clients

• Mosaic floors• Detailed wall paintings• Sometimes of family and ancestors• Caelilius house in Pomeii

Triclinium• Dining room• Named after three couches

(lectus)• Wide bed/couch• Different size for sleeping or dining

• Three people per couch• Cathedra (chair with back)

used by women and old men• Beautiful wall paintings• Normally two:• One in back• One on side

Poorer Houses• Poor Romans lived in flats called

insulae• 3 or more floors• First 3 floors were stone; rest were

wood• Ground floor was shops• Small room for one family• Windows only light source• No glass in windows• Dangers:• Collapses• Burn down• Robbery• Lack of room

Villas• Also known as a complex• Country house (wealthier famers)• 3 main parts• Villa urbana• Living spaces; about as comfortable as

domus• Villa rustica• Staff live and work• Stable• Small hospital• Small prison

• Storage space• Grain• Oil• Wine• Products made in villa

Preservation

• Many ruins left over• Many houses in Pompeii• Others in:• England• Germany• Italy• Other countries

• Different portions preserved

• Different kinds preserved• Domus• Insula• Villa

Now vs. Then

•Then:• Layouts are similar• Peristylium courtyard• Slaves live in house• Many generations• Rented out shops• Small dark hot kitchens• A few pieces of furniture• Natural light sources

•Now:• Layouts vary widely• Outdoor yards• No slaves• Normally one generation• Normally no shops• Larger kitchens• More furniture• Natural and unnatural light

Bibliograohy• Photos:• visual.merriam-webster.com• library.thinkquest.org• http://www.vroma.org/~bmcman

us/house.html• University of Pennsylvania

Museum of Archaeology (models)• http://library.thinkquest.org/2286

6/English/Architecture/huizen.html#

• 3sigma.com• trekearth.com• seasunandvillas.com• dgengl3140.blogspot.com• art.com• replica3d.com• www2.bc.edu• cti.itc.virginia.edu• stoneschool.com• onlinehomes.webs.com• vroma.org

Information:• http://www.vroma.org/~bmc

manus/house.html• http://library.thinkquest.org/2

2866/English/Architecture/huizen.html#