01.12.2022

Exhibition: New Light from Pompeii

Lighting is a key to understanding social life

In no other city were such diversely designed bronze lamps found as in Pompeii. The Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich examined 180 finds from Naples and Pompeii for the technology, aesthetics and atmosphere of Roman artificial light. The special exhibition "New Light from Pompeii" at the State Collection of Classical Antiquities in Munich presents the results of the research project until April 2, 2023, with exhibits that for the most part have never been shown before.

How did people see in antiquity?
In Roman homes in the first century AD, there were a wide variety of lighting instruments made of terracotta and bronze – from tall candelabras to handy table lamps. They burned with oil – and not only after nightfall: light also played a major role in Roman festive culture and at banquets. Lighting on these occasions was an expression of hierarchies and social structures and is a key to understanding the society of the time.

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