The Department of Classical Studies at Tulane University with The New Orleans Chapter of The Archaeological Institute of America presents “Communal Water, Invisible Labor: Modeling the Social Impact of Pompeii’s Street Fountains” by Matthew Notarian (Hiram College).
Date ~ Wednesday, October 23, 2024
Time ~ 6:30PM
Location ~ Jones 108
The remarkable preservation of the Roman city of Pompeii provides unprecedented insight into an aqueduct-fed urban water system. Visitors often marvel at the city’s network of public street fountains, but few consider the practical consequences of the tedious but essential labor required to transport water into living spaces. Fountains served as neighborhood hubs, channeling movement through streets and facilitating social interactions. Their distribution also influenced water accessibility, with severe implications for public health and socioeconomic status. The burden of water collection fell heaviest on those at the margins of Roman society – subelite women, children, and, especially, the enslaved – classes which are virtually invisible in the textual and visual record. This talk will present the results of a complex digital spatial model that sheds light on these issues at a household-level scale, as well as an ongoing project of 3D analysis that aims to quantify use-wear on public fountain basins. Together, they represent a significant first step toward repopulating Pompeii’s streets with indispensable but often forgotten laborers.
Tulane University is committed to providing universal access to all our events. Please contact Elizabeth M Reyna (ereyna@tulane.edu, 504-865-5719) the event organizer for accessibility accommodations. Please note that advance notice is necessary to arrange some accessibility needs.