Pompeii and Herculaneum

The original edition of Pompeii: A Sourcebook was a crucial resource for students of the site. Now updated to include material from Herculaneum, the neighbouring town also buried in the eruption of Vesuvius, Pompeii and Herculaneum: A Sourcebook allows readers to form a richer and more diverse picture of urban life on the Bay of Naples.

Focusing upon inscriptions and ancient texts, it translates and sets into context a representative sample of the huge range of source material uncovered in these towns. From the labels on wine jars to scribbled insults, and from advertisements for gladiatorial contests to love poetry, the individual chapters explore the early history of Pompeii and Herculaneum, their destruction, leisure pursuits, politics, commerce, religion, the family and society. Information about Pompeii and Herculaneum from authors based in Rome is included, but the great majority of sources come from the cities themselves, written by their ordinary inhabitants - men and women, citizens and slaves.

Encorporating the latest research and finds from the two cities and enhanced with more photographs, maps, and plans, Pompeii and Herculaneum: A Sourcebook offers an invaluable resource for anyone studying or visiting the sites.

Review:

"The first edition of Pompeii: A Sourcebook rapidly established itself as the crucial introduction for students and non-specialists to the complex and fascinating world of Pompeii. Hard as it seemed to improve on the first edition, the new edition, thoroughly reorganized with much new material does just this. The editors have taken a superb book and made it even better." - David S. Potter, University of Michigan, USA.

"A. Cooley (Univ. of Warwick, UK) teams up with M. Cooley (Warwick School, UK) to expand on her original sourcebook, Pompeii (CH, Jun'04, 41-6063), providing a glimpse into the life experiences at Pompeii and Herculaneum. Using a mix of primary and secondary sources such as original documents, inscriptions on monuments, and graffiti, the authors hope to "allow the inhabitants of the two towns to speak for themselves." Summing Up: Recommended. " - CHOICE

"Cooley and Cooley have made several improvements to the first edition.Overall, this sourcebook is an excellent starting point for research into any topic from two sites and an essential reference for any student of Pompeii and Herculaneum."-Jacqueline Frost DiBiasie, The University of Texas at Austin, USA

"...[This book] offers students...a valuable selection of primary source material relating to the history, society, and cultural life of the eponymous cities and provides teachers with vital support....As a work of scholarship and a touchstone for textbook production, the second edition of the volume is a worthy successor to an already well-established and very fine source collection." -Peter Keegan, Macquarie University, Australia