Unknown Maker, Roman

Buried by the same volcanic eruption that destroyed Pompeii in 79 CE, this wall painting comes from the domestic quarters of a country farm (villa rustica) on the Bay of Naples. This panel is only a small fragment of the original composition, which would have been painted directly onto the walls of the room. During excavation these walls were cut in pieces, which were then dispersed to various museums; fragments from this same room can also be found in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.

In this panel, imaginary architectural elements, like the delicate structure and plantlike column on the left, create a highly ornamental surface that evokes a sense of grandeur. Images associated with the wine god Bacchus, specifically the drinking horn and the veiled basket (liknon) seen in this panel, and the hanging theater masks found on other sections of the wall, were used to evoke a lush, wine-rich environment befitting a Roman banquet. The room that housed this fresco, most likely a dining room (triclinium), thus provided a conspicuous display of the owner’s wealth, culture, and intellect through this dramatic depiction of architecture and myth.