ROME (AP) – A fast-food eatery in Pompeii has been excavated, helping to reveal dishes that were popular with the citizens of the ancient Roman city who partially ate out.
Massimo Osanna, longtime head of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, said on Saturday that although about 80 such fast foods were found in Pompeii, it was the first time that such a hot-eat-drink restaurant – known as a thermopolium – had has been excavated.
A segment of the fast-food counter was partially excavated in 2019 during work to uncover Pompeii’s often crumbling ruins. Since then, archaeologists have continued to dig and uncover a versatile counter, with typical wide holes in the top. The worksheet held deep barrels for hot food, not unlike garbage containers housed in contemporary salad bars.
Plant and animal specialists are still analyzing remains of the site, using the fresco counter with a figure of an underwater nymph on a horse. Images of two upside-down wild ducks and a rooster, whose plumage was painted with the typical vibrant color known as Pompeii red, also brightened the dining room and probably advertised the menu.
Another fresco depicted a dog on a leash, perhaps no different from modern memories of pets. Vulgar graffiti was affixed to the frame of the painting.
Valeria Amoretti, an anthropologist from Pompeii, said “initial analyzes confirm how the painted images represent, at least in part, the food and beverages sold inside.” In her statement, it is noted that duck bone fragment was found in one of the containers, as well as remains of goats, pigs, fish and snails. Amoretti found traces of ground fava beans on the bottom of a wine container, which were added to wine in ancient times to lighten the taste.
“We know what they ate that day,” Osanna said, referring to the day of Pompeii’s destruction in 79 AD. The food scraps indicated “what is popular with the common people,” Osanna told Rai State TV. is not visited by the Roman elite.
One surprise was the complete skeleton of a dog. The discovery interested the excavators because it was not a ‘large, muscular dog like the one painted on the counter, but an extremely small example’ of an adult dog 20 to 25 centimeters tall ( 8- to 10 centimeters), Amoretti said. Amoretti said that it is quite rare to find remains of such small dogs from ancient times, discoveries that “testify to selective breeding in the Roman period to obtain this result.”
Also excavated were a bronze spoon, nine amphorae, which were popular food containers in Roman times, a few bottles and a ceramic oil container.
Successful restaurateurs know that a good location can be crucial, and it seems that the manager of this antique fast food place has found a good place. Osanna noticed that just outside the eatery was a small square with a fountain, with another thermopolium in the vicinity.
Pompeii was destroyed by the volcanic eruption of Vesuvius, which is near present-day Naples. A large part of the ancient city still lies unburied. The site is one of Italy’s most popular tourist attractions.
Human remains were also discovered during the excavation of the eatery.
The bones were apparently disturbed in the 17th century during clandestine excavations by thieves in search of valuables, authorities in Pompeii said. Some of the bones belonged to a man who, when the Vesuvius volcano erupted, was apparently lying on a bed or a cot as nails and pieces of wood were found under his body, authorities said. Other human remains were found in one of the counters, possibly placed there by those excavators centuries ago.