All the time, my thought turned to China. One could only wonder what treasures have been lost forever - or is waiting to be discovered - from comparable era of the Chinese civilization which I believe must be no less impressive. Just look at the Great Wall. The main difference can perhaps be summed up in one word: stone. Things made from stone withstood the test of time better than finer materials like wood, paper and cloth.
Looking at evidence of human affairs and creation from so long ago, I was reminded that all human concerns and undertakings are mere scratches on the surface of history.
As we landed in Naples, the ominous outlines of Mt. Versuvius loomed clearly alongside the Bay of Naples. It was the same sight that greeted Greek mariners who came to establish their colonies, ancient Romans who came for leisure and for escape from public life in Rome (or fresh from slaughtering some Gothic tribes or putting the torch on the Temple of Jeruselem) or which greeted 18th century European grand tourists. Even as a young and turbulent mountain, it was a constant relative to the rise and fall of human society and civilization all around it.
Even though it was buried 2000 years ago, the ruins of Pompeii puts much of modern-day artistry, town planning and development (especially in the ugly urban sprawl around it today) to shame. And it was humbling to realise that it was already a very old town (300 years old) even when it was destroyed in AD 79. And Pompeii was also much larger than I had imagined. It easily measured 2km long and just as wide. Many of the ruins are not even excavated yet. But what can already be seen are highly impressive: the road system (complete with pedestrian crossings and track-marks from ancient chariots and carraiges), the public utlilties (water system etc.), the shopping area (long stretches of fast food shops as evident from "countertops" with holes for bowls and jars to display the food), the public forum, the various temples to different gods, numerous brothels (locked when visited: but apparently with interesting "menus" for pleasure decorated on the walls), numerous theatres, a stadium and above all, the many private houses - some of which have been partly restored to display beautiful and well-preserved mosaic works and wall paintings. What is surprising is that so much of that were left at the ruins and exposed to the elements; quite apparently, those are not the best stuff which have been taken away for storage in museums.
Even though it was buried 2000 years ago, the ruins of Pompeii puts much of modern-day artistry, town planning and development (especially in the ugly urban sprawl around it today) to shame. And it was humbling to realise that it was already a very old town (300 years old) even when it was destroyed in AD 79. And Pompeii was also much larger than I had imagined. It easily measured 2km long and just as wide. Many of the ruins are not even excavated yet. But what can already be seen are highly impressive: the road system (complete with pedestrian crossings and track-marks from ancient chariots and carraiges), the public utlilties (water system etc.), the shopping area (long stretches of fast food shops as evident from "countertops" with holes for bowls and jars to display the food), the public forum, the various temples to different gods, numerous brothels (locked when visited: but apparently with interesting "menus" for pleasure decorated on the walls), numerous theatres, a stadium and above all, the many private houses - some of which have been partly restored to display beautiful and well-preserved mosaic works and wall paintings. What is surprising is that so much of that were left at the ruins and exposed to the elements; quite apparently, those are not the best stuff which have been taken away for storage in museums.
In the basement where we saw the remnants of the theatre, we noticed a perculiar pattern of brickwork (something we also saw in Pompeii) where the bricks were laid on their corners - at a 45 degree angle - such that they form the shape of diamonds. Upon asking, it turned out that those were walls build using Roman "seismic" or anti-earthquake technology! (Some of those brick arrangements can be seen above the arch in the picture of Pompeii's "small" theatre above) Apparently, the Romans learnt that walls built that way could withstand the impact of an earthquake. No wonder, so much of Pompeii had survived a strong earthquake just a few years before the volcanic eruption buried the town.
We saw more evidence of Roman civilization at the Naples Museum the next day. The highlights were the relics from Pompeii and other ruins from the area, and the Farnese collection of Roman sculptures. One rarely sees such wonderful works of great artistic merit notwithstanding that they were 2000 years old. From the excavations in Pompeii and Herculaneum, we saw very finely detailed wall paintings done in exquisitely beautiful hand by the artists. There were decorative objects, I was most impressed by a glazed glass bowl with different layers of glass from which the artist etched relief drawings from mythology.
Though made of stone or bronze, the standard of artistry of the sculptures is so outstanding that one feels the energy/spirit of the figure represented; and the lightness, beauty and balance of the composition; and forgetting the denseness of the materials used. (Pictured below, a massive sculpture originally from the Bath of Caricalla)
Fast forward to the northern borders. A thousand miles away from Italy, we were at the northern boundaries of the Roman Empire in Northumbria and Hadrian's Wall or the Roman Great Wall. 
It ran only for about 100 miles with a garrison fort at every mile and 2 watch towers in between each garrison. It is perhaps what the original Qin Dynasty great wall was like, made of piled stone approximately 8-10 feet high plus an outer defensive ditch, and greatly utilizing the natural contours of the land to best benefit. It was the outer reaches of an immense empire that is linked militarily, administratively, economically and culturally from the windswept hill tops of Northern England to Mother-Rome; and from there another thousand miles south to Aswan in Egypt, a thousand miles West to Spain and Morocco, a thousand miles east to present day Iraq. There I felt that I had come to realised what the immensity of empire must have felt like to the citizens of Rome or Qin or Persia: it must have felt like one is has the power and responsibilities over all of the civilized world.
2 comments:
I have been very busy lately, I learnt of your post after returning to HK. This blod is still blocked by the new Great Wall.
Excellent travelogue with a very sharp eye for details captured with a strong grasp of world history.
I salute the Roman in a way that the ancient chinese were unable to accomplish. I don't know if you feel the same way. many of the Roman ruins were intended for public - to name a few the almost omni-present Roman theatre in the empire, the bath house, whereas the Chinese ruins were almost the exclusive preserve enjoyed or fancy created by the powerful.
I really admire the Roman Public Ownership over that of the Chinese concept of Jia Tain Xia - Dynastic Family Ownership.
Dear Bro,
Welcome to the otherside of the Digital Great Wall. Its a strange notoriaty for us to be "banned", sounds like we must be highly dangerous to national "harmony" or to the "feelings of the Chinese people"!
The foundation of the Roman government is the "republic" - not imperial. And each Roman (except slaves, women, minors and foreigners) are considered "citizens" of Rome, and are expected to exercise their civic duties including politics, taxation and military service.
It was therefore seen as a tragedy when after the death of Julius Ceasar, Augustus made himself the first Roman Emperor setting the scene for what many consider the decline of Rome.
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