A Roman house was not just a family home: it was also a place of business, a political power-base, and a venue for social networking and self-presentation. This module examines the architecture and decoration of surviving houses, villas, apartments and palaces in and around Rome, Ostia, Pompeii and Herculaneum, from the late Republic and early Principate (second century BC to second century AD), and explores different methods of understanding and interpreting those remains. Literary sources such as Vitruvius, Cicero, Pliny and Petronius are used to give an insight into the role of the house in Roman social, political and family life. We will consider various themes in the study of Roman houses, such as: concepts of public and private space; the meaning of architectural forms and interior decoration; the house as a social space; Roman debates about luxury and propriety; the role of the house in politics; and the development of Imperial palaces.

• demonstrate a knowledge and critical understanding of the archaeological evidence for Roman housing, and of literary sources relevant to Roman domestic life.
• relate trends in Roman housing to the social, political and economic context of the period.
• demonstrate a knowledge and critical understanding of different approaches to the study of domestic space.
• demonstrate a knowledge and critical understanding of modern debates relevant to Roman housing, and an ability to evaluate the evidence with reference to these debates.
• demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between textual and material evidence.
• discuss these issues in written work with coherent and logical arguments, clearly and correctly expressed.

10 lectures and 2 seminars; independent study

The lectures present an outline of the archaeological and literary evidence for Roman housing, and provide a framework for the interpretation of that evidence by introducing the major approaches and debates that have shaped research into the subject. They should be thought of as a useful starting-point for further discussion and independent study. Slides and, where appropriate, handouts are used to illustrate the material discussed.

The seminars provide an opportunity for students to analyse and discuss key issues and topics in the module, and to get feedback on their ideas from the tutor and their peers. Handouts with material for study and suggestions for preparatory reading will be circulated prior to the seminars.

Independent study enables students to familiarise themselves with the primary source material and the most important modern approaches and debates on the subject. A reading list is provided, with guidance on key items of reading for major themes and lecture topics.

• analysis of a variety of different types of historical evidence, such as literary texts and material evidence
• observation and visual analysis
• assimilating and synthesising complex information and ideas
• critical thinking skills, such as analysing and evaluating evidence, critiquing interpretations or arguments, and challenging assumptions
• constructing and defending arguments based on evidence
• clear, accurate and effective communication of ideas and arguments in writing and in debate
• employing basic skills and conventions in the presentation and use of literary and material evidence
• bibliographic and referencing skills
• contributing to group discussions
• using IT resources effectively
• independent working and time management

The module will be assessed through an exam consisting of one essay question and one source analysis exercise, weighted 70:30 (100%).

The essay question will require knowledge and critical deployment of evidence and critical understanding of modern approaches and scholarship to answer questions and construct arguments relating to the analysis of material remains of Roman housing and the role of the house in Roman social, political and family life.

In the source analysis exercise, specific written or material sources relating to Roman housing will be set, and students will be required to discuss their significance, thus deploying their knowledge of the issues and interpretations of the evidence.

Type of assessment = EXSP

% Contribution = 100

Title = Houses in Roman Italy

Duration = 1.5 hours
(if applicable)

Approx. date of Assessment = spring semester

The opportunity for reassessment in this module

Students who fail the module will normally be expected to resit the failed component(s) in the summer resit period.

• the development of Roman housing in the late Republic and early Principate, and its relationship to social, political and economic change
• interior decoration: the meaning and functions of wall painting, mosaics and sculpture
• domestic space and society: concepts of public and private space; the relationship between space, gender and status
• reconstructing the use of space through texts, architecture, artefacts and decoration
• the economic role of the household
• the house as political power-base; Roman debates about luxury and propriety
• the development of the Imperial palace

Essential reading and resource list

I.M. Barton, Roman Domestic Buildings (1996)

J.R. Clarke, The Houses of Roman Italy, 100 B.C.–A.D. 250. Ritual, Space, and Decoration (Berkeley 1991)

S.P. Ellis, Roman Housing (2000)

S.J. Hales, The Roman House and Social Identity (2003)

R. Laurence, Roman Pompeii: Space and Society (1996)

R. Laurence and A. Wallace-Hadrill (eds.), Domestic Space in the Roman World: Pompeii and Beyond (1997)

E. Leach, The Social Life of Painting in Ancient Rome and on the Bay of Naples (2004)

R.J. Ling, Roman Painting (1991)

J.T. Smith, Roman Villas: A Study in Social Structure (1998)

A. Wallace-Hadrill, Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum (1994)

P. Zanker, Pompeii: Public and Private Life (1998)

Plus a general historical book on the period, such as:

R. Alston, Aspects of Roman History AD 14–117 (1998)

P.A. Brunt, Social Conflicts in the Roman Republic (1971; reprinted 1978, 1986)

M. Crawford, The Roman Republic (second edition, 1993)

H. Swain and M. Everson Davies, Aspects of Roman History 82 BC–AD 14 (2010)

H.H. Scullard, From the Gracchi to Nero (fifth edition, 1982)

C.M. Wells, The Roman Empire (second edition, 1995)

See the module handout for the full reading list.