. Pompeii : its life and art . Fig. 113. — A Tuscan atrium : section. b. Girder. 1 Flat tiles. *•. Corner rafter. 2. Semicylindrical tiles. h. Impluvium. THE POMPEIAN HOUSE 247 tions harmonize fairly well with those recommended by Vitru-vius; but the height, in the cases in which it can be ascertained,is often greater than that contemplated by the rules of thearchitect. Looking at the Pompeian atriums in their present condition(Plate VII, Figs. 116, 146) one might easily receive the impres-sion that they were primarily courts rather than rooms. In thisrespect the restorations of Roman houses i
. Pompeii : its life and art . Fig. 113. — A Tuscan atrium : section. b. Girder. 1 Flat tiles. *•. Corner rafter. 2. Semicylindrical tiles. h. Impluvium. THE POMPEIAN HOUSE 247 tions harmonize fairly well with those recommended by Vitru-vius; but the height, in the cases in which it can be ascertained,is often greater than that contemplated by the rules of thearchitect. Looking at the Pompeian atriums in their present condition(Plate VII, Figs. 116, 146) one might easily receive the impres-sion that they were primarily courts rather than rooms. In thisrespect the restorations of Roman houses in the older books areoften at fault, the atrium being generally represented as too lowin comparison with the rooms around Fig. 114. —Corner of a compluvium with waterspouts and antefixes, reconstructed. The references in the ancient writers uniformly point to thisas the principal room of the house. In the earliest times thehearth stood here ; a hole in the roof served as a chimney. Theaccumulation of soot on the ceiling and the walls suggestedthe characteristic name black room; for atrium comes fromater, black. Here the household gathered at mealtime ; herethey worked, or rested from their labors. In the atrium Lucre-tia sat wi :h her maids spinning late at night when her husbandentered unexpectedly with his friends. Such the atrium remained in farmhouses to the latest name meanwhile was transferred to the correspondingapartment of elegant city homes, while in the country it wentout of use, being replaced by culiua, kitchen, on account of 2 248 POMPEII the presence of the hearth. In such a room in his Sabine villaHorace loved to dine, conversing on topics grave or gay withhis rustic neighbors
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