Herculaneum VI.16. Shop. Linked to atrium of VI.17.

Excavated 1961-62.

Wallace-Hadrill wrote that this was a single room shop linked to atrium, elegant style III decoration from earlier phase as a cubiculum of the house at 17.

See Wallace-Hadrill, A., 1994. Houses and Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum. New Jersey: Princeton U.P. (p.206)

Guidobaldi wrote that originally this shop had been a cubiculum opening into the atrium and painted in III Style. Of great interest was the frieze with a rectangular painted panel with a sacrificial scene in the presence of Hercules: in this scene according to some studies would be shown the foundation of the cult of Hercules at the Ara Massima (Great Altar) in the Forum Boarium in Rome, according to others the myth of the foundation of Herculaneum.

See Guidobaldi, M.P, 2009: Ercolano, guida agli scavi. Naples, Electa Napoli, (p.107-110).

See Pesando, F. and Guidobaldi, M.P. (2006). Pompei, Oplontis, Ercolano, Stabiae. Editori Laterza, (p.366-368)

The 18th century excavators removed the shop’s flooring in opus sectile, and irreparably damaged the decoration of the lower part of the walls, of which little remains. However, we can tell that the black ground dado was fairly low and adorned with simple geometric elements defined by thin white lines. The decoration of the middle zone varied from wall to wall.

See Guidobaldi, M.P. and Esposito, D. (2013). Herculaneum: Art of the Buried City. U.S.A, Abbeville Press, (p.191)

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Looking south through entrance doorway.

VI.16 Herculaneum. August 2021.

Looking towards east wall and south-east corner, with doorway to atrium of VI.17 in south wall. Photo courtesy of Robert Hanson.

VI.16 Herculaneum. October 2023.

Looking towards east wall and south-east corner, with doorway to atrium of VI.17 in south wall, under renovation.

Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. Photo taken between October 2014 and November 2019.

Detail of painted decoration on upper east wall and south-east corner. Photo courtesy of Giuseppe Ciaramella.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2017. Looking towards upper east wall and south-east corner. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Looking towards east wall and south-east corner.

VI.16 Herculaneum, June 2014.

Looking towards east wall and south-east corner. Photo courtesy of Michael Binns.

VI.16 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking towards east wall and south-east corner. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.16 Herculaneum. May 2004. Looking towards the painted decoration on east wall. Photo courtesy of Nicolas Monteix.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2021.

Upper painting at north end of east wall showing a statue of a maenad holding a cornucopia.

Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. October 2022.

Detail of painted maenad holding a cornucopia, from upper north end of east wall. 

Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Upper painting from north end of east wall.  

VI.16 Herculaneum. May 2009. Upper painting at north end of east wall. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.16 Herculaneum. October 2001.

Upper painting at north end of east wall. Photo courtesy of Peter Woods.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Remaining painting at north end of east wall.

VI.16 Herculaneum. August 2013. Looking along east wall towards south-east corner of shop. Photo courtesy of Buzz Ferebee.

VI.16 Herculaneum. May 2006. East wall and south-east corner of shop.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2016.

Upper central painting from east wall. Photo courtesy of Michael Binns.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Upper central painting from east wall.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Detail of panel from upper central painting on east wall.

VI.16 Herculaneum. March 2014. Looking towards south wall in south-east corner.

Foto Annette Haug, ERC Grant 681269 DÉCOR.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. East side of south wall in south-east corner.

VI.16, Herculaneum, April 2018. South-east corner. Photo courtesy of Ian Lycett-King.

Use is subject to Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License v.4 International.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2017. Panel on east side of south wall. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2021. Detail of panel on east side of south wall. Photo courtesy of Klaus Heese.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Detail of panel on east side of south wall.

VI.16 Herculaneum. May 2006. Detail of painted panel in south wall.

According to some, this panel shows a sacrificial scene in the presence of Hercules.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015.

One of the ancient glass display cabinets placed at Herculaneum by Maiuri.

Now containing some fragments of stucco belonging to the four-sided arch opposite the shop, on the north side of Decumanus Maximus.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. South-west corner.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Decoration from south-west corner.

VI.16 Herculaneum. September 2015. Doorway in south-west corner, linking to atrium of VI.17.

Originally this room at VI.16 would have been a cubiculum.

VI.16 Herculaneum. 7th August 1976.

Looking through doorway in south-west corner, linking to atrium of VI.17.

Photo courtesy of Rick Bauer, from Dr George Fay’s slides collection.

VI.16 Herculaneum. May 2006. Shop on left. Entrance doorway to VI.17 House of the Tuscan Colonnade, on right.

On the left is the doorway to a linked shop, with doorway in rear wall into atrium.

On the right is the doorway leading to the atrium.

VI.16, on left and VI.17, on right, Herculaneum. July 2003. 

Pilaster between the two doorways. Photo courtesy of Nicolas Monteix.

VI.16, on left and VI.17, on right, Herculaneum. May 2004.  

Detail of lower portion of pilaster between the two doorways. Photo courtesy of Nicolas Monteix.

VI.16, Herculaneum, on right. September 2015. Looking east along the Decumanus Maximus.