2. Social Structure and
Status
• Society in Pompeii and Herculaneum reflected more than a century of
Romanisation
• The basic unit of society was the household (familia) which included family
members and slaves, headed by the paterfamilias
• There were three broad social classes: freeborn, freed (former slaves or liberti) and
slaves
3. Social Structure and
Status
• Within these groups there were
distinctions, between citizens
and non-citizens and privileged
and non-privileged
• For example all freeborn had the
right to vote, but not all had the
right to stand for public office
• Clothing also distinguished
social classes with the privileged
wearing the toga while others
wore the loosely belted tunic
similar to that worn by slaves
• There was some mobility
between the classes as slaves
could be freed and become freed
citizens; the sons of freedmen
could become citizens
4. Freeborn Men
• Within the broad social class of
freeborn were the senatorial elite;
members of the Roman patrician
class who had estates or villas in
the Campanian region; the local
elite; wealthy landowners and
businessmen who dominated local
government and ordinary citizens
such as small scale farmers,
shopkeepers and artisans
5. Freeborn Men
• Over time, Roman
patricians and members of
the Imperial family had
been attracted to
Campania
• They had large
agricultural estates, luxury
villas around the Bay of
Naples and beautiful
houses in Pompeii and
Herculaneum
6. Freeborn Men
• The Villa of the Papyri in Herculaneum was owned by the father in law of Julius
Caesar
• The Villa of Oplontis was owned by Poppaea, mistress and later wife of the
Emperor Nero
7. Freeborn Men
• The proconsul Marcus Nonius Balbus was a wealthy Roman who built the
Suburban Baths in Herculaneum and had an equestrian statue and dedicatory alter
erected in his honour
• Some local identities gained prestige from their wealth rather tan a patrician
background
• They gained status by fulfilling political roles and maintaining a network of socio-
political ties with friends (amici), clients (clientelae) and dependants
8. Freeborn Men
• In the patron-client system the wealthy elite operated as patrons to the less wealthy,
advising them and taking care of their interests
• In return, clients gave deference and respects to their patrons, which was very
useful at election times
• Marcus Holconius Rufus was a prominent local citizen of Pompeii and was an
Augustalis (priest of the Imperial Cult); patron of the colony; town magistrate
(duumvir), 5-year official (quinquennale) and military tribune
• The town erected a statue to him
9. Freeborn Men
• The banker Lucius Caecilius Jucundus was another prominent Pompeian who
was very wealthy and owned a large town house and a villa rustica nearby
• He was the citizen son of a freedman, representing the upward social mobility that
was possible
10. Freedmen
• Freedmen or liberti were slaves who had been freed
• Their freedom could be granted by their owner or they could purchase it
• Many freedmen kept close connections with their former owners and even took
their name
• Freedmen formed a significant part of the population and by AD79 many of them
ran workshops and small businesses, often with slaves they had purchased
11. Freedmen
• Some freedmen remained in lowly occupations but others gained considerable
wealth as owners of estates and businesses
• The Vettii brothers were freedmen in Pompeii who were successful wine producers
• Their house was particularly luxurious and well-decorated
• The children of freedmen could become citizens
12. Slaves
• Slaves were a feature of Roman society and there is evidence of their widespread
presence in Pompeii and Herculaneum where it has been estimated that they made
up at least ¼ of the population by AD79
13. Slaves
• Most slaves were part of a familia and fulfilled many roles in the household
• In wealthier households slaves worked as cooks, cleaners, nurses and servers
• Educated slaves worked as tutors to their owners’ children or as secretaries for
their owners’ businesses
• Large houses had slave quarters; houses of the less wealthy had one or two small
rooms for slaves
14. Slaves
• Slaves also worked in the workshops and businesses of their owners
• On agricultural estates slaves performed a range of manual tasks such as
ploughing, planting, and harvesting and in the production of wine and olive oil
• Some slaves were owned by the town council and employed in public
enterprises such as being attendant and furnace workers at the public baths
15. Slaves
• Inscriptions from Pompeii mention slaves who handled matters relating to public
taxation
• Some slaves were performers who provided music and dancing at banquets and
most gladiators were slaves
• Slaves could be bought and sold as recorded on waxed tablets
• Slaves could also be passed on as part of an inheritance
16. Freeborn Women
• Women of Pompeii and Herculaneum were represented in all three classes:
freeborn, freed and slave
• While freeborn women could not vote or stand for public office, they took an
interest and may have had some influence in local politics
• Asellina, who owned a tavern, showed her interest in politics by displaying slogans
in support of a particular candidate
17. Freeborn Women
• Some freeborn women owned property
such as Julia Felix, who owned a large
property in Pompeii and rented some its
rooms
• Another woman in Pompeii was the
priestess Eumachia
• She erected a large building in the
forum, identified by some historians as
a wool store
• An inscription on the entrance to the
building indentifies her patronage
• A statue of Eumachia was found in the
building, dedicated by the Fuller’s
Guild
18. Freeborn Women
• Another wealthy woman in Pompeii, Mamia, daughter of Publius and holder of a
public priestly office, erected the Temple to the spirit of Augustus next to the
building of Eumachia ‘on her own land and at her own expense’
• Mamia was a leader in Imperial worship and had her tomb paid for at public
expense
19. Freeborn Women
• Women could own slaves and conduct business transactions
• A waxed tablet records a transaction between two women in AD61 involving a loan
which used two slaves as security
20. Freeborn Women
• Freeborn women of wealthier families would have carried out traditional duties
within a Roman household, supervision of one or two slaves as well as spinning and
weaving
• Poorer freeborn women worked in a range of occupations outside the household
21. Freedwomen
• Like their male counterparts, female slaves could be granted their freedom and
become liberti
• Some freedwomen married well and established their own households
• The tomb erected by Naevoleia Tyche for her husband, shows that some
freedwomen became rather wealthy
• Some freedwomen worked outside the household in the same occupations as poor
freeborn women
• Others worked beside their husbands in various enterprises
