Oplontis
Oplontis is an archaeological site located near Torre Annunziata in Campania, Italy, approximately three miles west of Pompeii. This site is renowned for its lavish villa, which was buried during the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, leading to its preservation under layers of volcanic ash and mud. Excavations conducted over the last two decades have revealed significant portions of this grand residence, including the main living quarters and associated slave accommodations, as well as remnants of an extensive agricultural complex. The villa features a central atrium, a series of interconnected rooms, and a colonnade that once offered views of the sea. Among the remarkable finds are well-preserved wall paintings from around 40 BC, known for their elegant architectural depictions, as well as a painted ceiling in one of the bedrooms. Historical records suggest that the villa may have been owned by Poppaea Sabina, the second wife of Emperor Nero. While the name Oplontis appears in later itineraries and maps, its precise origins and whether a settlement existed before the villa remains a topic of scholarly interest.
Oplontis
(Torre Annunziata)
Situated on the coast of Campania (southwest Italy), beside the Gulf of Cumae (Bay of Naples), about three miles west of Pompeii. Oplontis is the site of a magnificent villa overwhelmed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, which buried the mansion under six feet of ash and pumice and then fifteen feet of volcanic mud.
Excavations of this residence during the past two decades have produced outstanding finds, comprising the greater part of the main residential block, together with its slave accommodation, and portions of an extensive farming complex (villa rustica). The principal block, containing a projecting atrium flanked by a series of rooms, faced a garden on the north side, and opened up, toward the south, onto a continuous colonnade, which stood on a terraced platform and in ancient times apparently looked out directly over the sea. Although the villa, it would seem, was undergoing and awaiting modernization at the time of the eruption, five rooms retain a remarkable series of wall paintings of c 40 BC belonging to what is known as the `Second Style’ (seePompeii) which excelled in the depiction of airy, theatrical architectural vistas. Subsequent artistic styles are also represented, for example in a bedroom which exceptionally preserves its painted ceiling.
There is some evidence, based on inscriptions, that this palatial dwelling was at one time owned by Nero's second wife Poppaea Sabina, who came from a leading Pompeian family and is known to have possessed property in the neighborhood. She died in AD 65 and Nero in 68, and it seems that thereafter the villa remained unoccupied (except for the slave quarters) until the eruption of 79. The name Oplontis (sometimes appearing as Eplontis) is only found on two itineraries of late date and on a late Roman map (the Peutinger Table), on which the place is indicated as a station on the road between Pompeii and Herculaneum. Since such lists are often based on outdated information, this allusion to Oplontis could mean that a habitation center (still buried) had adjoined the villa before both were destroyed by Vesuvius. Alternatively, however, the compilers of the itineraries and map may be referring to a settlement that only appeared after the eruption.