Pompeii's extensive lead pipe distribution system brought running water to more than 40 street-side fountains, multiple bathing complexes and nearly 10% of the city’s houses. But Pompeii’s precarious location on Mt Vesuvius presented the planners with many problems, particularly when the ground rose some 30 cm in the period before the eruption. This talk will draw on the latest archaeological evidence to show the Herculean effort made to provide the inhabitants of Pompeii and the wider Bay of Naples with a convenient and reliable water supply, in the face of serious environmental obstacles.
Dr Duncan Keenan-Jones is a Roman archaeologist and historian, with qualifications in chemical engineering. He recently returned from the University of Illinois, where he researched the water supply of ancient Rome. Duncan’s varied training allows him to bring together the disciplines of history, archaeology and the physical sciences to pursue his fascination with the relationship between ancient society, environment and water technology.
Supper in the Museum will follow, where our items of merchandise will be on sale, all proceeds from which help us acquire further items for the Museum.