• Home
• Europe
• Italy
• Pompeii

House of the Ceii

House of the Ceii is also known by two other names - House L. Ceii Secundum, whose name is mentioned in the inscription on the facade of the building, indicating the political campaign of a certain L. Ceii Secundum. Also this building is known as the House of Fabia and Tiranna. Ceii ’s house was excavated from May 1913 to August 1914.

Outside, the front of the house is covered with stucco with frescoes imitating the architectural style of Opus Quadratum. The roof hangs over the pavement and the entrance to the building. This is a rare building in which the roof is partially preserved. It did not collapse under the weight of gvolcanic pumice that fell on the city. The entrance is simple but elegant. Double front door is still preserved.

Atrium opens to rooms on the north and south side. This living room is decorated in the third style with alternating panels of red and black color over a purple decorative frieze. There is also an upper white area with architectural elements.

The cubiculum (c) in the southeast corner of the atrium is decorated in the third style with alternating panels of green and red above the black bottom frieze. The yellow upper zone has a black frieze and architectural elements. In the south wall there are two windows, one is square in shape, and the other is just a narrow slot.

Room (d) in the southwest corner of the atrium is the service area, which had a kitchen and a toilet. Next to these rooms a staircase once led to the upper floor. The second staircase with a wall, built in the architectural style opus kratikium leads from the northwest corner of the atrium to the upper floor, and behind are two main reception rooms, a table (f) and triclinium (g). The tabulin has a window on the south wall, as well as a large hole in the north wall leading to the inner garden of the Tsei house. During the eruption, the walls were decorated with frescoes, but the room has a decorative black and white mosaic floor with a central motif.

Triclinium of the House of the Ceii is decorated in the third style with red and black panels over the black frieze. The central panel on each wall depicts a large mythological scene. The white upper zone contains architectural elements. Like the tablin, triclinium has a decorative mosaic floor.

The walls of the garden (pictured below) are decorated in the fourth style above the lower decorative red frieze with plants and birds. On the north (back) wall there is a big hunting scene. Egyptian landscapes with pygmies, hippopotamuses, crocodiles and Egyptian-style buildings, all with red or yellow borders containing decorative elements, are on the east and west walls of the garden.

On the eastern side of the garden there are two more rooms. Room (l) opens from the northeast corner of the zone and has a large window on the west wall overlooking the garden. The walls are not decorated and covered with a layer of coarse plaster. The room could be a utility room or used for storage. A small room (m), which was connected by a narrow doorway to the northwest corner of the room (1). It is also clearly separated by a layer of coarse plaster. This room was also probably a service room, although there are no clues for its function.