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House of the First Floor, Pompeii

The House of the First Cenaculum, also known as the House of the Colonnaded Cenaculum (Casa dei Cenacoli Colonnati) or Casa del Primo Cenacolo Colonnato, is a well-preserved Roman domestic structure in Pompeii, exemplifying a multi-functional urban residence with residential, commercial, and productive elements. Located at IX.12.1 in Regio IX, Insula 12 (part of the larger Insula of the Chaste Lovers), it fronts onto Via dell’Abbondanza, one of Pompeii's main thoroughfares. The house spans part of an insula covering about 2,600 square meters (70 x 37 m), with roughly half excavated, and is linked to adjacent properties like IX.12.2, including a textrina (textile workshop) associated with Rufus. First excavated in 1912 under Vittorio Spinazzola, it revealed upper-floor features like a side balcony and windows overlooking the street. The site was damaged by Allied bombing in 1943, destroying parts of the colonnaded upper floor, but has undergone extensive restoration since, including recent efforts (2014-2024) under the Grande Progetto Pompei, funded by the European Regional Development Fund at about 8 million Euros. These works involved new roofing, seismic isolation, and accessibility improvements, making it open to the public since May 2024. The house dates to the late Republican or early Imperial period, with colonnaded cenacula (upper-floor apartments or dining areas) emerging in Pompeii by the end of the 2nd century BC, reflecting a popular apartment style in domestic architecture. Its name derives from the colonnaded upper floor, interpreted as a cenaculum (upper living or dining space), and it highlights social diversity in Regio IX, housing both affluent residents and enslaved individuals in varied conditions.

Architecture and Layout

House Layout and Architecture
This Pompeian urban dwelling exemplifies a classic domus plan cleverly adapted for multi-story living, reflecting the dense urban development typical of the bustling commercial city before the 79 AD eruption of Vesuvius. The modest façade faces the lively Via dell’Abbondanza (one of Pompeii’s main east-west thoroughfares), featuring a simple yet dignified entrance with doorways framed by pilasters that provided structural support and subtle architectural emphasis.

Ground Floor Layout
Visitors enter through the traditional fauces (narrow entrance corridor), which opens into room “a,” serving as the primary reception and circulation area. At the rear lie rooms “b” and “c,” which likely functioned as storage spaces or small workshops. Archaeological evidence, including significant pumice deposits from the eruption and preserved doorways, supports this practical use. A service courtyard and connecting corridors efficiently link these areas to productive zones of the house, including the tablinum—a formal reception room traditionally used for business and family records—and a cubiculum (bedroom) that appears to have been repurposed as a compact private study or office.

Upper Floor and Living Quarters
A staircase accessible from neighboring IX.12.2 leads to the upper level, where a striking colonnaded area takes center stage. Doric-style columns create an open, airy cenaculum—an elevated apartment style that became popular in Pompeii from the late 2nd century BC onward. This design allowed residents to enjoy better light, ventilation, and separation from the busier ground-floor activities. A reconstructed side balcony extends over the narrow western vicolo (alley), offering additional outdoor space, while three windows along the street façade would have provided natural light and views of the vibrant street life below. Such colonnaded upper floors served as elegant spaces for dining (cenatio), relaxation, or additional habitation, and they remained a mainstream feature in Pompeian multi-family or rental apartments.

Modern Restoration and Visitor Experience
Recent conservation efforts have dramatically improved both preservation and accessibility. Engineers installed a large seismically isolated steel roof spanning over 2,000 square meters, designed to protect the ancient structures from future earthquakes while allowing controlled natural light. Innovative glass panels integrated with solar cells ensure the complex achieves significant energy self-sufficiency. A 240-meter elevated walkway, complete with a lift for wheelchair accessibility, guides visitors safely above the ruins, providing sweeping panoramic views of the ongoing excavations and surrounding insula.
During excavation and stabilization works, archaeologists carefully re-profiled the artificial soil faces using soil bioengineering techniques—combining vegetation and structural reinforcement for long-term slope stability. These efforts also exposed valuable geological sections, offering researchers deeper insights into the volcanic stratigraphy and pre-eruption landscape of Pompeii.

Decorations and Frescoes

The decorations in the House of the First Cenaculum (Casa del Primo Cenacolo Colonnato, Regio IX.12.1) in Pompeii exemplify the elegant and ornate characteristics of the Pompeian Fourth Style of wall painting, which flourished in the mid-to-late 1st century CE.
This style is known for its intricate architectural illusions, vibrant colors, delicate motifs, and complex mythological narratives, often combining fantasy with theatrical elements. The frescoed walls feature sophisticated panels that depict a rich array of mythological figures and scenes, including centaurs, sirens, griffins, Aphrodite (Venus), Apollo, Dionysus (Bacchus), a possible female deity, Perseus liberating Andromeda from her chains after slaying the sea monster, and the purification or ritual cleansing of a hero.
These scenes drew from Greek mythology but were adapted to Roman tastes, serving both decorative and cultural purposes — reminding viewers of heroic tales, divine favor, and the cultured lifestyle of the home's owners.
In one of the cubicula (small bedrooms), a particularly touching small painting creates an illusory garden perspective. It portrays a young hooded boy — possibly the deceased son of the owners — surrounded by clusters of ripe grapes, pomegranates (symbols of fertility and the underworld), and a playful puppy. The composition uses perspective techniques to blend the figure seamlessly into a lush, paradisiacal outdoor setting, evoking themes of loss, innocence, and eternal repose in the afterlife.
The service courtyard and connecting corridors reveal a more intimate, everyday side of ancient Roman life through unique charcoal drawings executed directly on the plastered walls. These spontaneous sketches, discovered in recent excavations within the Insula dei Casti Amanti, were likely created by children aged approximately 5 to 7 years old. Positioned at low heights (roughly 0.20 to 1.50 meters above the floor), they capture the playful yet vivid imagination of young Pompeians who had evidently witnessed real spectacles in the city's amphitheater.

Key drawings include:
Dynamic gladiatorial combats, with pairs of fighters facing off.
Venationes (animal hunts) showing bestiarii (beast fighters) armed with long spears confronting wild boars.
A bird of prey, possibly an eagle, observed in profile.
Boxing scenes, one depicting a dramatic "knock-out" with a fallen figure.
Figures playing with a ball.
Outlines of three small hands, serving as charming "signatures" of the young artists.

An earlier layer features a red mineral pigment drawing (possibly ochre) of a maritime scene with ships, fish, fishing tools, and male figures, partially obscured by later whitewash. Art historians note striking developmental similarities to modern children's art, such as simplified forms and "cephalopod" figures where limbs emerge directly from oversized heads — evidence of universal stages in youthful creativity.
While no notable mosaics are recorded for this specific house, the overall decorative program masterfully blends high-end elite artistic aspirations — with its refined mythological frescoes reflecting sophisticated tastes and possibly the owners' social status or aspirations — with the lively, unfiltered traces of daily domestic life, including children's play in the functional spaces near kitchens, latrines, and vegetable gardens. This combination offers a rare, multifaceted glimpse into Pompeian society just before the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 CE.

In the southeast corner of the garden is a large stone trough, possibly used as a reservoir for storing live fish.

Notable Features and Artifacts

One of the most captivating features of this Pompeii residence is its colonnaded upper floor — a rare, well-preserved example of cenaculum (upper-floor apartment or dining room) architecture from the Roman era.
This elevated living space, with its reconstructed balcony supported by elegant columns, once offered residents sweeping views over the bustling streets and structures of Regio IX. Such multi-story designs were less common in Pompeii's denser urban fabric, making this a standout survivor that gives visitors a vivid sense of how ordinary (and not-so-ordinary) Pompeians lived, worked, and relaxed above street level.
On the west wall of the adjacent workshop (likely a textile or draper's shop), a fascinating graffiti inscription survives: "Pridie Nonis Julis tunica IIS XV" (CIL IV 9108). This translates to a record of a tunic sold for 15 sesterces on July 6 (the day before the Nones of July). It provides a remarkable snapshot of everyday commerce in ancient Pompeii, revealing clothing prices, the rhythms of local trade, and the informal accounting habits of shopkeepers. Similar graffiti across the city highlight a vibrant economy in textiles, food, and services.
An amphora (inventory number 88031) was discovered in the western vicolo (alleyway), hinting at the storage and transport of wine, oil, or other goods that supported daily life and commerce here.
Tragically, recent excavations uncovered the skeletal remains of two elderly individuals — a man and a woman — huddled in the fauces (entrance hallway). They had apparently sought shelter there during the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Their positions paint a poignant picture of the final desperate moments as pyroclastic flows and falling debris engulfed the city.
Particularly moving are the children's drawings discovered on the walls, executed in charcoal. These rare artifacts offer an intimate glimpse into ancient childhood — showing stick-figure scenes of gladiators, animal hunts, and possibly everyday life mixed with exposure to the violence of Roman spectacles. Researchers, including child neuropsychiatrists from the Federico II University of Naples, have studied them to better understand creativity, play, and psychological development in the Roman world. One charming example includes a small hand outline, likely traced by a child around 5–6 years old.
The site also includes a dedicated storage and draining area for amphorae, which underscores the building's productive, commercial function alongside its residential role. This combination of living quarters, workshop, and storage facilities reflects the integrated nature of Roman urban economy, where homes often doubled as places of business.
Overall, this house (often referred to as the House of the Colonnaded Cenaculum or Casa dei Cenacoli Colonnati, associated with IX.12.1 and linked to the textrina or weaving workshop of Rufus) provides an exceptionally rich window into Pompeian daily life — from commerce and architecture to the intimate traces of families caught in one of history's most famous disasters. It's a must-visit for anyone exploring Regio IX, offering both grandeur and deeply human stories.

Significance

The House of the First Cenaculum (Casa del Primo Cenacolo Colonnato or IX.12.1) in Pompeii provides a fascinating window into the everyday realities of ancient Roman urban life, especially the experiences of children in this vibrant provincial city.
Located in the bustling Regio IX along the Via dell’Abbondanza, this upper-floor apartment forms part of the larger Insula of the Chaste Lovers (Insula IX.12), a complex that includes elite residences like the famous House of the Chaste Lovers (with its iconic fresco of a tender embrace between lovers), workshops, bakeries, and more modest dwellings. Excavated in the early 20th century, the House of the First Cenaculum stands out for its colonnaded design — a hallmark of evolving Pompeian multi-story apartment architecture from the late Republican period onward. These cenacula (upper-level rental units) often featured balconies, colonnades, and functional layouts that adapted to the dense, vertical growth of Roman cities.

Insights into Childhood and Daily Life
Archaeological finds here, including children's drawings and graffiti, reveal how young Pompeians — often as young as 5 to 7 years old — were immersed in the violent spectacles of Roman entertainment. Sketches of gladiators and animal hunts suggest that children frequently witnessed these brutal events in the nearby Large Amphitheater, one of the oldest surviving Roman amphitheaters, which could hold up to 20,000 spectators. Such exposure was common in Roman society, where public games served not only as entertainment but also as tools for social control, political display, and community bonding.
The insula as a whole highlights sharp social contrasts typical of Pompeii in 79 AD: grand domus belonging to wealthy merchants and bakers stood alongside humble shops, textile workshops (textrina), and cramped quarters possibly occupied by enslaved people or laborers. The nearby House of the Chaste Lovers, for instance, belonged to a prosperous baker with a large industrial oven, stables for mules, and elegant frescoes — yet shared the block with simpler living spaces.

Architecture and Historical Significance
The colonnaded cenaculum exemplifies the shift toward more vertical and efficient urban housing in late Republican and early Imperial Pompeii. Unlike traditional atrium houses, these apartments maximized space in a crowded city, offering residents views, light, and access to street-level commerce. Artifacts and structural remains contribute valuable data to our understanding of Roman domestic architecture, including construction techniques, room functions, and adaptations to daily needs in a seismically active region (Pompeii had suffered a major earthquake in 62 AD, leading to widespread repairs visible in many structures).

Modern Restoration and Visitor Access
Thanks to recent conservation efforts under the "Pompei per Tutti" (Pompeii for All) initiative, the site has been made more accessible and sustainable. This project includes raised walkways, lifts, and barrier-free routes that allow visitors — including those with mobility needs, families with strollers, and the elderly — to view the excavations from above without compromising the fragile ruins. It reflects a broader commitment to inclusive heritage preservation while enabling ongoing archaeological research.
Italian officials, including former Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano and Archaeological Park Director Massimo Osanna, have highlighted how such restorations continue to unveil new layers of Pompeii’s story, blending cutting-edge science with the deeply human narratives preserved under the ash of Vesuvius.

Practical Information for Visitors:
The House of the First Cenaculum and surrounding areas in the Insula of the Chaste Lovers are open daily from 10:30 am to 6:00 pm (last entry typically earlier; check the official Pompeii Archaeological Park website for seasonal variations and any closures). It is best reached via the Piazza Anfiteatro entrance as part of the accessible "Pompeii for All" route. Combine your visit with nearby highlights like the House of the Chaste Lovers itself, the Amphitheater, and the bustling commercial street of Via dell’Abbondanza for a richer understanding of ancient Roman life.