New discovery at Pompei: a street food shop from the past.

Another extraordinary discovery in Pompeii: in the new excavations a perfectly preserved Thermopoly resurfaces with the image of a sea nymph on horseback, and animals with colours so bright as to seem three-dimensional. But what is a Thermopoly?

It is like a modern street food. The great rediscovery of an intact Thermopoly in the excavations of Pompeii allows us to take a leap into ancient Rome. From the Latin “Thermopolium”, a Thermopoly can be considered as a shop where ready-to-eat foods were purchased. And just as small street shops selling takeaway food are loved nowadays, even in Roman times the inhabitants of the colony of Pompeii often used these places of commerce to consume food or do the shopping.

In fact, it was the custom of the Pompeians to consume hot food and drinks outdoors. The specialists of the Archaeological Park of Pompeii are already studying the material to verify how much this discovery can expand the knowledge on the eating habits of the Roman age since in the containers there are still traces of food that was sold on the street.

The commercial area where the Thermopoly resurfaced was only partially examined in 2019, during the interventions of the Great Pompeii Project for the safety and consolidation of the historical excavation fronts. Considering the exceptional nature of the decorations and in order to restore the complete configuration of the room, it was decided to extend the project and to complete the excavation of the entire area, in order to protect the whole site with an adequate restoration.

In the small square in front of the Thermopoly, a cistern, a fountain and a piezometric tower for water distribution had already emerged, not far from the shop already known for the fresco of gladiators in combat.

If you choose to spend a holiday on the Amalfi coast, you can reach the Archaeological Park of the city of Pompeii in about an hour. Please, find here some of the best luxury villas to rent on the Amalfi coast.