Pompeii is arguably the most famous city in the ancient world, central to any account of Roman daily life. However, much of the Pompeian archaeological record results from early excavations that predated modern archaeological methods and recording. This excavation and survey of an elite house combines innovative archaeological field methods with a rigorous approach to legacy data, applying new detection and recording techniques while also salvaging and synthesizing information from early excavations. A new study of Pompeian household space provides an opportunity to reexamine traditional, top-down narratives about the relationship between “macro-scale” history (e.g., political or military developments) and the “micro-scale” of daily domestic experience.

This study focuses on the so-called Casa della Regina Carolina (House VIII 3.14 in the Pompeian numbering system), an elite dwelling that saw only partial excavation in the 19th century. With the permission of the Parco Archeologico di Pompei, we are surveying the house and excavating the garden area.