House of Championnet

The House of Championnet is part of a larger complex and one of Pompeii’s most luxurious dwellings.

It takes its name from a French general. After the conquest of Naples in 1799, he promoted archaeological research in Pompeii, in this very area.

The exclusive district is located near the Forum, the heart of the city’s public, religious and economic life, inhabited by wealthy owners. The architecture is striking: a large domus straddled the defensive walls, featuring stairs, ramps, loggias and terraces with panoramic views of the Gulf of Naples.

But the rooms in the basement have also survived. Take a step down there and look for the kitchen... see you there!

The counter holds bronze vessels and pottery, used to prepare and cook food: a mortar to grind and blend ingredients, large clay pots for boiling, frying pans, pots sitting on iron tripods.

Food was often consumed during lavish banquets, set up in dining rooms called triclinia. Extremely elaborate dishes were served to diners, distinguished guests and friends of the dominus.

Dinner began with the gustatio, a sort of appetizer, followed by the prima mensa, which was mainly courses of pork, fish, and mutton ... The banquet ended with the secunda mensa, consisting of sweetmeats, fresh and dried fruit.

Walk around the Cortile delle Murene and you will find a tank that was perhaps used to breed eels, a real delicacy of Roman cuisine.

We can imagine the taste of those sweets, that wine, or garum (the fish sauce for which Pompeii was famous, perhaps similar to today’s anchovy colatura). These flavours may be familiar in part as they are still typical of Mediterranean gastronomic culture.

Two rooms are now adapted to museum installations to show the most interesting finds from the house and nearby areas. Fragments of precious frescoes, household items, and the personal goods of the lady of the house, like brooches and necklaces, are a precious insight into everyday life.

Fragments of amphorae and transport containers were found in a well in one of the buildings overlooking the nearby Forum. They date back to the second century BC, when the area around the Forum was occupied by shops. The containers were used to trade olives and oil, wine, and fish sauces around the Mediterranean.

In the golden age of Pompeii, crowds of purchasers bought goods from all over the world here.