GARDEN FRESCO, BEFORE 79 CE. HOUSE OF THE SKELETON, HERCULANEUM This somewhat faded fresco faces onto what was once a small garden with, at the centre of this frescoed wall (and still visible at lower right), a mosaic-covered niche which served as a lararium. A large red frame with a black lining serves as a fictive window looking into another, imaginary garden with a blue background. From this frame hangs a disc with a Gorgoneion on it. This is an oscillum, a disc in terracotta, stone, or metal with a low relief on it, that would be put up for feasts or celebrations, and would oscillate in the wind. On either side is a bush with a bird singing and facing the oscillum. The remains of a light wicker fence form a lower boundary for this garden.
#FrescoFriday takes us into a garden in #Herculaneum, in the gloomily-named House of the Skeleton. Part of the #fresco decoration survives, showing us how the real garden extended into the painted space. Bushes, birds, and an #oscillum with a #Medusa all rise over a wicker fence. #AncientBluesky 🏺
