The Ancient Graffiti Project: An Open-Access Critical Edition of First-Century Pompeian Wall Inscriptions

FAIN: RQ-255726-17

Washington and Lee University (Lexington, VA 24450-2116)
Rebecca R. Benefiel (Project Director: December 2016 to present)
Holly M. Sypniewski (Co Project Director: January 2017 to present)

Preparation of an open-access digital critical edition and translation of 800 first-century CE graffiti (texts and pictographs) from the theater district and the gymnasium area in the ancient city of Pompeii, Italy. (18 months)

The Ancient Graffiti Project (AGP) is an open-access, digital, scholarly edition of the first-century handwritten inscriptions from Pompeii and Herculaneum, with up to date bibliography, rich contextual information, and translations. These personal messages, conveying the thoughts and interests of the town’s inhabitants, are as varied as the people who wrote them; they provide crucial insights into changes taking place in the Latin language, the dynamics of Roman culture and society, and functioning levels of literacy among the general population. They are also fragile, exposed to the elements in an open-air environment, and are crumbling and disappearing each year. Now is the time to obtain reliable readings, fully document and record all traces, and produce a comprehensive, critical edition of these texts, before they disintegrate further and are lost.

Media Coverage

Largest Collection of Ancient Graffiti Ever Found in Pompeii. Some Are Hysterically Funny (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Terry Madenholm
Publication: Haaretz Newspaper
Date: 11/30/2021
Abstract: The ancient Roman town of Pompeii has been under excavation since the 18th century, yet about one-third of the town remains unexplored. That means more archaeological discoveries will be made – among them, evidently, graffiti. A lot of it. Pompeian walls have become a laboratory of archaeological investigation, reconstructing some of the most intimate moments from the lives of its inhabitants up to the 1st century C.E.. More than 11,000 wall writings have been revealed in the ruins, making it the largest collection of wall writings ever discovered. The team of researchers under the auspices of the Ancient Graffiti Project, run by Dr. Rebecca Benefiel of Washington and Lee University in Virginia has developed the first digital database of graffiti finds in Pompeii and Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Smyrna in the modern-day Turkey.
URL: https://www.haaretz.com/archaeology/largest-collection-of-ancient-graffiti-ever-found-in-pompeii-some-are-hysterically-funny-1.10408749

Pompeii's recent finds reveal new clues to city's destruction (Media Coverage)
Author(s): RUBÉN MONTOYA
Publication: National Geographic
Date: 7/27/2020
Abstract: Since its discovery several centuries ago, few archaeological sites have fascinated the world as has the ancient Roman city of Pompeii. After the first major excavations in more than 50 years, Pompeii is revealing a surprising abundance of buried treasures. The new finds are coming from intensive work in a small sector known as Region V that has nevertheless yielded giant insights into the final days of the doomed city. Along with the complete excavation of two houses—the House of the Garden and the House of Orion—the dig has yielded frescoes, murals, and mosaics of mythological figures in gorgeous colours, skeletons with stories still to be unravelled, coins, amulets, and show horses in the stable of a wealthy landowner. The new finds are also sparking debate about Pompeii’s tragic story. Just before Vesuvius erupted in A.D. 79 and buried the city under a mantle of ash and rock, a local worker scrawled an inscription on a wall. Along with a joke (roughly translated as “he ate too mu
URL: https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history-and-civilisation/2020/07/pompeiis-most-recent-finds-reveal-new-clues-to-citys-destruction

Des graffitis pour comprendre l'histoire de Pompéi (Media Coverage)
Author(s): JULIETTE DE GUYENRO
Publication: Geo (French magazine)
Date: 7/15/2019
Abstract: A short publication on the importance of studying the ancient graffiti to understand the history of Pompeii. Letters, words, and names on the walls of the ancient town of Pompeii recount the history of the city. Certain inscriptions promote political candidates or gladiatorial competitions. Other, more personal messages were written by the city's residents to each other.
URL: https://www.geo.fr/histoire/des-graffitis-pour-comprendre-lhistoire-de-pompei-196578

Digging Deeper into Pompeii’s Past (Media Coverage)
Author(s): BENJAMIN LEONARD
Publication: Archaeology Magazine
Date: 6/10/2019
Abstract: The featured article of the issue showcased current projects studying ancient Pompeii and included several sections, among which was "Communication", which is where our Ancient Graffiti Project was features.
URL: https://www.archaeology.org/issues/344-1907/features/7722-communication

Pompeii’de Bulunan Grafitiler, Sosyal Hayatı Günümüze Taşıyor (Media Coverage)
Author(s):
Publication: Arkeofili
Date: 12/10/2021
Abstract: A Turkish translation of the article published in the newspaper Haaretz.
URL: https://arkeofili.com/pompeiide-bulunan-grafitiler-sosyal-hayati-gunumuze-tasiyor/

One of Pompeii’s Greatest Mysteries May Have Been Solved (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Candida Moss
Publication: The Daily Beast
Date: 2/13/2022
Abstract: The graffiti were written in an obscure form of Old Arabic otherwise completely unknown in the Western Mediterranean. For almost 35 years they were a mystery: Who wrote them?
URL: https://www.thedailybeast.com/one-of-pompeiis-greatest-mysteries-may-have-been-solved

The graffiti were written in an obscure form of Old Arabic otherwise completely unknown in the Western Mediterranean. For almost 35 years they were a mystery: Who wrote them? (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Candida Moss
Publication: The Daily Beast
Date: 2/13/2022
Abstract: The online article examines the reasons for the scant attention given to Arabic graffiti found in Pompeii, and the socio-political significance at the time for the graffiti.
URL: https://www.thedailybeast.com/one-of-pompeiis-greatest-mysteries-may-have-been-solved

Associated Products

The Ancient Graffiti Project (Web Resource)
Title: The Ancient Graffiti Project
Author: Rebecca Benefiel
Abstract: Abstract in 2017: Welcome to The Ancient Graffiti Project, a digital resource for locating and studying graffiti of the early Roman empire from the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. More than 500 ancient graffiti are now available here, ca. 300 from Herculaneum and another 200 from Pompeii (from the Lupanar, Insula I.8, and other locations). Abstract in 2018 (after update): Welcome to The Ancient Graffiti Project, a digital resource for locating and studying handwritten inscriptions of the early Roman empire. These ancient messages and sketches offer a window into the daily life and interests of the people who lived in the ancient world, especially in Herculaneum and Pompeii. They provide perspectives on Roman society, the ancient economy, religion, spoken language, literacy, and activities within the ancient city.
Year: 2017
Primary URL: http://ancientgraffiti.org
Primary URL Description: The welcome page for The Ancient Graffiti Project, the digital platform for our critical editions of ancient handwritten inscriptions.

Virginia Scholars' Ancient Graffiti Project (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Virginia Scholars' Ancient Graffiti Project
Writer: Sandy Housman
Producer: Sandy Housman
Abstract: I was interviewed about our Ancient Graffiti Project on NPR's Radio IQ. The audio is available online, as is a transcription of the program. Abstract: Scholars from Washington and Lee and the University of Richmond are sharing a surprising discovery – showing and explaining ancient graffiti online. Rebecca Benefiel has spent more than a decade studying what the people of Pompei and Herculaneum wrote on their walls...
Date: 05/22/2018
Primary URL: http://www.wvtf.org/post/virginia-scholars-ancient-graffiti-project
Primary URL Description: Radio IQ, National Public Radio
Access Model: Open access
Format: Radio
Format: Web

Editing ancient handwriting (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Editing ancient handwriting
Author: Rebecca R. Benefiel
Abstract: A presentation of how one can edit ancient handwritten texts of the first century CE, some of which remain visible in the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, and what the Ancient Graffiti Project offers to the field of Classics.
Date: 09/22/2018
Conference Name: Texts, Authors, and Readers

The Ancient Graffiti Project: Developing a Digital Resource for Ancient Graffiti (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: The Ancient Graffiti Project: Developing a Digital Resource for Ancient Graffiti
Abstract: The 2018 Digital Humanities Lecture at Washington & Lee University.
Author: Holly Sypniewski
Author: Rebecca R. Benefiel
Date: 05/07/2018
Location: Washington & Lee University, Lexington, VA

Graffiti in Pompeii, Italy and The Ancient Graffiti Project (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Graffiti in Pompeii, Italy and The Ancient Graffiti Project
Abstract: An overview of the characteristics of ancient graffiti in Pompeii, as a comparison with graffiti of ancient Nubia, and introduction of The Ancient Graffiti Project as a scholarly resource to research and study ancient handwritten wall-inscriptions.
Author: Rebecca Benefiel
Date: 09/20/2019
Location: Kelsey Museum, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
Primary URL: https://lsa.umich.edu/kelsey/news-events/all-events.detail.html/62288-15344250.html

National Geographic Podcast "Overheard" (Radio/Audio Broadcast or Recording)
Title: National Geographic Podcast "Overheard"
Director: Peter Gwin
Producer: Emily Ochsenschlager
Abstract: I was interviewed by National Geographic and discussed what study of ancient graffiti can contribute to our understanding of Pompeii. The program will be broadcast this winter as part of Season 2 of National Geographic's podcast, "Overheard".
Date: 10/16/2019
Primary URL: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/podcasts/overheard/
Primary URL Description: Exploring the ancient Maya Cave of the Jaguar God. The graffiti of Pompeii. Searching for alien life underground. Each week we’ll dive into one of the curiously delightful conversations we’ve overheard around National Geographic’s headquarters. You’ll be introduced to the explorers, photographers and scientists at the edges of our big, bizarre, and beautiful world.
Access Model: open access
Format: Radio
Format: Digital File

Writing on Columns: A Study of Graffiti in Pompeii’s Campus ad Amphitheatrum (Regio II.7.1) (Conference Paper/Presentation)
Title: Writing on Columns: A Study of Graffiti in Pompeii’s Campus ad Amphitheatrum (Regio II.7.1)
Author: Benefiel, Rebecca R.
Author: Sypniewski, Holly M.
Abstract: Thousands of graffiti on the walls of Pompeii attest to a vibrant culture of informal writing. In this paper, we examine the practice of inscribing personal messages on columns, with a focus on the Campus ad Amphitheatrum, in Pompeii (Regio II.7.1). Featuring more than 400 handwritten wall-inscriptions, this was the most heavily inscribed building in the entire city. We seek to answer why. This paper presents the results of fieldwork carried out by the Ancient Graffiti Project during summer 2019. The Campus offered a large, colonnaded, multi-purpose space near the amphitheater. By virtue of its location, the building certainly saw a high volume of traffic. In this paper we examine how ancient writers approached this unique type of writing surface, how they negotiated the lack of horizontal space, and how they fashioned their writings in response. We also interrogate the spaces of the building and the distribution patterns of textual and figural graffiti on the columns of the Campus ad amphitheatrum to address the following questions: On which columns within a long colonnade were individuals more prone to write? Where would a writer prefer to stand? Within the covered walkway? Between the columns where he would be less visible? In the uncovered space where fewer might see his drawing or message? By surveying and analyzing the hundreds of wall-inscriptions in this building, we seek to understand how people interacted in this space and why they found columns such an attractive place to write.
Date: 01/06/2020
Primary URL: https://www.asgle.org/nacgle-2020-washington-d-c/draft-program/
Conference Name: The Third Quinquennial North American Congress of Greek and Latin Epigraphy (NACGLE)

Documentary feature on the Smithsonian Channel where I am interviewed about the Ancient Graffiti Project (Film/TV/Video Broadcast or Recording)
Title: Documentary feature on the Smithsonian Channel where I am interviewed about the Ancient Graffiti Project
Writer: Blink Films
Director: Christopher Puttock
Producer: Blink Films (Lesley Davies) for the Smithsonian Channel
Abstract: The ancient Roman city of Pompeii is best known for the volcanic eruption that both buried and preserved it. Now, experts are reexamining a 2,000-year-old crime scene that suggests this was a city where the fear of death loomed long before Mount Vesuvius covered it in ash. Delve into a world of lawlessness, political intrigue, and underworld godfathers. Smithsonian Channel Series "Secrets", Season 6, Episode 3: "Gangs of Pompeii" Broadcast in the UK on Channel 5 in the series "Ancient Mysteries", episode entitled "Pompeii: The Bodies in the Basement" PI Rebecca Benefiel and Field Director Jacqueline DiBiasie-Sammons were interviewed during summer 2019 about how we document ancient graffiti in Pompeii
Year: 2019
Primary URL: https://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/secrets/gangs-of-pompeii/1003102/3474905
Primary URL Description: Programming on the Smithsonian Channel
Access Model: Broadcast on the Smithsonian Channel (Dec. 2019-May 2020) and available through Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, Roku, and others
Format: Video
Format: Web

V. 1 N. 2.5: Regio I - Latium et Campania. Fascicolo V. Pompeii - Tituli scariphati (Article)
Title: V. 1 N. 2.5: Regio I - Latium et Campania. Fascicolo V. Pompeii - Tituli scariphati
Author: H. Sypniewski
Author: R. Benefiel
Abstract: The collaborative work that goes into producing digital humanities products is often invisible. This journal provides recognition and attribution for those who are responsible for editing the inscriptions featured on the Epigraphic Database Roma (www.edr-edr.it), to which we, the lead staff of the Ancient Graffiti Project, contribute our work. This article presents the editing work that has been done for the handwritten inscriptions of Pompeii during the period 2017-2020.
Year: 2020
Primary URL: https://rosa.uniroma1.it/rosa03/italia_epigrafica_digitale/issue/view/IED%20II%2C%202.5
Access Model: open access
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Italia Epigrafica Digitale
Publisher: Sapienza, Università di Roma

Pompeii Live: Writing in the early Roman Empire (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Pompeii Live: Writing in the early Roman Empire
Abstract: A presentation at the National Junior Classical League, a conference for high school Latin students, about the nature of ancient graffiti and an introduction to the Ancient Graffiti Project
Author: E. Zimmermann Damer
Author: R. Benefiel
Date: 07/24/2020
Location: recorded and presented online to students across the nation
Primary URL: https://www.njcl.org/NJCL-Convention/2020-NJCL-Convention
Primary URL Description: Select information about the convention is available here.

The Ancient Graffiti Project: Features for Teachers (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: The Ancient Graffiti Project: Features for Teachers
Abstract: Workshop offered at the American Classical League, conference for K-12 educators and Latin teachers, explaining features and resources for teachers built into the Ancient Graffiti Project
Author: E. Zimmermann Damer
Author: R. Benefiel
Date: 06/23/2021
Location: [virtual institute this year, conducted over zoom]
Primary URL: https://www.aclclassics.org/Portals/0/2021%20Virtual%20Institute-Draft%20Program%2006%2009.pdf
Primary URL Description: ACL Program

The Ancient Graffiti Project: Lesson Plans for Teachers (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: The Ancient Graffiti Project: Lesson Plans for Teachers
Author: N. Wellington
Author: R. Benefiel
Abstract: We created a series of seven lesson plans on different topics for teachers to bring everyday Latin into the classroom.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: http://ancientgraffiti.org/about/teaching-resources/lesson-plans/
Audience: K - 12

Pompeii's Safaitic Graffiti (Article)
Title: Pompeii's Safaitic Graffiti
Author: Kyle Helms
Abstract: In 1987, nine groups of graffiti written in Safaitic were published from Pompeii’s theatre corridor (VIII.7.20). Safaitic, a south Semitic script used to record a dialect of Old Arabic, had never previously been documented in the West, and the appearance of these inscriptions at Pompeii since their publication has largely remained a mystery. I argue that Pompeii’s Safaitic graffiti were inscribed by nomads from the Ḥarrah who had been incorporated into the Roman army, and who marched into Italy with Legio III Gallica during its campaign to install Vespasian as emperor.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/4DB3250F453294ED76137DED174FB1B0/S0075435821000460a.pdf/pompeiis_safaitic_graffiti.pdf
Primary URL Description: Journal of Roman Studies, via Cambridge Core
Access Model: subscription
Format: Journal
Periodical Title: Journal of Roman Studies
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Editing ancient inscriptions (Book Section)
Title: Editing ancient inscriptions
Author: Rebecca Benefiel
Editor: Irene Peirano
Editor: Lauren Curtis
Abstract: Discussion of considerations on how to create critical editions of handwritten, non-elite Latin texts. Standard editing conventions often resolve 'errors' or non-standard forms, which are prevalent and valuable in ancient graffiti. This chapter discusses the challenges of our material and our editorial decision-making based on the nature of handwritten inscriptions.
Year: 2021
Primary URL: https://www.hup.harvard.edu/results-list.php?search=tarrant&submit=Search
Primary URL Description: The Harvard University Press website is returning an error with regular searches, but you can see the volume listed as a result with this search string.
Access Model: university press publication, book for purchase
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Book Title: The Lives of Latin Texts

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