A fresco of Dionysus reappears 2,000 years later in Pompeii

BarcelonaNearly two thousand years after the explosion of Vesuvius, Dionysus is once again displaying his bonhomie and ecstasy in Pompeii. The god of wine, parties and orgies has reappeared in the Roman city thanks to excavations at the archaeological site, which have revealed a large frieze dating from between 40 and 30 BC depicting Dionysus with his usual entourage of dancers, huntresses and satyrs.

The work in question is a painting of an almost human-like staircase that has been recovered from the wall of a banqueting hall that has been excavated in recent weeks. The room has been christened by archaeologists as the House of Thíasos, which was the name given to the entourage of drunken followers who accompanied Dionysus on his bacchanals and nocturnal orgies. The fresco's entourage includes a slaughtered goat, a woman being initiated into the ritual, and young satyrs playing the flute or pouring wine in honor of the god.

The painting was buried in 70 AD following the violent volcanic explosion of Vesuvius that buried the prosperous Roman city. It is not the first fresco to be revealed by archaeological excavations in Pompeii, but it stands out for its significant size: it is the second largest along with another giant mural or megalograph which was discovered during excavations of the so-called House of Mysteries.

Through the painting of the House of Thiasos, archaeologists can study the initiation rituals of the Dionysian cult and the importance of hunting, represented in the figure of the huntresses and also present in a small fresco in the upper part of the mural depicting living and dead animals. The hunting raids of the followers of Dionysus, already recounted by Euripides in the tragedy The Bacchae (406 BC), were metaphors for a life of unbridled luxury, says the director of the Pompeii site, Gabriel Zuchriel.

The Italian Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, has welcomed this "exceptional historical document" because it reveals "an aspect of life in the Mediterranean classical period that was largely unknown." The Italian government, Giuli said, will continue to finance the excavations at the Pompeii site, which last year received four million visitors.