In Stabiano: Exploring the Ancient Seaside Villas of the Roman Elite
February 18 through May 14, 2006

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SAN DIEGO—The San Diego Museum of Art is pleased to present an extremely rare traveling exhibition of 2,000-year-old Roman frescoes. The exhibition, titled In Stabiano: Exploring the Ancient Seaside Villas of the Roman Elite, presents approximately 70 objects, including sculpture, stucco reliefs, decorative and utilitarian objects, and 24 frescoes, including a spectacular three-wall dining room (triclinium). Organized by the Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation and the Superintendancy of Archaeology of Pompeii, In Stabiano will be on view from February 18 to May 14, 2006.

Roman frescoes rarely travel to North America, and this is the first time these frescoes from Stabiae have toured the United States. They were greeted with great acclaim by three million visitors at its opening venue, the National Museum of Natural History at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., in 2004.

This important exhibition contains nearly 70 artworks and archaeological artifacts and features 24 remarkably well-preserved frescoes and 11 stucco fragments originating from four partially excavated villas. Some of the frescoes are among the very highest quality ever to come from the Roman past. One of the most striking pieces is an entire triclinium (three-couch dining room) frescoed with a depiction of a reveling Dionysus, god of wine. The triclinium was an important space for Roman aristocrats who used their villas as power bases for entertaining clients.

The enormous Roman villas of ancient Stabiae (modern Castellammare di Stabia) are located at the gateway to the Sorrento/Amalfi peninsula, approximately 4.5 kilometers south of Pompeii. Placed high on a bluff overlooking the Bay of Naples, and well preserved by the same catastrophic eruption that buried Pompeii and Herculaneum in 79 C.E., the Stabiae site consists of a string of enormous sea-view villas (at least six) built side-by-side by the Roman elite for summer residency in the first centuries B.C.E. and C.E. In the summer months, the Bay of Naples became the virtual capital of the Roman Empire. Caesar, his father-in-law, Cicero, and the emperors Augustus and Tiberius had villas nearby.

In 1749, archaeological excavations begun under King Charles VII of Naples unearthed the magnificent villas of Stabiae. The frescoes that were discovered, such as the panels devoted to the mythological figures Flora, Diana, Medea, and Leda from the Villa Arianna, revealed the enduring heritage of Greek culture in Rome, especially among the wealthy elite. Many frescoes and objects were removed for official display or use as diplomatic gifts. By 1782, the archaeological trenches had been refilled and the land returned to farming.

The location of the site was totally forgotten until a passionate amateur, the principal of a local high school, rediscovered one of the villas and with the help of his volunteers (including his janitor) secured permission and began re-excavation in the 1950s. Now managed by the Superintendancy of Archaeology, only a small part of the villas, which were known in the 18th century, are presently re-excavated; acres more remain to be explored for the first time. The Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation has been given the charge to complete the excavations and transform the site into an 150-acre archaeological park, a project which will become the largest archaeological project in modern Europe.

Explanatory panels in the exhibition galleries chart the intriguing history of discovery, the projection of power and erudition with which the owners imbued their homes, and the lifestyle and economics of the villas, while providing information on the political significance of the five principal villas represented in the exhibition: the Villa San Marco, Villa Arianna ("of Ariadne," named after an important fresco), Villa del Pastore ("Villa of the Shepherd," named after a statue found on the site), and two "rustic" (i.e. working farm) villas near the modern sites of Carmiano and Petraro.

The site is an enormous archaeological treasure, another "modern Pompeii" waiting to be discovered, but one which presents the lifestyle of the very wealthy and powerful Roman elite. It is the best preserved concentration of first century B.C.E. and C.E. elite seaside villas in the Mediterranean world.

The exhibition is organized by the Archaeological Superintendancy of Pompeii and the Restoring Ancient Stabiae Foundation, tour managed by International Arts & Artists, partially sponsored by NIAF and Grand Circle Foundation.

The historic San Diego Museum of Art provides a rich and diverse cultural experience for more than 400,000 annual visitors. Located in the heart of beautiful Balboa Park, the Museum's nationally renowned collections include Spanish and Italian old masters, South Asian paintings, and 19th- and 20th-century American paintings and sculptures. In addition, the Museum regularly features major exhibitions of art from around the world, as well as an extensive year-round schedule of supporting cultural and educational programs.

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