The "Villa of the Papyri" is an enormous private house of ancient Herculaneum owned by Julius Caesar's father-in-law, Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, and first excavated in 1785 by Karl Weber . Its name derives from the discovery of a library in the house containing 1,800 carbonized papyrus scrolls.

The 800 feet (245 m) long sea side villa had four levels and was the most luxurious house in all of Herculaneum and Pompeii. It was complete with swimming pools, fountains and water features.

Many of the scrolls were by the philosopher Philodemus , a client of Piso. The villa of the Papyri is said to contain a second library full of papyrus scrolls. The villa of the papyri also housed a large collection of privately owned sculptural art. The house contained 80 sculptures of magnificent quality and craftsmanship. Lucius Piso was a highly educated man and was a patron for both philosophers and poets. There is still 30,000 square feet (2,800 m²) left to be excavated of this grand estate.

The reason that the remainder of the dig-site has not been excavated is that the Italian government is practicing a policy of conservation and not excavation, and is more interested in improving the appearance of what has all ready been uncovered. This poses a problem since no one knows if the scrolls are being damaged by water or other forces right now.

External link

• Philodemus Project Home Page [1]