Luigi Bazzani (Italian, 1836-1927) A Pompeian Interior, 1882 Oil
on panel, 28 3/4 x 22 inches Signed, inscribed, and dated lower
right: Luigi Bazzani/ROMA 1882 The 1748 rediscovery of Pompeii’s
amazingly preserved urban fabric inspired many 19th-century
artists to imagine scenes from Roman daily life. The anecdotal
charm, sumptuous color, and archaeological accuracy of A
Pompeian Interior typifies this genre. Like Alma Tadema, the
painter of what can be called “everyday antiquity,” Bazzani
probably relied on readily available photographs of ancient
sites to create his compositions. The artist recreates the main
central hall or atrium of a Roman villa, lighted by an opening
in the roof, and a basin, called an impluvium, to collect
rainwater that then flows into an underground container for
everyday use. The impluvium and the winged-lion table in this
painting appear to be based on those in the House of Meleager in
Pompeii, featured in a photograph owned by Alma Tadema, who also
used the table in his painting G