Further Notes
The “hunting” themed artwork was found in the tablinum and peristyle of this house. The rest of the house did have artwork on the wall, but they featured other more commonly pictured artistic subjects at the time such as roman gods and natural scenes. The specific placement of the hunting paintings may be to further the showcasing of wealth; the owners commissioned these in relatively more grand sections of the house where more people are likely to move. Like other wealthy Roman homes, this house features the entrance, the tablinum, and the peristyle built on the same axis, and therefore, these structures serve a large function in the displaying of the house. These rooms are the most visible to the public, so to have greater decoration in these rooms rather than in a cubiculum or a kitchen makes sense.
Tablinum Gallery
1a. East Wall // Lower Left Painting
2a. East Wall // Lower Right Painting
2b. West Wall // Lower Right Painting
1a. East Wall // Lower Left Painting
The tablinum is a generally central room that was often used for paterfamilias to bring in and meet clients in the beginning of the day. This room could also contain important documents, family business, and expensive artifacts. A large reason behind the morning ceremony was to display wealth to the public, make important connections, and have your name tied to artists and writers. These hunting scenes would only contribute more to the feeling of authority and power of the household, especially because a majority of these paintings show a sense of strength, highlighting a moment in which the hunter figure takes down the beast. These are complimented with more traditional roman styles with an emphasis on the 4th style that portrays grand architecture and royalty.
Peristyle Hunt Scene
The most intricate hunt painting– the one the house is named after– is displayed in the peristyle. The peristyle is more of a loungey area than the tablinum with the outdoor garden, columns, and an exedra nearby. People inside of the house have more time and motivation to admire the artwork, and it would follow to have the most prominent piece here. The piece does show wild beasts and hunting acts throughout, but it seems to focus less on the beastly and fierce vibe than those in the tablinum. The paintings in the tablinum would only have a hunter/prey scenario in the foreground, while this piece is nothing but complex. It still is fierce in the sense that it displays hunter x beast, beast x beast, and more, but altogether, it’s mesmerizing to see. The focus is no longer just a single interaction, and there’s a flow that runs through line style, the actions, and the background landscape.