These 30 Quotes From Ancient Pompeii Graffiti Prove Just How Little We Changed Over 2000 Years
If you thought that modern-day teenagers invented graffiti and inappropriate depictions of private male parts on walls - think again. Just recently, archaeologists found a 1,800-year-old drawing of penis near Hadrian's Wall which proved once again that some things just never change. Asides from these cheeky drawings, scholars are documenting ancient graffiti and writings on the walls. They began making copies of Latin inscriptions throughout the ancient Roman world, including Pompeii, in the late 1800s. Sadly, today, more than 90 percent of Pompeii's graffiti has been lost due to exposure to the elements. However, thanks to the 19th century scholars and translators, we have a beautiful list of funny, cheeky and bold wall inscriptions dating back to 2,000 years ago.
More info: Pompeiana
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Weep, you girls. My penis has given you up. Now it penetrates men’s behinds. Goodbye, wondrous femininity!
Rejoice! Delicious and wondrous femininity..for my weenie knows and craves no pleasure but thee and shall dwell in no Paradise without your Divine sensuality enveloping me. This is my personal version and I will write it on the wall in a Starbucks restroom in Chicago later today.
I can't remember where I first read this, but it wasn't quite this translation, it was something like "Goodbye, oh wondrous femininity, for I have found love with men (or c***s, I can't remember)
I’ve heard of this quote being in ancient text before but I don’t see where it’s supposed to say that?
These pictures aren’t from the graffiti, they are just ancient illustrations.
Load More Replies...They obviously hadn’t invented the “don’t ask don’t tell” policy yet........ Which we ought to go back to with great haste. I’m sick of hearing about it.
I'm sure gay people will gladly stay away from you if you make this stance clear
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If anyone does not believe in Venus, they should gaze at my girl friend
On April 19th, I made bread
Theophilus, don’t perform oral sex on girls against the city wall like a dog
This is a double insult. The Romans considered oral sex to be incredibly filthy and unhygienic and that it should only ever be performed by slaves or prostitutes.
Guess I’m content being a lowly, dirty, unhygienic slave....who will die with a smile on my face :)
Don't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to
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Vibius Restitutus slept here alone and missed his darling Urbana
Oh trust me he didn't wait long, there are like two other sets of Grafftini where in one he tells Restituna to show him her privates. And the last one is literally Urbana warning other women that he's a freaking A*****e. So among my friends he's now the dude who got stuck with himself alone horny during the 79 AD eruption.
A small problem gets larger if you ignore it.
To the one defecating here. Beware of the curse. If you look down on this curse, may you have an angry Jupiter for an enemy.
Listen, he'll screw your wife in the form of a swan, a beam of light, anything really--do not mess with him
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O walls, you have held up so much tedious graffiti that I am amazed that you have not already collapsed in ruin.
"Oh Brother-in-law, why did you give that awful double flute toy to my baby!? What have I ever done to hurt you?"
Dude, I promised to listen to your flute practice, just not in my ear!
Chie, I hope your hemorrhoids rub together so much that they hurt worse than when they every have before!
I don’t want to sell my husband, not for all the gold in the world
is that a bts symbol she's holding? apparently bangtan was here from the very beginning!
We two dear men, friends forever, were here. If you want to know our names, they are Gaius and Aulus.
A copper pot went missing from my shop. Anyone who returns it to me will be given 65 bronze coins (sestertii). 20 more will be given for information leading to the capture of the thief.
I’d go and get one out of the cup, and tell them I know who it was, get paid as tell them it was me all along. They can’t even prosecute 😂👍🏻
Until they figure that part out... and torture you to death.
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I screwed a lot of girls here.
What did the girls write? Can you imagine a MeToo movement in ancient Rome or Pompeii?
https://narratively.com/when-metoo-came-to-ancient-rome Excellent piece on the trial for rape of a 12 year old actress in public by a prominent politician in Ancient Rome. Be warned it is not a fun read.
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(Below a drawing of a man with a large nose) Amplicatus, I know that Icarus is buggering you. Salvius wrote this.
Celadus the Thracian gladiator is the delight of all the girls
Hardly, Thracians were brought to Rome as slaves, also Thracians were a tribe from Balkans and were illiterate, just sayin'...
Load More Replies...Read: "My milkshake brings all he boys to the yard, it's better than yours..."
The man I am having dinner with is a barbarian.
"He has the most shocking table manners. He is not even lying down!"
Epaphra, you are bald!
Defecator, may everything turn out okay so that you can leave this place.
Public latrines. You'd defecate in the company of dozens of other people.
Load More Replies...Should be a framed cross-stitch you hang in the bathroom.
Load More Replies...Doesn't this give you a deeper sense of appreciation for the modern toilet!
Was it really that boring back then, that all they had to talk about was poop?
I have seen plenty of modern poop-related graffitis so some things never change...
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Phileros is a eunuch!
Wrote one twelve-year-old boy, totally impressed with himself for daring to scratch it onto the wall. (Phileros => philos = friend, Eros = the Greek god of sensual love and desire)
A guy who cut off his d*ck so he can never have a family and serve his master for life.
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Apollinaris, the doctor of the emperor Titus, defecated well here
You know, 2000 years ago they had crappy sense of humour.
Load More Replies.......Defecated well?....That mean Apollinaris would leave a huge steamy pile or did he leave coins in it for cleanup?
I can imagine walking in Pompeii dodging poo in the street. Don't they realize they need to have a proper place for that?
They had public latrines back then, this graffiti could be from there
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Samius to Cornelius: go hang yourself!
Secundus defecated here three times on one wall.
People defecating all over the place! Must have been lovely to live back then!
There was Chipotle in Ancient Rome? They WERE advanced in so many ways!
Lovers are like bees in that they live a honeyed life.
Epaphra is not good at ball games.
Epaphra...depicted here practicing his flawed 'ball game' on the horse who is CLEARLY underwhelmed and, some may say, downright irritated.
Aufidius was here. Goodbye.
Cruel Lalagus, why do you not love me?
Horace, Odes, book 1, ode 22, lines 19-20) "dulce ridentem Lalagen amabo, dulce loquentem" I will love my sweetly smiling, sweetly speaking Lalage.
Virgula to her friend Tertius: you are disgusting!
I wonder why these people didn't just , you know, insult the other person face instead of writing it on some wall? I mean, they're writing their name so if his person saw it they''d know it was them anyway. lol
So you never called out someone online before, or sent someone a Break Up Text?
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Stronius Stronnius knows nothing!
"You know nothing, Stronius Stronnius". It sure has a certain ring to it.
Sergeant Shultz was the one to say 'I know nothing. I see nothing- I hear nothing- Oh, strudel!'
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I have buggered men
Was Pompeii’s rich history mainly characterised by s******g and buggering?
Whoever wants to serve themselves can go on an drink from the sea.
Some of these were left by grown women and men. I encourage you to look for a few articles and videos that dive a little deeper into the original Latin and how they traced a few of these back to actual people (with more info on those people). I felt the same way a few years ago until I did a deep-dive myself. These articles here are never meant to inform, just to gather likes and comments.
Load More Replies...A graffiti from England: "My mother made me a homosexual" and written underneath "If I get her the wool (yarn) will she make me one too?"
I HAVE to ask... Is this really real? Because I can help but smell a troll. Because if ... If those who made the images... And then added captions... And that's their real translations.... Well... that means MEMES were invented ovER 2000 YEARS AGO! AND THAT MEANS POMPEII WAS THE ORIGINAL SOURCE FOR MILLENIALS!!!
They're as real as they can get! You can read the whole NSFW list here - http://www.pompeiana.org/Resources/Ancient/Graffiti%20from%20Pompeii.htm
Load More Replies...For one of the wealthiest and most powerful empires of its time, people sure did s**t wherever they damn well pleased.
and the cities were filthy and malarial. Really, dying young was not hard.
Load More Replies...Some of these were left by grown women and men. I encourage you to look for a few articles and videos that dive a little deeper into the original Latin and how they traced a few of these back to actual people (with more info on those people). I felt the same way a few years ago until I did a deep-dive myself. These articles here are never meant to inform, just to gather likes and comments.
Load More Replies...A graffiti from England: "My mother made me a homosexual" and written underneath "If I get her the wool (yarn) will she make me one too?"
I HAVE to ask... Is this really real? Because I can help but smell a troll. Because if ... If those who made the images... And then added captions... And that's their real translations.... Well... that means MEMES were invented ovER 2000 YEARS AGO! AND THAT MEANS POMPEII WAS THE ORIGINAL SOURCE FOR MILLENIALS!!!
They're as real as they can get! You can read the whole NSFW list here - http://www.pompeiana.org/Resources/Ancient/Graffiti%20from%20Pompeii.htm
Load More Replies...For one of the wealthiest and most powerful empires of its time, people sure did s**t wherever they damn well pleased.
and the cities were filthy and malarial. Really, dying young was not hard.
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