Pompeii ovens in Pompeii

[rwiegand]

Just back from a month in Italy, and got my chance to stick my head inside a number of ovens in Pompeii. I wonder what (if anything) they used for insulation? Probably not ceramic fiber.

https://carouselorgan.smugmug.com/Travel/Pompeii-ovens

[david s]

They used pumice. Tons of the stuff around Pompeii. The Pantheon in Rome, the worlds largest unreinforced dome was built using pumice as aggregate in the upper dome and it was all carted from Pompeii, hundreds of K’s away.

[rwiegand]

Ah, that makes perfect sense.

As I understood it, only the upper part of the Pantheon dome was concrete made with tufo or pumice, the lower part of the dome used travertine and granite-- more strength at the bottom. lighter weight on top.

[david s]

Yes, the base is something like 6 m thick, but as the dome rises the walls get progressively thinner and lighter. A magnificent construction for something 2000 years old. I sat in on a university lecture when I was there and found it way more fascinating than the uni students who surrounded me. The shaft of light penetrating the interior is staggering.