View Page: Roman atrium house - form and function

	Roman atrium house - form and function
	written by jwang3 / 09.22.2005

Section Three

3 of 7

Function

http://www.mmdtkw.org/01-03FamiliaRomana1.jpg

The Roman family

The typical Roman family consisted not only of blood relatives, but also slaves, intimate clients, and close friends.

http://wings.buffalo.edu/AandL/Maecenas/italy_except_rome_and_sicily/pompeii/ac880830.html

House of the Faun atrium

The atrium was the setting for some of the family's most important rituals. The roof of the House of Faun atrium is missing, but the impluvium remains in the center.

As the center of activity, the atrium was the most important room in the house. Not only was it the room in which clients waited to be received by the paterfamilias, but it was also the location for the most important household goods, including the lararium which housed the family lars (god), the household safe, and the marriage bed.

In addition, the atrium served as the setting for significant rituals for the entire household, rituals that acted not only to honor the family lars, but also to emphasize the power of the paterfamilias to the household members. It is important to note that these rituals included all members of the household, family slaves and intimate clients alike; the paterfamilias possessed power over all those living under his roof. Rituals included the tollere, whereby a newborn child was chosen by the paterfamilias to be a member of the family. Once chosen, the child was recognized as a legitimate member of the household and became subject to authority of the paterfamilias. Another ritual was the Liberalia, the rite of passage for boys around the age of 16 or 17. In this ceremony, the boys offered their toga and amulet to the family lars and thereby accepted the new toga of manhood. In addition, the marriage ceremony in which the new couple shared their sacred cake with the family lars, was held in the atrium of the husband’s home. Although the bride remained under the control of her own paterfamilias, she was received by the family and ancestors of her husband.

Items found in the atrium also reveal its existence as a communal room for the family. Inkwells and styli were among the pieces discovered, suggesting its use as a classroom for the children. Dolls and flutes indicate its function as an entertainment and playroom. , Spoons, and glasses point to signs of it acting as a domestic space as well.

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