Merchants 

 
The markets in Pompeii were filled with products from all over the empire. Any of the coastal cities 
of the empire could provide you with more stuff than you could imagine. Your job as a merchant is 
to determine what how much these items are worth, and what the demand for each of them is. 
 
At this station are pictures of the products your customers want you to sell at your stall in 
the marketplace. Study each card to determine what the trade good is and what it was 
used for, then: 
 
● 1. Rank them 1-7 with 1 being the most valuable and 7 being the least. 
● 2. Rank them 1-7 with 1 being the most in demand and 7 being the least. (The more 
in demand a trade good is, the more of this product you’ll want to keep in stock!) 
 
 
Wheat from Egypt and Sicily 
 
Everybody needs to eat! Like most people 
throughout the world since the Agricultural 
Revolution, Roman people made bread out of 
grain. In this case - wheat! It’s what’s for 
dinner. And breakfast. All the time…  

Jewelry made from Spanish Gold 

 
“Domina, you will look like Venus herself 
wearing this latest fashion. I hear the Empress 
herself was seen wearing one just like it not a 
month past!” 
 
“Dominus, your girlfriend shouldn’t go 
without-- Oh, no girlfriend? Well, your wife 
then-- No? Ah, of course, and a wise purchase 
  if I may say. No one will hear of your mistress’s 
happiness from me, good patron.” 
 Local Fish 
 
As the saying goes, “Guests and fish begin to 
smell after three days.” A nice thing to nibble 
on, but don’t let it sit out for too long. Good 
refrigeration won’t be available for another 
1800 years! 

Italian Grapes 
 
Grapes were made into wine in vast quantities. 
Romans loved their wine, and your customers 
are no exception. Generally considered a daily 
necessity, this drink was enjoyed by everyone 
from slaves to senators (yes, even children!). 
Though, no one would think of drinking it 
  before it was watered down. Only barbarians 
drink unwatered wine... 

Olives from Greece 

 
Mmm, we love our olives. We eat them fairly 
often, but most of our olives are pressed into 
olive oil. This oil is very versatile! We use it in 
food, to light our lamps, in our makeup, and to 
clean our bodies with if we can afford it. Plus, 
you can use the leftover pulp as fertilizer. What 
will those Greeks think up next? 
 

Iron and Iron Goods from Britain 

 
It may not look like much, but these heavy 
chunks of metal keep the Empire running. Iron 
is melted down and made into all kinds of tools, 
but we’re mostly interested in it to make our 
weapons. I wonder if the gladiators in town 
would be interested. 

 
 Slaves from Germany 
 
Yes, it’s an ugly business, but where would we 
be without our slaves? Who else would work 
on our farms, guard our doors, take care of our 
children, cook our food, and clean our clothes? 
Citizens? Hah! Them you have to pay. No, no, a 
nice, docile slave is what you need. And listen, 
after 20 years or so if they work hard for you 
and don’t cause a fuss, set them free if you 
want. Lots of people are doing it these days! 

 
 
 
 
 
 
Value  Demand 

1.  1. 

2.  2. 

3.  3. 

4.  4. 

5.  5. 

6.  6. 

7.  7. 
 
Follow-Up: What is your reasoning for these decisions? Were some things more difficult 
to assess than others? Why do you think that was? 
 
 
 
 
 Architects 
 
One of the things the Romans are remembered for most is their outstanding architecture - 
particularly their genius use of arches. Despite being built thousands of years ago many of their 
buildings still stand to this day. 
 
At this station you’ll find a bunch of plaster of Paris “stones” that you will use to build an 
archway without glue or mortar - just like the Romans! Study the picture below, and 
carefully place each one until they are able to support themselves. (Hint: using a partner 
helps!)

 
 
Follow-Up: What about this design do you think allows the stones to remain in place? 
Why doesn’t it just fall apart? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Slaves 
 
Slavery seems to have been just as common in Pompeii as in Rome itself. Some became respected 
members of society like gladiators, or even doctors if they had the education! Most of them, though, 
worked as house servants or farmers. While in this time period a slave owner technically had the 
power of life and death over his/her slaves, in practice it was extremely taboo to abuse your slaves. 
This isn’t to say they didn’t have hard lives, but since slaves were everywhere and seen by everyone, 
word got around if their owners were cruel. 
 
You are all on-hand for whatever the teacher needs during this rotation. If you are not 
needed, you are free to work on your follow-up questions from the other stations as long 
as you stay out of the way of everyone else. The rest of the students are citizens; for these 
few minutes you are not. At all times you are required to remain silent unless asked a 
direct question. 
 
Follow-Up: I’m so sorry, my wonderful students! I confess this was very difficult for me. 
How was it for you? Additionally, how would you suggest I improve upon this rotation? 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Citizens 
 
Although Rome was a multicultural, multiethnic, multilingual empire, nearly all of its many people 
spoke a dialect of Latin. It was the official language of the government, so learning it was necessary 
to be involved and become engaged in your local community. After the Western Roman Empire fell 
and people became more isolated from one another, Latin evolved into many different languages: 
Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, and Catalan being just a few. Although English is a Germanic 
language, it has borrowed many words from Latin as we will see below. 
Use your knowledge of English and the information below to match the English words 
with Latin roots in column A to their definitions in column B. 
 
Look at these examples of words with Latin roots: 
 
Ignis = Fire Manus = Hand Amare = to Love Pedis = Foot Magna = Great/Large 
Scribere = to Write Curare = to take care of, to cure 
 
Column A Column B 
 
1. ________ ignite a. trimming and polishing of fingernails 
2. _________ pedestrian b. to catch or light on fire 
3. _________ amorous c. someone who is walking 
4. _________ pedicure d. full of love 
5. _________ manuscript e. something written by hand 
6. _________ magnify f. to make something appear larger 
7. _________ manicure g. trimming and polishing of toenails 
 
The mosaic below of a chained-up dog was found in Pompeii in front of “the House of the Tragic 
Poet”. Given the image and where it was found, what might the message “Cave canem” mean? 

 
Follow-Up: 3 of the words in Column A are formed from not 1, but 2 Latin words. Which 
are they? Can you think of any more English (or Spanish) words made from these roots? 
 
 Street Urchins 
 
Like most major Roman cities Pompeii looked glorious from the outside, but look deeper and you’d 
find many social problems just like we have today. Poverty and starvation affected many people 
living in the city. Many turned to crime just to survive. If caught by a Roman soldier the penalties 
for stealing were extreme. 
 
Use the map at this station and follow the directions below to avoid the soldiers and find 
out where the urchin buried his treasure! 
 
Well, I was at the temple of Jupiter on the west side of town - that’s where I grabbed the statue. I ran out of the 
north side of the building and headed northeast about 150 yards and turned north onto Strada Mercurio. I 
immediately headed east and passed the two big houses hoping to lose the guards in the crowd. I ran about 3 
blocks, then turned south onto Strada Stabiana. I noticed the central baths to the east so I ducked into there. 
That was a bad idea! I stood out like a… umm… like a guy wearing clothes in a room full of naked people, I 
guess. I hurried out the south exit, turned west back towards Stabiana and ran south past the sanctuary. 
When I passed the Stabian baths I got kind of turned around and I’m not sure where I ended up. I turned west 
after the baths and ran about 200 yards and saw a HUGE crowd that was so packed I couldn’t even get by. I 
ran back one block and turned south. Now the guards were almost on me so I didn’t really notice where I was, 
but I do remember turning east when the road ended and just running and running. I think I ran about 250 
yards and I remember passing through a huge building. I then ducked into another building maybe just south 
of that and stashed the statue somewhere in there. What building do you think I was in?

 
 
 Artists 
 
Art was a large part of life in Pompeii. Paintings and mosaics have been found in and on numerous 
buildings throughout the city, not to mention graffiti left by people of all social classes. Since many 
people living in the town couldn’t read, art became a way of telling stories and directing people 
around. Mosaics are works of art created by using many small colored glass or stone tiles. Romans 
created all sorts of pictures of people and animals, and were fond of geometric designs like those 
found below. 
 
As a group, use your creativity and the glass tiles found at this station to create a mosaic of 
your own. When you are finished, take a picture so we can add it to your unit portfolio.