Marine Gate (Porta Marino) and Suburban Baths, Pompei

Porta Marina is one of the two main gates which allowed access through the city walls and into the centre of Pompei. Located in a fortified section of the stone walls, Porta Marina faces towards the sea – hence the name, Marine Gate. It is comprises of two arches – a smaller arch for people to pass through, and a larger arch for animals such as mules and donkeys.

Just outside the Porta Marina, you will find one of the city’s newly discovered treasures. Known as the Suburban Baths, this former public bath house was only discovered in 1958, several years after the Central Baths were unearthed in the city centre. The baths possess a couple of unusual features which have given a fresh insight into the social and cultural life of Pompei.

Firstly, the dressing room, or apodyterium, is unusual, in that it is just that – only one room, without separate changing facilities for men and women. The decorations found in the dressing room are also remarkable. Whilst erotic art works have been found in various locations in Pompei, the walls here feature a great number of highly erotic frescoes, which are more graphic than those seen elsewhere in the city. This suggests a far more relaxed attitude to sexual imagery than many historians had supposed.