By Leah Cox
When Mount Vesuvius erupted near southern Italy’s Campania region, it destroyed the once thriving and sophisticated Roman city of Pompeii. The eruption of the infamous volcano resulted in thousands of deaths and left Pompeii under an estimated 20 feet of ash and pumice. To people who haven’t studied Latin and Roman history, it would be reasonable to conclude that nothing of the city remained after such a catastrophic event. However, that’s far from the truth.
The first-floor wall in the Upper School celebrates some incredible artifacts that survived in an exhibit titled: Making Latin Matter: Multi-Modal Mosaics in the Makers-Space.
I talked to Magistra Mellican, who teaches Latin IV/ V in the Upper School. She was also my former teacher in Latin II and Honors Latin III. Magistra Mellican is a historian as well as an excavator and archaeologist, so it’s no surprise that she would come up with such a cool project for students to complete.
“Actually, one of the big things that have been preserved from the volcanic eruption are the houses,” she explained to me. In addition to having beautiful Frescoes on the walls, many of the homes also have intricate floor mosaics.
Mosaics have been found “all over the ancient world in various times” and in all cultures. In fact, the earliest mosaic to have been found is dated to 3,000 B.C. Latin IV/ V are classes in which students begin to comprehend and interpret Roman and Greek literature in the context of the historical period that it was written. Magistra Mellican said it’s important for her students to understand the lives of the people living in the period of the completed work as it allows them to further contextualize the literature.
The mosaic project began with the introduction of a new unit about the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and “The Fall of Pompeii.” In this unit, Latin IV/V students read Pliny the Younger’s account to Tacitus about the death of his uncle, Pliny the Elder, near the eruption.
From this point, students researched and examined the various mosaics which have been found by archeologists in situ (which means “in its original place”). When students found a mosaic that piqued their interest, they printed a copy of the photo and used it as inspiration for their final mosaic design. Students were given creative freedom to “replicate” the designs—some took a literal approach and others took an abstract approach.
I asked Magistra Mellican to explain the significance of mosaics. “Well, they can mean a lot of different things. We have mosaics that are still portraits” which would have been representations of Roman life. “Let’s say a villa has a mosaic with a bunch of fish. Sometimes that could suggest, perhaps, that they either made money from fishing or were a family of fishermen,” she said.
What I found particularly interesting about this part of our conversation was the complex artistry required to create mosaics. In antiquity, mosaics (no matter the size) were made from 1×1 foot squares. “We have master compositions of mosaics that span this entire wall,” Magistra Mellican said as she directed my eyes to the vast length of the wall occupying the display.
Something else that wasn’t so surprising? Mr. Greenberg, the engineering instructor and Maker Space facilitator, played an important role in the completion of the project. In Magistra Mellican’s words, “A lot of credit goes to Mr. Greenberg. He’s the one who was able to put this idea into reality. I haven’t ever made a mosaic, I’ve only studied them.”
What Magistra Mellican really wanted to accomplish with this project was for her students to “learn a new skill set” and “gain an appreciation for when they do see mosaics.”
I talked to Wright Williams, an eleventh-grader, about the project. “I really liked the creative element,” he said. “It was fun to be able to pick what I wanted to make based on a real mosaic.” Wright, however, did have one qualm about the project. The grouting that keeps the tiles in place was really difficult to work with. Nevertheless, Wright found two things to be memorable about the project. First, “having it [the finished mosaics] put on the wall for everyone to see.” And second, the fact that right after he finished his mosaic, Wright went on the spring break trip to Italy that Lovett offers. Coincidentally, Wright “got to see the real mosaics [they] had been learning about in class at places like Pompeii!”
As Magistra Mellican described it, her Latin students were able to learn a new skill set without the intense pressure of regular academic assignments. In fact, that’s what Wright says is nice about Latin IV as a class. “Last semester, I got to make a murder board about an ancient murder case,” Wright said before adding that I may have seen it in the hallway on the first floor. “There’s been a big emphasis on learning through doing in Latin IV, and that’s been great!”
As for his final exam, Wright is creating a diorama on the Gaelic Raid of Cicero’s Fort—just as it was described in Caesar’s account of the Gaelic Wars in which he fought against the people of Gaul.
Overall, it really seems like Magistra Mellican has taken an inventive approach to teaching Latin-learning students. And her students have really enjoyed the hands-on learning experience.
As for what Magistra Mellican hopes to do for a project in the future? “Pottery!”
