That’s no pizza: wall painting in Pompeii does not depict Italy’s famous dish

Name: Ancient Roman ‘fast-food’ counter found in ruins of Pompeii is unveiled by Italian archaeologists
Uploaded: 2023-06-27T17:40:54.000Z
Duration: 2 min 24 s
Description: Ancient Roman ‘fast-food’ counter found in ruins of Pompeii is unveiled by Italian archaeologists

Tomatoes and mozzarella needed to make Italy’s famous dish were not available when the fresco was painted some 2,000 years ago, archaeologists noted

The still-life fresco – which looks like a pizza – is instead believed to be focaccia bread covered with fruit, experts at the archaeological site said on Tuesday

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The wall of an ancient Pompeian house with a fresco depicting a table with food. The fresco was found in the atrium of a house in Insula 10 of Regio IX under excavation, to which a bakery was annexed. Photo: Pompeii Archaeological Park via AP

Associated Press

Published: 1:40am, 28 Jun 2023Updated: 8:33am, 28 Jun 2023

A still-life fresco discovered recently in the Pompeii archaeological site looks like a pizza, but it’s not, experts at the archaeological site said on Tuesday.

They noted that key ingredients needed to make Italy’s famous dish – tomatoes and mozzarella – were not available when the fresco was painted some 2,000 years ago.

Tomatoes were only introduced to Europe from the Americas a few centuries ago, and some histories have it that the discovery of mozzarella led directly to the invention of pizza in nearby Naples in the 1700s.

The image is instead believed to be focaccia bread covered with fruit, including pomegranate and possibly dates, finished with spices or a type of pesto, experts said. In the fresco, it is served on a silver plate and a wine chalice stands next to it.

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Ancient Roman ‘fast-food’ counter found in ruins of Pompeii is unveiled by Italian archaeologists

The contrast of the frugal meal served in a luxurious setting, denoted by the silver tray, is not unlike modern-day pizza, “born as a poor-man’s dish in southern Italy, which has won over the world and is served even in starred restaurants,” said Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the Pompeii archaeological site.