The House of the Second Cenaculum takes its name from the distinctive architecture of its façade on Via dell’Abbondanza, which originally had an upper floor with a colonnaded balcony. The façade was uncovered in 1912, while the interior of the house was explored mainly between 1982 and 2005.
The domus occupies the south-western part of the Insula of the Chaste Lovers. Recent excavations have shown that some rooms were undergoing renovation work in AD 79: scaffolding was still in place and several walls were awaiting plaster.
One of the most unusual discoveries is a group of charcoal drawings on the courtyard walls. Archaeologists believe they were probably made by children who lived in the house. These simple images are exceptionally rare evidence of childhood at Pompeii and offer insight into aspects of daily life that normally leave very little trace in the archaeological record.
Despite the monumental façade on Via dell’Abbondanza, recent research suggests that in the house’s final phase its occupants lived in less prosperous circumstances than the exterior might imply. The simultaneous presence of building work, everyday activity and marks left by children creates a particularly vivid picture of the building’s final days.
The house is also important to the study of Pompeii’s seismic history. Analyses published in 2026 identified evidence in the walls of several episodes of damage and subsequent repair between the major earthquake of AD 62 and the eruption of AD 79.
