The House of Sallust is one of the most important surviving examples of domestic architecture from Samnite Pompeii. Its monumental configuration dates to around 180 BC, and much of the original layout remains intact.
The austere façade of tuff blocks leads into an atrium with a tuff impluvium. A small colonnaded portico opens at the rear. Many rooms preserve First Style decoration, in which stucco and paint imitate large revetments of coloured stone and marble, lending the house a monumental appearance.
After the earthquake of AD 62, the building underwent substantial alterations and may have been partly adapted to provide accommodation. New rooms were created on the upper floor, while some areas received more up-to-date decoration.
The garden featured a painting of Actaeon attacked by Diana’s hounds, unfortunately partly destroyed in the bombing of 1943. A bronze group depicting Heracles and a hind also stood near the impluvium.
A seal ring found in the house has suggested a possible connection with Aulus Cossius Libanus, although the owner’s identity cannot be regarded as certain.
