Hiking Highlight
Recommended by 6 hikers
The 2000 years-old Roman Villa Poppaea with well-preserved frescos is an ancient luxurious seaside villa (villa maritima) located in Torre Annunziata between Naples and Sorrento. It is also called the Villa Oplontis as it was situated in the ancient Roman town of Oplontis. It was buried and preserved in the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD, like the nearby cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii, about 10 m (33 ft) below modern ground level. The quality of the decorations and construction suggests that it was owned by the Emperor Nero, and a pottery shard bearing the name of a freedman of Poppaea Sabina, the second wife of the emperor Nero was found at the site, which suggests the villa may have been her residence when she was away from Rome and which gives it its popular name. It was sumptuously decorated with fine works of art. Its marble columns and capitals mark it out as being especially luxurious compared with others in this region that usually had stuccoed brick columns.
Closed Tuesdays, check at pompeiisites.org/oplontis
June 29, 2021
Lovely large villa of the second wife of Emperor Nero. Lots of info and some in sign language, nice to see the inclusivity. You should try and include as part of your tour of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
May 8, 2023
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