March 21, 2026
Romans had Reddit too?
A digital resource for studying the graffiti of Herculaneum and Pompeii
Ancient wall scribbles go clickable; history nerds swoon
TLDR: The Ancient Graffiti Project puts Pompeii and Herculaneum wall inscriptions online with maps, photos, and translations. Early commenters praise easy access and smart search, while others anticipate debates over the word “graffiti” and translation style—because peeking at everyday Roman life is rare, delightful, and culturally important.
Pompeii’s ancient wall scribbles just got a modern glow-up thanks to the Ancient Graffiti Project, a site that maps where messages were scratched into plaster and translates them for curious mortals. It’s like walking the streets of 79 AD with subtitles. The early mood? Delightfully nerdy. User bamwor cheered making public historical data easy to browse, called this preservation “underrated,” and gave the search a slow clap. The interface is friendly: click a house, see the inscription, peek at photos and clean line drawings. For teachers and the history-curious, it’s a buffet.
Cue the drama: does “graffiti” mean vandalism or everyday poetry? The site notes the word once meant scratched inscriptions, but the semantics squad showed up anyway. Language buffs want literal translations; casual readers want the vibe. Meme-lords imagined “Roman Yelp reviews” and “gladiator thirst traps.” Scholars flexed that AGP’s editions update the old Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum and link into Rome’s epigraphy databases — neat, but most commenters care about one thing: finding spicy ancient tea. Verdict: the search delivers.
Key Points
- •The Ancient Graffiti Project is a digital resource for ancient handwritten wall inscriptions, emphasizing Herculaneum and Pompeii.
- •AGP provides maps, translations, and summaries to contextualize inscriptions within ancient cities.
- •The project publishes critical editions, including updates to the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, with citation guidance and bibliography.
- •AGP offers photographs from fieldwork, enhanced images, and line drawings to accurately represent inscriptions.
- •AGP contributes editions to Epigraphic Database Roma and EAGLE, and provides linked open data and teaching materials.