For the pictures of the wall paintings of the Villa dei Misteri triclinium, you are requested to visit this link, which also consists of an explication of the figures in the paintings, because good pictures of the paintings are too large to upload in AW.

Interpretation of the figures in the wall painting scenes:

According to the most recent theory, the frieze depicts aspects of the life of the god Dionysus, who, as the god of theatre, is situated here among mimes and actors.

The first scene depicts a standing woman, a seated woman and a little boy standing. These are little Dionysus, who is raised by his mother Semele, standing with a veiled head, and Ino, sitting down.

The second secen depicts four women near a table. These are the four Horai or Seasons (Bacchus is known to have been worshipped as the master of the seasons).

The third scene is a satyr with a lyre. He is Silenus, Dionysus' favorite satyr. Next to him is a boy with a syrinx or pan flute, thought of a s Pan himself and a girl breastfeeding a little buck, thought of as the nymph Syrinx.

The fourth scene is a woman, moving and waving her veil above her head. She is thought of as Aura, a nymph of the air and beloved by Dionysus.

The fifth scene consists of a satyr with a jug with someone looking inside it and a satyr standing behind them holding up a mask. Who these figures are and what they may be doing, is not exactly known.

The sixth scene is a young man sitting on a throne and a woman beside him. They are thought of as Dionysus and Ariadne.

The seventh scene consists of some figures, one of which is kneeled to the floor and unveiling something. Some think that this is the unveiling of a phallus, a mystic attribute in the Dionysiac mysteries. The phallus seems to be used here as an apotropaeic weapon against the Fury Tisiphone, winged and with a stick trying to whip off the weapon, who was sent by Hera/Juno to bring unhappiness to Dionysus.

The eighth scene consists of a group of women, two seated to the left, i.e. one really seated and another kneeling in front of her and trying to hide her face in the seated woman's lap, and two women standing and dancing to the right. These figures are thought of to be Nikaia, love of Dionysus, who is about to give birth against her will (i.e.the kneeled woman). To the right, naked and with little cymbals, her dancing daughter Telete, leader of the Bacchae.

Scene nine consists of a seated and a standing woman and two cupids, who are thought of to be Aphrodite/Venus and Peitho (i.e. goddess of Persuasion) and winged putti.

The tenth and last scene consists of a seated woman with a veiled head, who is thought to be Hera/Juno, Dionysus worst enemy.

Of course, there are a s many interpretations of these scenes as there are people who have tried to interpret these scenes. All of them are quite interesting, especially the ones trying to give a mystical or initiatical interpretation.

Literature:

F.L. Bastet, Fabularum dispositas explicationes, BABesch 49 (1974), 206-240.

K. Fittschen, Zum Figurenfries der Villa von Boscoreale, Neue Forschungen in Pompeji, Recklinghausen 1975, 93-100.

H. Kaehler, Rom und seine Welt, Muenchen 1960, Abb. 62.

Tanaquil