Frescoes inspired by the Trojan War adorning a banquet hall were discovered in Pompeii. Among the characters represented are Helen and Paris, the Trojan prince who kidnapped the latter, wife of the Spartan king Menelaus.
The dominant theme of the cycle of frescoes is heroism, but these paintings also evoke destiny and the ways in which humans can modify it. Pompeii, the second most visited tourist site in Italy after the Colosseum in Rome, covers a total area of approximately 22 hectares, a third of which is still buried under ashes. The volcanic ash spewed 2,000 years ago by Vesuvius sedimented on most of the homes of Pompeii,. which allowed them to be almost completely preserved, as did many of the bodies of the 3,000 deaths caused by the catastrophe. The walls were painted black to prevent traces of smoke from the lanterns from being seen, and the mosaics testify to the luxurious lifestyle reigning in the ancient city.