Customer Reviews

Ancient Roman Gardens

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Linda Farrar has produced a gem. This book shows with care, sensitivity and scholarly love what made a Roman garden. She discusses the plants found in the garden but also writes with great skill how the Romans situated statues in the garden. Cicero, a famous Roman politician and writer, mentions in one of his letters how beautifully vines draped over the arms of statues in his brother's garden. Statues were not just placed in the garden but immersed in it; these lived in it. Often pools were designed to reflect the image of a nearby statue and its attendant plants. She also discusses other art work found in Roman gardens. In her efforts to give a feel for the garden she discusses its use: for discussion, parties, meals, play, family work. She discusses what these plants and statues meant to Romans. It was in this book that I learned how much Romans loved nature and how religious they were and how much they were devoted to the beauty of nature around them. Plants provided food, interest and drew in large numbers of birds, bees and butterflies. Roman gardens truly hummed. Linda Farrar's love of the Romans and their gardens flourishes on every page. Any one intending to visit Italy or Pompeii would profit from reading this book. At the end of her book she has excellent suggestions for creating one's own Roman garden.