Now here is an heirloom seed seeker’s daydream: an herbal shop has reopened in Pompeii. Their stock includes seeds and plants that might have been offered at the herbal shop in the same location two thousand years ago. The new store, a product of a collaboration between biologists, botanists, archaeologists, and others, is discussed in an online English-language article in ANSA, an Italian newspaper:
Pompeian plants for sale
Herbalist’s shop opens in archaeological site
POMPEII (ANSA) – Fruits, herbs, seeds and other plant products popular with ancient Romans will go back on sale this week in a renovated herbalist’s store in the archaeological site of Pompeii.
The merchandise has all been produced from plants grown in a Pompeian botanical garden, painstakingly restored to its former glory.
An interdisciplinary team, including archaeologists, biologists, botanists and historians, has spent years excavating the remains of the site, identifying exactly which plants were grown where.
http://www.ansa.it/site/notizie/awnplus/english/news/2007-03-23_12355173.html
