Thanks to my boss being out yesterday, I was able to run over to the National Gallery and see the Pompeii and the Roman Villa exhibit. It's extremely well-done, and I highly recommend seeing it on a weekday when it's less crowded, if possible. The Pompeii show is in the usual space the NGA uses for major exhibitions, on the mezzanine and upper levels of the East Building, with the spiral staircase taking you upstairs at the halfway point.

The best thing about it was that when I was actually in Naples, about ten years ago, the archaeological museum was closed due to some strike or something, so I was finally able to see some of the artifacts and artwork I missed at that time. I've been to Pompeii itself, which was eerie. My cousin and I visited on a cold, cloudy day, and it wasn't very crowded. We were in the middle of the town's ruins when the clouds opened up, and it began to pour. The rain was accompanied by thunder and lightning, which lent a real "79 AD" feel to our run back to the entrance. Fortunately, the 2,000 year old Roman drainage system worked perfectly, channeling the deluge into the gutters. Those stepping-stones they had at some of the intersections came in handy for keeping our feet dry. Yay, Roman technology and engineering!

Things are much less open to the elements, of course, at the National Gallery - all the artifacts are perfectly lit, and well-presented with comprehensive wall text. My only complaint is that as usual, photography is banned, even without using flash. It was so hard not to whip out my camera, which would have taken nice pictures with my trusty 17-55mm f/2.8 lens on it, ideal for dim museum use. I wish they had more Greek and Roman art in their permanent collection! Then I could photograph the crap out of it.

Anyway, it's a great show. Pompeii and the Roman Villa runs until March 22, 2009, so there's still plenty of time to see it before it's gone.