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Labra could also be used in public squares, streets, crossroads, close to
sanctuaries and in the forum to provide public access to drinking water from decorative
fountains. Water reached the labrum through a small lead pipe in the pedestal, which
terminated in a small opening at the center of the basin, allowing the water to flow
gracefully over the rounded, splayed rim. 161 On wall paintings in Pompeii and
Herculaneum, two different types of labra are seen: one with a gently outward curving
rim (Fig. 32a), and the other with flat rims curving slightly inward providing a surface for
birds to rest on (Fig. 32b). The marble basins from Punta Scifo A are reminiscent of the
first type.
Fig. 32. (a) To the left a labrum with rounded rim, two side-handles, low foot, and
squared support from the House of Lucretius Fronto in Pompeii. (Detail after Cain 1985,
Taf. 1,2) (b) To the right a different type of labrum, from the House of Venus on the
Shell in Pompeii. Its foot is much taller, slimmer, and decorated with a vegetal motif. The
rim is flat and slightly turned inward, in order to allow birds to stand and drink.
(From Panetta 2004, 310).
161 Ambrogi 2005, 69.
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