Sandra Hurt Carm el Aut h or
Unearths a Spirit From Pompeii in Her First Novel Writer // Janelle Morrison Photography // Janelle Morrison, Carol Spicuzza and submitted
Carmel resident Sandra Hurt and her husband, Stan, are well-known and highly regarded stewards of historical collections and champions for arts organizations. In 2020, Hurt added published author to her resume upon the release of her first novel, “Priestess of Pompeii: The Initiate’s Journey.”
Destined to Write “Her” Story
H
urt’s new novel was a 20-plus year journey that began in the early ’90s at a women’s conference on women in art throughout the centuries, where Hurt came face-to-face with an ancient portrait of a woman housed in the Villa of the Mysteries in Pompeii. Hurt said, “This event put me on a journey to tell her story. I was destined to write her story.” Not much is known about the real life of the priestess, only her name, Rufilla Istacidia, and that she was a priestess in Pompeii who likely owned the Villa of the Mysteries. The Priestess of Pompeii is the result of Hurt’s extensive research on Greek and Roman culture, myths and legends, as well as on-site research on the lifestyles and
untimely end of Pompeii’s people. Pompeii was decimated by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79. Hurt, a registered nurse by trade, is a self-professed “perennial” student. Hurt enrolled in courses at Indiana University in Bloomington and at IUPUI in Indianapolis as well as writers workshops to become knowledgeable about the classics and about the art of writing. She immersed herself in the studies of classical Roman and Greek history and mythology, archeology and architecture. She also took classes on mythology and psychological interpretations of the Pompeiian fresco cycle in Jungian psychoanalysts’ writings. Hurt traveled to Italy and Greece and has completed numerous hours of on- and off-site exploration of the Dionysian frescoes that represent a
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women’s ritual to the Greek god Dionysus in the Villa of the Mysteries. “The rituals for women in ancient times were created to help them develop their inner lives, wisdom and independence,” Hurt explained. “The journey of these women who lived in antiquity is the same for women today. It is my hope that women readers will recognize themselves in these pages and appreciate the role ritual can play in our lives today.” Hurt paid special attention to the priestess in the portrait that became the source of Hurt’s passion to write her fictional novel that expertly weaved in historical figures and facts from ancient Rome and Greece. Throughout Hurt’s journey to writing her book, the priestess from the fresco with the pensive expression was in Hurt’s
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