August 24, 79 AD

Computer Generated Image of The Last Day of Pompeii (Discovery Channel)

I think all of us are familiar with Pompeii's destruction by Mt. Vesuvius. Even though I had studied it quite a bit in college, I was still gobsmacked when I saw it in person. Many ancient sites were abandoned by their occupants due to climate change, regional feuds, economics. etc. Those residents simply packed up all their belongings and moved, leaving only the structures behind. What is unique about Pompeii (and Herculanuem) is that when the ash and lava buried these towns, everything was left and much of it preserved very well. In Herculaneum even wooden objects were preserved. This preservation gives us the opportunity to study life and culture as it really was. We can see the mundane and the spectacular.

Welcome Mat

This mosaic is in front of a door in Pompeii. Have is Latin for greetings or welcome. Over time the H has been dropped from the word and we are left with Ave, as in Ave, Maria.

Beware of the Dog

A mosaic welcome Mat of a different kind in front of another house in Pompeii. Cave Canem means Beware of the Dog.

"You want fries with that?"

This is actually one of the first fast food restaurants known to man. There are several of these eateries on street corners in Pompeii and Herculaneum. Wine was dipped from jugs and bread was served for a quick bite on your way to the forum.

Vase from the Villa of the Mosaic Columns

There are loads of Pompeii links to the right. Take a Virtual Tour complete with photos and descriptions, print out Rick Steves' Guided Walking Tour, or read some of the history and interesting facts at Wikipedia.

Mt. Vesuvius also wrecked Herculaneum. Pompeii was downwind of the volcano at the time of the eruption and thus was buried in ash and debris rather quickly. Initially Herculaneum was safe but the residents must have seen what was happening in the skies. Many people are thought to have fled by sea soon after the eruption began. Some stayed, obviously thinking that they were safe since nothing was falling from the sky onto them. However, during the night a pyroclastic flow sent ash, lava, and toxic gasses toward Herculaneum at speeds of over 100 MPH. The temperatures of a pyroclastic flow can be as high as 500 degrees centigrade. The remaining townsfolk were doomed. The flow incinerated people and filled up structures from the ground towards the sky instead of burying them as the ash did in Pompeii.

The amazingly good state of preservation of the Herculaneum structures and their contents is due to three factors:

1. By the time the wind changed and when ash and debris began to fall on Herculaneum, the structures were already filled up due to the pyroclastic flow. Thus the roofs did not collapse.
2. The intense heat of the first pyroclastic flow carbonized the surface of organic materials and extracted the water from them. Scrolls and wooden structures thus became almost "petrified".
   
3. The deep (up to 25 meters), dense tuff, or consolidated ash, formed an airtight seal over Herculaneum for 1700 years keeping it relatively intact.
   

Mosaic Walls in a Herculaneum Home

Preserved Wood and Stone Storage Facility

Check out the Herculaneum link to the right. There are loads of links there to learn more about the other victim of the wrath of Mt. Vesuvius.

Add the book Pompeii: A Novel by Robert Harris to your reading list!