Great Collapses Codexery

Pompeii

Ancient Roman city buried by Vesuvius, preserved as a time capsule.

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Where it is

Street map of the area around Pompeii; the red dot marks 40°45′00″N 14°29′10″E
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Coordinates: 40°45′00″N 14°29′10″E (40.7500, 14.4860) · Open in OpenStreetMap

Coordinates and connected clubs: the infobox of Wikipedia: Pompeii (CC BY-SA 4.0). Map: drawn by Codexery from OpenStreetMap tiles.

It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and attracts about 2.5 million visitors annually.[1] The site offers a snapshot of Roman life, frozen at the moment of destruction, and insight into ancient urban planning.[2]

Key facts and history

First stable settlements on the site date to the 8th century BC, when the Oscans founded five villages.[3] On 5 February AD 62, a severe earthquake caused considerable damage around the bay, particularly to Pompeii.[4] Giuseppe Fiorelli took charge of excavations in 1863 and devised the technique of injecting plaster into voids left by decomposed bodies.[5][6] Around the start of the 6th century BC, the various hamlets combined into one community, and a defensive wall made of tufa was constructed around it.[7]

Mount Vesuvius produced a catastrophic eruption in 79 AD, an event that ranks among the most lethal volcanic disasters ever recorded, and the eruption continued for two days.[8] The volcanic event deposited as many as twelve distinct strata of tephra over the structures and inhabitants, reaching a combined thickness of up to 6 meters.[9] Starting in 2018, archaeological work has uncovered new finds in parts of the city that had not been investigated before.[10]

What the cited sources add

A 2024 NBC report notes that archaeologists unearthed an ancient building site that sheds light on Roman construction techniques, including the use of concrete.[11] The same source states that the Pompeii site has seen a burst of recent archaeological activity aimed at halting years of decay and neglect.[11] A 2018 BBC report describes the remains of a man decapitated by a boulder while fleeing the eruption, found on the first floor of a building.[12] That BBC report adds that the skeleton shows signs of a bone infection in his leg, which could have made walking difficult.[12]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: New frescoes discovered at Pompeii, buried by volcano. The Washington Post.; "Dossier Musei 2008", Touring Club Italiano; "Visitors to Pompeii archaeological park Italy", Statista (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: .; "Pompeii – Archaeology, Roman, Ruins Britannica", www.britannica.com; Pompeii building site reveals ancient Roman construction methods. NBC.; Wilson, "Settlement, Urbanization, and Population", Oxford University Press, 2011, p. 171–172 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Arnold De Vos; Mariette De Vos (1982). Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabia, Rome: Giuseppe Laterza & figli Publishing House. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Patterns of Reconstruction at Pompeii", University of Virginia (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Nappo, "Pompeii: Its Discovery and Preservation", BBC, 17 February 2011 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Gracco, "Orto dei Fuggiaschi", Pompei Online, 28 April 2017 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: The World of Pompeii, Edited by John J. Dobbins and Pedar W. Foss, , p. 84; Touring Club Italiano, Guida d'Italia – Naples and surroundings, Milan, Touring Club Editore, 2008.; P. G. Guzzo, "Alla ricerca della Pompei sannitica", in Studi sull'Italia dei Sanniti, Milan, 2000, pp. 107–117. See also the discussion in Guzzo (ed.), Pompei. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Martin, "Past eruptions and future predictions: Analyzing ancient responses to Mount Vesuvius for use in modern risk management", Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, May 2020; Vogel, "Analysing the Rural Landscape around Pompeii before the Eruption of Somma-Vesuvius in AD 79", ETopoi, Journal for Ancient Studies, 2012, p. 377–382; Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, "Pompeii: Portents of Disaster", BBC History, October 15, 2010; Sigurdsson, "The Eruption of Vesuvius in A. D. 79: Reconstruction from Historical and Volcanological Evidence", Ameri en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "New victims from Pompeii emerge from the excavation of the House of the Chaste Lovers", Pompeii, 16 May 2023 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Pompeii" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Homepage – Pompeii Sites Portale Ufficiale Parco Archeologico di Pompei", Pompeii Sites; "Pompeii victim crushed by boulder while fleeing eruption", BBC, 30 May 2018; Squires }}{{cbignore, "Skeleton of child trying to shelter from Vesuvius eruption uncovered in Pompeii", The Telegraph, 25 April 2018; Squires }}{{cbignore, "Remains of ancient Roman horse found at Pompeii in dig started by tomb raiders", The Telegraph, 11 May 2018 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  11. Pompeii building site reveals ancient Roman construction methods. NBC.. facts only, no text reused. nbcnews.com
  12. "Pompeii victim crushed by boulder while fleeing eruption", BBC, 30 May 2018. facts only, no text reused. bbc.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Pompeii (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Named in this entry

Hannibal

Also in the Codexery

Pompeii · RomePompeii · Historic DisastersPompeii · City Atlas

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Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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Read the full story: Pompeii: The City Frozen by Vesuvius by Harold Carver  ·  All booksAs an Amazon Associate, Harold Carver earns from qualifying purchases.