2023-05-16 10:00:29
Two skeletons were found during excavations in the Insula dei Casti Amanti in Pompeii. A discovery that testifies that it was not only the eruption that caused the death of the inhabitants of the area but also a concomitant earthquake. The skeletons were found during the safety construction site, resurfacing and reprofiling of the excavation fronts of the Insula dei Casti Amanti, which is also planning excavation interventions in some areas. They were lying on one side, in a service area, at the time decommissioned due to probable repairs or renovations in progress in the house, in which they had taken refuge in search of protection.
I two skeletons found probably belong to two men at least 55 years old, victims of an earthquake that accompanied the eruption, found under the collapse of a wall which occurred between the final phase of sedimentation of the lapilli and before the arrival of the pyroclastic currents which definitively buried Pompeii. The new remains found constitute the increasingly clear testimony that, during the eruption, it was not only the collapses associated with the accumulation of lapilli or the impact of the pyroclastic currents that were the only dangers for the life of the inhabitants of ancient Pompeii, such as the excavations of recent decades are increasingly investigating.
The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD began in the morning of an autumn day, but the so-called “Plinian” phase began only around 13, during which an eruptive column was formed, tens of kilometers high, from which pumice fell. This phase is followed by a series of pyroclastic currents which sediment deposits of ash and lapilli. The volcanic phenomena killed anyone who had still taken refuge in the ancient city of Pompeii, south of today’s Naples, taking the lives of at least 15-20% of the population, according to archaeologists’ estimates. Among the causes of death, the collapse of buildings, in some cases due to earthquakes that accompanied the eruption, proved to be a lethal threat.
During the removal of the cervical vertebrae and the skull of one of the two skeletons, traces of organic material emerged, most likely a cloth bundle. In addition to five glass paste elements identifiable as beads from a necklace, six coins were found inside. Two silver denarii: a republican denarius, datable to the middle of the second century. BC, and another denarius, more recent, to refer to the productions of Vespasian. The remaining bronze coins (two sesterces, an as and a quadrant) were also minted during Vespasian’s principality and therefore of recent minting.
SANGIULIANO – “The discovery of the remains of two Pompeians which took place in the context of the construction site in the Insula dei Casti Amanti demonstrates how much there is still to be discovered regarding the terrible eruption of 79 AD and confirms the opportunity to continue the scientific investigation and excavation – declares the Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano – Pompeii is an immense archaeological laboratory which has regained strength in recent years, astonishing the world with the continuous discoveries brought to light and demonstrating Italian excellence in this sector”.
DRIVING ROLLS– “Modern excavation techniques help us to better understand the hell that completely destroyed the city of Pompeii in two days, killing many inhabitants: children, women and men. With analyzes and methodologies we are able to get closer to the last moments of who lost their lives”, says the director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, Gabriel Zuchtriegel.
“In one of the construction site discussions, during the recovery of the two skeletons, one of the archaeologists, pointing to the victims we were excavating, said a sentence that has stuck with me and which perhaps summarizes the history of Pompeii, when he declared: ‘this it’s us.’ In Pompeii, in fact, the advancement of techniques never makes us forget the human dimension of the tragedy, rather it makes us see it more clearly”, concludes Zuchtriegel.
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