The mountain and the destruction of Pompeii
Vesuvius is the only volcano to erupt on the European continent in the last hundred years and is considered by many to be the most dangerous volcano in the world because three million people now live near it. Its eruptions tend to be violent and explosive, adding to the dangers and risks of living in its shadow.
There were at least 11 major eruptions before the settlement of Pompeii, but the volcano would lie dormant – sometimes for centuries – between them, and the Oscans were not aware of the volcano’s power when they settled in Pompeii. However, there are mentions of earlier eruptions in Greek mythology. The demigod Hercules is said to have fought fiercely against mighty giants in the fiery landscape around Vesuvius, and the city of Herculaneum was eventually destroyed in the same eruption for which Pompeii was named him, to pay homage to the legends.
The eruption that destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum occurred in 79 AD. On the morning of August 24, thousand-year-old lava erupted from the volcano with a resounding explosion. Residents may have seen an impressive display of fire and smoke but were not immediately alarmed.
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Artist’s impression of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Pompeii. (Dcoetzee / Public Domain)
Only after the second and larger explosion hours later did the catastrophic nature of the situation become clear. Scientists have calculated that the power of the explosion was 100,000 times stronger than the nuclear bomb that wiped out Hiroshima. As the inhabitants of Pompeii began to flee for shelter, ash began to fly down on them, covering everything and quickly growing several centimeters thick.
As the days passed, the ash continued to fall. The city was buried in meters of rubble and the roofs of buildings began to collapse under its weight. Those unable to escape sought shelter anywhere they thought they could be protected – near walls or huddled with loved ones under the stairs.
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Those unable to escape sought shelter wherever they could. (marneejill / CC BY-SA 2.0 )
The final fate of Pompeii and those who could not escape was decided at around 11pm when the ash cloud collapsed and the city was hit by a wave of lava. The streets were filled with toxic gas that could suffocate anyone unlucky enough to survive, and the intense heat caused bodies to later roast to death.
When the last ash fell, the city was completely covered. Meters of debris cover a city that was once an integral part of the Roman Empire and a desirable location for wealthy and influential members of the Roman elite. In just a few hours, Pompeii was buried and it was largely forgotten until in 1755 A.D. local legends of a preserved ancient city were proven true during the construction of a new channel.
When the city was excavated in the 19th century, the inhabitants were revealed after 1700 years of being buried in the city. Surprisingly, archaeologists realized the skeletal remains were surrounded by air pockets. As the bodies decomposed, the outline of their final resting place remained imprinted in the compressed ash that surrounded them.
Victims of the volcanic eruption in Pompeii are still covered in ash. (themadpenguin / CC BY-SA 2.0 )
As plaster of Paris was carefully poured into the voids, the bodies were brought back to life in astonishing detail. As well as their final poses, the clothes and faces of the inhabitants of Pompeii have been preserved. It shows people clinging to loved ones, curling up and covering their mouths to try to escape the noxious fumes, or holding on to precious objects so they don’t get lost or stolen.
Despite the stark difference in fortune observed in the rest of the city, those who died there revealed themselves on another level – the rich and the poor were no different. The people of Pompeii all died in the same tragic way, no matter what part of the city they called.
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