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Latest bodies found in Pompeii ruins show deaths weren't all caused by Vesuvius, researchers say

Camille Fine
USA TODAY

The discovery of two skeletons at the ancient Roman city of Pompeii is giving archaeologists more clarity on the “the hell” that ensued when Mount Vesuvius erupted nearly 2000 years ago.

Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the director of Pompeii archaeological park, said in a statement Tuesday that the advancement of excavation techniques and methodology used at the ruins —  which were discovered in the 16th century and first excavated in 1748 — can  pinpoint deaths down to the final seconds and help shed light on “the inferno that destroyed the city in two days.”

The ​skeletons show that deaths were not just  a result of the eruption in A.D. 79, but from earthquakes that were followed by it. 

A picture made available Tuesday, May 16, 2023 by the Pompeii Archeological Park press office, showing one of the two discovered skeletons that archeologists believe were men who died when a wall collapsed on them during the powerful earthquakes that accompanied the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in 79 A.D.

Earthquakes that accompanied the eruption likely damaged the two walls, causing the south wall of the room to collapse and crush one of the men "whose raised arm offers a tragic image of his vain attempt to protect himself from the falling masonry."

"In recent years, we have realized there were violent, powerful seismic events that were happening at the time of the eruption,'' Zuchtriegel said. “The discovery is very grounding as they are effectively digging up human beings … human mortality is so fragile.”

A picture made available Tuesday, May 16, 2023 by the Pompeii Archeological Park press office, showing two skeletons that archeologists believe were men who died when a wall collapsed on them during the powerful earthquakes that accompanied the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in the first century. The two skeletons were found in the insula of the Casti Amanti, beneath a wall that collapsed before the area was covered in volcanic material.
A picture made available Tuesday, May 16, 2023, by the Pompeii Archeological Park press office, showing two skeletons that archeologists believe were men who died when a wall collapsed on them during the powerful earthquakes that accompanied the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in the first century. The two skeletons were found in the insula of the Casti Amanti, beneath a wall that collapsed before the area was covered in volcanic material.
A picture made available Tuesday, May 16, 2023 by the Pompeii Archeological Park press office, showing one of the two discovered skeletons that archeologists believe were men who died when a wall collapsed on them during the powerful earthquakes that accompanied the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in 79 A.D.

A collection of bowls and jugs, necklace beads, six coins, some which date back to the middle of the second century BC, were found in the same room as the victims.

According to the Associated Press, more than 1,300 victims have been found in the archaeological site south of Naples over the last 250 years.

The last discovery of human remains in 2020 recovered what archaeologists believe to have been a wealthy man and his slave, who were found lying close together. Experts believe the men had escaped the volcanic ash and pumice that immediately blanketed the city but were killed the following day by a blast.

A picture made available Tuesday, May 16, 2023 by the Pompeii Archeological Park press office, showing one of the two discovered skeletons that archeologists believe were men who died when a wall collapsed on them during the powerful earthquakes that accompanied the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that destroyed the ancient city of Pompeii in 79 A.D. The two skeletons were found in the insula of the Casti Amanti, beneath a wall that collapsed before the area was covered in volcanic material.
An aerial view of the archaeological site of Pompeii taken during the sixth stage of the Giro d'Italia, tour of Italy cycling race, from Naples to Naples, Italy, Thursday, May 11, 2023.

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