Italy--Pompeii

After Pisa, we drove 6 hours to Naples, a city in the south of Italy, to visit the ruins of Pompeii.

Pompeii was an ancient Roman city.  In the year 79, Pompeii was destroyed by a giant volcanic eruption.  When Mount Vesuvius erupted, the city was buried in in 13-20 feet of ash and debris, and most of the people of Pompeii died.  The citizens of Pompeii were unaware that Mount Vesuvius was a volcano and had no idea what was happening at the time of the eruption. 

Pompeii was lost under all that volcanic debris for a very long time, about 1,500 years.  It was rediscovered in 1599.  In the 1700's, archaeologists started uncovering the city.  Because it was buried for so long, the city was not exposed to moisture and is very well preserved.  You can walk around the city and see how the Romans lived almost 2,000 years ago!  It really is incredible.

Pompeii was home to ab out 20,00 people when the volcano erupted.  It was a very big and advanced city with a complex water system, gymnasium, streets and sidewalks, restaurants, bath houses, and even a giant amphitheater.  It was traditional in Roman times for people to go see gladiators fight in the amphitheaters.

Amphitheater

Me walking across the Roman crosswalk

 Perhaps one of the most interesting things in Pompeii are the casts.  When the city was being uncovered, there were spaces found in the rock that looked like people.  When the volcano erupted, people were buried in ash.  Over time, the ash hardened into rock around them.  Over more time, the bodies of the people decomposed, but their shape was left in the rock.  Archaeologists filled these spaces with plaster and made a "cast."  This allowed them to see the exact position the people were in when they died.  Here are some pictures of the casts.

The tragedy for the people of Pompeii in 79 A.D. left us today with one of the most important archaeological sites in the world.  Archaeologists are still uncovering new things every day in Pompeii and its surrounding areas.  To be able to see the city and how people lived back then was an incredible experience. 


 Click here to watch a video about Pompeii