On November 21, archaeologists released a stunning pH๏τo showing the strange poses of two skeletons believed to be those of a wealthy man and a male slave who fled the eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago in Pompeii.
The partial skeleton was found during excavations of an elegant villa on the outskirts of the ancient Roman city (today’s Italy) that was destroyed by the eruption in 79 AD. It was the site of what appeared to be a stable with the remains of three tethered horses that was excavated in 2017.
Skeletons found during excavation of villa in Pompeii, Italy
Pompeii officials said the two men appeared to have escaped the volcanic ash but were then hit by a powerful explosion the following day.
“The two victims were probably seeking shelter when they were swept away by the pyroclastic flow from the volcano at around 9 a.m.,” said Mᴀssimo Osanna, director of the archaeological site. “It was a death by thermal shock, as evidenced by the shape of their clenched hands and feet.”
ᴀssessing the skull and bones, archaeologists speculated that one of the victims was a young man, probably between 18 and 25 years old, with a spinal condition. The discovery led archaeologists to hypothesize that the young man was a slave laborer.
One of the two victims is believed to be a young man
The other victim, found nearby, had a solid bone structure, especially in the chest area, and was probably 30 to 40 years old, Pompeii officials said. Both skeletons were found in a hallway leading to a staircase to the villa’s upper floor.
Based on the imprints of fabric folds left in the ash, the younger man was wearing a short pleated tunic, probably made of wool. The older man, in addition to wearing a tunic and turban, also had a scarf draped over his left shoulder.
In a statement, Italian Culture Minister Dario Franceschini said the discovery reinforces Pompeii’s “status”. It is indeed “a wonderful place for research and study”.
One day in 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius in the Roman Empire (present-day Italy) erupted. According to historical records, the eruption of Vesuvius at that time suddenly spewed lava and huge columns of ash. 16,000 people died, while the ancient Roman town of Pompeii was buried under tens of meters of rock and volcanic ash. Later, archaeologists found the remains of the victims in all kinds of positions. They were instantly frozen by the lava, so the bodies were almost completely preserved over time.
Not only Pompeii, Vesuvius also buried Herculaneum – the town closest to the mountain. And according to a 2018 study, the disaster that happened to the people of Herculaneum was much more terrifying and tragic. Specifically, a team of archaeologists at Federico II University (Italy) tested 103 skeletons in 12 ash-filled shelters of Herculaneum. They found red and black mineral residues in the bones and skulls of the victims, as well as in the ash layer surrounding the skeletons.
The body of a child about 4 years old sitting on the stomach of an adult. The adult appears to be reaching out to the child before he dies.
Experts say these compounds contain iron and iron oxide – chemicals that form when blood boils and turns to steam. This means that the victims at Herculaneum were too close to the volcano. They suffered from extremely H๏τ temperatures, so H๏τ that their blood boiled and turned into steam.
