The tragic demise of Pompeii’s inhabitants during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD has long been attributed mainly to volcanic causes such as ashfall and hot gases. However, recent research indicates this may not be the full story. Volcanologists, geologists, and anthropologists have shifted their focus to the potential impact of concurrent earthquakes. By examining newly discovered skeletons, they concluded that these individuals likely died due to wall collapses triggered by seismic activity, adding a significant layer to our understanding of Pompeii’s destruction.

Almost 2000 years ago, Pliny the Younger documented the tremors that accompanied Vesuvius’s eruption. Today, a collaborative study led by researchers from the Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia (INGV) and the Pompeii Archaeological Park sheds light on the seismic effects associated with the 79 AD eruption. This study is pioneering in its effort to report on the complex interplay of simultaneous volcanic and seismic events, a challenge due to the overlapping nature of these phenomena.

These complexities are like a puzzle where all the pieces must fit to unravel the full picture, stated Dr. Domenico Sparice, a volcanologist at INGV-Osservatorio Vesuviano and the lead author of the study published in Frontiers in Earth Science. We demonstrated that the seismic activity during the eruption played a significant role in the destruction of Pompeii and possibly influenced the Pompeians’ decisions, who faced an inevitable death.

Scientists discovered two skeletons in the ruins of a building in Pompeii and concluded that their deaths must have been caused by the collapses of the walls caused by earthquakes
Scientists discovered two skeletons in the ruins of a building in Pompeii and concluded that their deaths must have been caused by the collapses of the walls caused by earthquakes. Credit: Parco archeologico di Pompeii

Dr. Fabrizio Galadini, a senior geologist and co-author, emphasized the importance of correctly identifying cause-and-effect relationships to reconstruct the interaction between volcanic and seismic phenomena and their impacts on buildings and humans. During excavations at the ‘House of the Painters at Work’, researchers noticed anomalies in the collapsed structures inconsistent with volcanic effects alone. This prompted a deeper investigation into other potential causes.

The discovery of two skeletons with severe fractures and traumatic injuries provided critical clues. The eruption caught Pompeii’s residents in their daily routines. For about 18 hours, pumice lapilli – small rock and ash particles – rained down, driving people to seek shelter. When the eruption paused, those who survived felt a temporary reprieve until strong earthquakes began shaking the already burdened buildings.

Those who didn’t flee their shelters were likely overwhelmed by earthquake-induced collapses of buildings already overloaded, explained Dr. Valeria Amoretti, an anthropologist who leads the Applied Research Laboratory at the Pompeii Archaeological Park. This was the fate of the two individuals discovered.

Location of the excavated rooms where the skeletons were found in Pompeii
Location of the excavated rooms where the skeletons were found in Pompeii. Credit: Parco archeologico di Pompeii

The two male skeletons, both around 50 years old, revealed distinct stories. The first individual appeared to have been crushed suddenly by a large wall fragment, leading to immediate fatal injuries. The second individual might have been aware of the danger, attempting to shield himself with a wooden object, traces of which were found among the volcanic deposits.

Several factors suggest these individuals did not die from ash inhalation or extreme heat, as their positions were above the pumice lapilli rather than beneath them. This implies they survived the initial eruption phase only to be overwhelmed by wall collapses during a lull in volcanic activity, before the arrival of pyroclastic flows.

While not everyone managed to temporarily escape, the number of victims found in the ash deposits supports the desperate notion that people tried to flee outdoors. There are no reliable estimates of how many died due to volcanic causes or earthquake-related damage.

A new understanding of Pompeii’s destruction brings us closer to the experiences of the people who lived here nearly 2000 years ago. The decisions they made and the dynamics of the events, which remain a focus of our research, determined life and death in the city’s final hours, concluded Dr. Gabriel Zuchtriegel, director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park.


SOURCES

Frontiers

Domenico Sparice, Valeria Amoretti, et al., A novel view of the destruction of Pompeii during the 79 CE eruption of Vesuvius: syn-eruptive earthquakes as an additional cause of building collapse and deaths, Frontiers in Earth Science (2024). DOI: 10.3389/feart.2024.1386960


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