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Pompeii -

Although Pompeii wasn't the central hub of the Roman Empire, it played a crucial role in Campania, a region by the Bay of Naples.

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Population -

Pompeii’s population ranged from 6,400 to 30,000 people, attracting elite Romans who purchased property around the area.

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Earthquakes -

Earthquakes were a common part of life in Campania. In 79 CE, Pompeii was still recovering from a massive earthquake 17 years earlier, which had caused extensive damage to many structures in the city, making seismic activity somewhat routine for its inhabitants.

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Architecture -

Before disaster struck the area, Pompeii was an incredibly prosperous town. Aside from the elite who lived there year round, many wealthy Romans vacationed there. Even the streets were paved with high sidewalks and stepping stones that kept pedestrians out of the mud.

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Early warning signs -

In late August 79 CE, a series of small tremors rumbled through Campania, but they were not alarming to most people because of the region's history of earthquakes. However, these tremors were early warnings of the impending catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

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Vesuvius begins to stir -

On August 24, the eruption of Mount Vesuvius began in earnest. The volcano started spewing ash, gas, and debris, signaling the start of a catastrophic event that would ultimately bury Pompeii and several nearby towns under volcanic material.

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Firsthand account -

Pliny the Younger, an 18-year-old scholar, was in Misenum when Vesuvius erupted. Misenum, which was later destroyed in the year 890 CE, was a town located across the bay from Pompeii and 18 miles (29 km) west of Mount Vesuvius.

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Pliny the Younger -

Pliny’s detailed writings provide valuable insights into the disaster in 79 CE. He described the volcanic cloud rising in the shape of a "pine tree."

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Pliny the Elder -

Pliny the Elder (the uncle and adoptive father to Pliny the Younger) was a commander of the fleet in Misenum. During the eruption, Pliny the Elder perished while trying to rescue the town’s ships from destruction.

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Initial reactions -

Residents of Pompeii, just six miles (10 km) from Vesuvius, would have seen the same alarming volcanic plume. While the earlier tremors were largely dismissed, the massive cloud signaled that something serious was happening.

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Immediate evacuation -

Those citizens of Pompeii who fled immediately after seeing the volcanic cloud still had a chance of survival. But those who hesitated or remained behind didn’t.

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Mass panic -

As the eruption intensified, people in Pompeii started to flee. By the afternoon, pumice stones began raining down, damaging buildings and injuring those trying to escape. Those still left in the town were at risk of being trapped as the city was buried.

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Pumice and ash -

Pumice, ash, and toxic gas relentlessly pelted Pompeii. The volcanic materials buried the city and its inhabitants, causing widespread destruction. Many buildings collapsed under the weight of the pumice stones, while the toxic gases suffocated those who hadn't escaped in time.

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Escaping from Misenum -

Pliny and his mother were among those who fled from the coastal town of Misenum. They escaped the chaos that followed the eruption, witnessing the confusion and terror as darkness fell over the Bay of Naples.

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Chaos -

Pliny recorded the desperate cries of people trying to find their families amidst the pandemonium. In his account, he described men, women, and children calling out to each other, with survivors relying on voices to navigate through the ash-laden darkness.

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The aftermath in Misenum -

After the worst of the eruption subsided, Pliny and his mother returned to Misenum. They had been lucky to survive, but many people from Pompeii were not so fortunate, and those who did survive had no homes to return to.

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Death toll -

Approximately 2,000 people are estimated to have died in Pompeii during the eruption, meaning that thousands of others likely survived. These survivors faced the daunting reality of losing everything and being displaced from their homes.

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The search for Pompeii’s survivors -

Scholars estimate that many of Pompeii's survivors fled to nearby towns and cities around Campania. They likely sought refuge with friends and family in surrounding communities, including major urban centers like Neapolis (modern-day Naples).

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Neapolis -

A memorial altar in the country of Romania provides a clue to one survivor’s journey. It honors an unnamed military officer who lived in Pompeii and later Neapolis, suggesting he relocated to the city after the eruption.

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Tracing survivors’ migration -

Classics scholar Steven L. Tuck has identified five families from Pompeii who migrated to Neapolis after the eruption. He traced these families through distinctive Pompeian names found on tomb inscriptions, showing how survivors resettled in nearby areas after 79 CE.

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Other destinations -

In addition to Neapolis, other communities in Campania such as Cumae (pictured) and Puteoli became new homes for Pompeii’s survivors. These cities, located relatively close to Pompeii, likely offered shelter and support to the displaced.

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Intermarriage -

There is also evidence that unrelated Pompeii families intermarried after the disaster. For instance, the Licinii and Lucretii families appear to have joined through marriage in Cumae, which suggests that survivors maintained strong communal ties in their new locations.

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Roman relief efforts -

The Roman government, under the leadership of Emperor Titus, took swift action to support the survivors of the eruption, which included financial aid and the construction of public works to help displaced populations rebuild their lives.

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Emperor Titus -

Titus, who ruled from 79 to 81 CE, personally intervened to help Pompeii’s survivors. According to the historian Suetonius, Titus provided not only sympathy but also significant financial support.

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Rebuilding projects -

In the wake of the disaster, Titus commissioned a series of building projects to accommodate the influx of Pompeii’s survivors in nearby towns. These construction efforts helped restore the damaged infrastructure and provide essential services for the displaced population.

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Temples -

Some of Titus’ building projects included the construction of temples dedicated to gods that were especially important to Pompeii’s citizens. Temples to Vulcan and Isis (pictured), both worshipped in Pompeii, were built in neighboring cities as part of the effort to help survivors reconnect with their religious practices.

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The legacy of Pompeii -

Although the eruption marked the end of life in Pompeii, the survivors carried on its legacy in new communities. Their migration helped spread Pompeii’s cultural and religious traditions across Campania, keeping elements of their city’s identity alive.

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Rediscovery -

Pompeii was rediscovered in 1748 by a group of explorers searching for ancient artifacts. Buried under layers of volcanic ash and pumice for nearly 1,700 years, the site remained largely intact. Early excavations revealed remarkably well-preserved buildings, streets, and items.

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Human remains -

As excavations progressed, archaeologists uncovered voids in the volcanic ash where human bodies had once been. These voids marked the locations where people had died, their bodies decomposed, and the ash had hardened around them, preserving their final moments in extraordinary detail.

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Plaster casts -

In the 1860s, Italian archaeologist Giuseppe Fiorelli pioneered a method to fill these voids with plaster, creating detailed casts of the bodies as they had appeared at the time of death. To this day, visitors can visit the ancient city and see the plaster casts, preserving a hauntingly realistic snapshot of the victims and their final moments.

Sources: (National Geographic) (Britannica)

See also: What if the Roman Empire never fell?

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