Herculaneum

Herculaneum and other cities affected by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. The black cloud represents the general distribution of ash and cinder. Modern coast lines are shown.

The course and timeline of the eruption can be reconstructed based on archaeological excavations and two letters from Pliny the Younger to the Roman historian Tacitus.[8]

At around 1 pm on the first day of eruption, Mount Vesuvius began spewing volcanic material thousands of metres into the sky. When it reached a height of 27–33 km (17–21 mi),[9] the top of the column flattened, prompting Pliny to describe it to Tacitus as a stone pine tree. The prevailing winds at the time blew toward the southeast, causing the volcanic material to fall primarily on the city of Pompeii and the surrounding area. Since Herculaneum lay west of Vesuvius, it was only mildly affected by the first phase of the eruption. While roofs in Pompeii collapsed under the weight of falling debris, only a few centimetres of ash fell on Herculaneum, causing little damage; nevertheless, the ash prompted most inhabitants to flee.

At 1 am the next day, the eruptive column, which had risen into the stratosphere, collapsed onto Vesuvius and its flanks. The first pyroclastic surge, formed by a mixture of ash and hot gases, flowed down the mountain and through the mostly-evacuated town of Herculaneum at 160 km/h (100 mph). A succession of six flows and surges buried the city's buildings to approximately 20 m depth, causing little damage in some areas and preserving structures, objects and victims almost intact. However, other areas were damaged significantly, knocking down walls, tearing away columns and other large objects;[10] a marble statue of Marcus Nonius Balbus near the baths was blown 15m away and a carbonised skeleton was found lifted 2.5m above ground level in the garden of the House of the Relief of Telephus.[11][12]

The date of the eruption has been shown to be on or after 17 October.[13] Support for an October/November eruption has long been known in several respects: buried people in the ash were wearing heavier clothing than the light summer clothes typical of August; fresh fruit and vegetables in the shops are typical of October – and conversely the summer fruit typical of August was already being sold in dried, or conserved form. Wine fermenting jars had been sealed, which would have happened around the end of October; coins found in the purse of a woman buried in the ash include one with a 15th imperatorial acclamation among the emperor's titles and could not have been minted before the second week of September.[14]

Multidisciplinary research on the lethal effects of the pyroclastic surges in the Vesuvius area has shown that, in the vicinity of Pompeii and Herculaneum, intense heat was the main cause of the death of people who had previously been thought to have died by ash suffocation. Exposure to ≥250 °C (480 °F) had likely killed residents within 10 km, including those sheltering in buildings.[15]

Small Herculaneum Woman (Dresden)

Prince d'Elbeuf began constructing a villa in neighbouring Granatello, and to furnish it, he grew intrigued in local tales of wells containing antique sculptures and artworks.[16] In 1709, he acquired the site of a recently-dug well and tunnelled out from its bottom in search of sculptures. The tunnel reached what would be later identified as a theatre, where remarkable sculptures were uncovered. Among the earliest sculptures discovered were two exquisitely carved Herculaneum women,[17] currently housed in the Skulpturensammlung in Dresden.[18] The excavation ceased in 1711 out of concern about the stability of the structures above.

Major excavations resumed in 1738 under the patronage of Charles III of Spain, who had recently begun building his nearby palace in Portici. He appointed the Spanish military engineer Roque Joaquin de Alcubierre to supervise the extensive new project. The publication of "Le Antichità di Ercolano" ("The Antiquities of Herculaneum") had a striking influence on nascent European Neoclassicism; by the end of the 18th century, motifs from Herculaneum began to appear on fashionable furnishings, including decorative wall-paintings, tripod tables, perfume burners, and teacups. Nonetheless, excavation ceased once again in 1762 as a result of Winckelmann's harsh criticism of the treasure-hunting techniques. The discovery of neighbouring Pompeii, substantially simpler to excavate due to a smaller layer of material covering the site (4m as compared to 20m at Herculaneum), diverted attention and effort.

King Francis I ordered land acquisitions and promoted renewed excavations between 1828 and 1837. Acquisitions continued under the newly formed Kingdom of Italy, extending excavations eastwards till 1875.[19]

From 1927 until 1942, Amedeo Maiuri conducted a new campaign, sponsored by Mussolini's regime, which unearthed approximately four hectares which today are part of the archaeological park.

Hundreds of skeletons were found in the so-called "boat houses", by the ancient shoreline, between 1980 and 1981.

The Villa of the Papyri, the northwest baths,[20] the House of the Dionysian Reliefs[21] and a large collapsed monument were brought to light between 1996 and 1999. However, the area was left in a chaotic state until major conservation interventions from 2000 through 2007.

Many public and private buildings, including the forum complex, are yet to be excavated.

Cupids playing with a lyre; Roman fresco from Herculaneum

The first building in insula II is the House of Aristides. The entrance opens directly onto the atrium, but the ruins are not well preserved due to damage caused by previous excavations. The lower floor was probably used for storage.

The second house in insula II takes its name from a lost fresco of Argus and Io that once adorned a reception room off the large peristyle. This structure was likely one of Herculaneum's finest villas. It was the first time that a second story had been unearthed in such detail when the house was discovered in the late 1820s. The excavation uncovered a balcony on the second level overlooking Cardo III, as well as wooden shelving and cupboards now lost.

North of the House of Argus lies the House of the Genius. Although it has only been partially uncovered, it appears to have been a vast structure. Its name derives from a statue of a Cupid, once part of a candlestick. In the centre of the peristyle are the remains of a rectangular basin.

The house consists of two adjoined structures with a mix of plain, simple spaces and finely-decorated rooms.

The atrium is covered and lacks the usual impluvium. It retains its original flooring of opus tesselatum and opus sectile. A highly adorned biclinium (a dining-couch for two persons[23]) with frescoes in the fourth style and a spacious triclinium originally marble-floored are found off the atrium. Several further rooms, including the apsed alcove after which the house is named, are accessible via a corridor receiving daylight from a small courtyard.

A marble tablet from Herculaneum showing women playing knucklebones, depicting Phoebe, Leto, Niobe, Hilearia, and Agle, painted and signed by an artist named "Alexander of Athens", now in the Museo Archeologico Nazionale (Naples)

Temple of the Augustales or priests of the Imperial cult.

The Central Thermae (bathhouses) were built around the 1st century AD. Bathhouses were popular at the time, especially in Pompeii and Herculaneum. Per common practice, there were separate bathing areas for men and women. The Thermae also served as a prominent cultural hub home to works of art.

A fresco depicting Theseus

The most famous among Herculaneum's luxurious villas, Villa of the Papyri, was built on the seashore on four terraces. It is thought to have belonged to consul Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, Julius Caesar's father-in-law, who was a patron of poets and philosophers and built there the only ancient library that has survived virtually intact.

Between 1752 and 1754, a number of blackened, unreadable papyrus scrolls were recovered from the Villa of the Papyri by workmen. These scrolls became known as the Herculaneum papyri or scrolls, the majority of which are today stored at the National Library, Naples. Although badly carbonized, a number of scrolls have been unrolled with varying degrees of success. Computer-enhanced multi-spectral infrared imaging helped make the ink legible. There is now a real prospect that it will be possible to read the unopened rolls using X-rays.[24] The same techniques could be applied to the rolls waiting to be discovered in the as-yet unexcavated part of the villa, eliminating the risk of potential damage from unrolling. Later CT scan revealed the scrolls' fibres structure, sand, and other debris trapped in the scrolls. These findings help a safer unrolling. However, the text remains illegible.[25]

Two of the rolls stored at the French National Academy in Paris have been extensively examined by X-ray in summer 2009. However, the text imaging failed because Roman writers likely used carbon-based inks, essentially invisible to the X-ray scans.[26] Similar later attempts all failed.[27]

In 2015, a team of scientists managed to increase the contrast between the carbon ink and the carbon-based papyrus using X-ray Phase Contrast Tomography, and read Greek words along the outer papyrus, marking "a revolution for papyrologists". While researchers can identify certain words on the scrolls, the stories on the scrolls cannot yet be unlocked.[28]

"Boat houses" where skeletons were found

The skeleton called the "Ring Lady" unearthed in Herculaneum.

In 1980–82, excavations initially turned up more than 55 skeletons on the ancient beach (just in front the city walls) and in the first six so-called "boat sheds".[29] Long before this finding, it was believed that the majority of the town's inhabitants had managed to flee, as only a few skeletons had been unearthed during the excavations. However, this discovery led to a shift in perspective. The last inhabitants waiting for rescue from the sea were probably killed instantly by the intense heat of the pyroclastic flow, despite being sheltered from direct impact. A study of victims' postures and the effects on their skeletons seemed to indicate that the first surge caused instant death as a result of fulminant shock due to a temperature of about 500 °C (930 °F). Extreme heat caused hands and feet to contract and perhaps fractured bones and teeth.[30]

After a period of finds being mismanaged and deterioration of skeletons,[31] further excavations in the 1990s uncovered 296 skeletons huddled in 9 of the 12 stone vaults facing the sea and on the beach. While the town was almost completely evacuated, these people found themselves trapped. The "Ring Lady" (see image), named for the rings on her fingers, was discovered there in 1982.

Eventually, 340 bodies were identified in this area.[32] Analyses of the skeletons suggest it was mainly men who died on the beach, while women and children sheltered and died in the boat houses.

Recent chemical analyses of the remains provided further insights into the health and nutrition of Herculaneum's population. Stable isotope analysis of bone samples from 17 individuals (11 men and 6 women) revealed the men ate 1.6 times more fish than the women, who consumed more meat, eggs, and dairy; this fits into the wider dietary trend from Herculaneum and Roman Italy.[33]

Casts of skeletons were also produced to replace the original bones after taphonomic study, scientific documentation and excavation. In contrast to Pompeii, where casts resembling the body features of the victims were produced by filling the body imprints in the ash deposit with plaster, the shape of corpses at Herculaneum could not be preserved due to the rapid vaporisation and replacement of the flesh of the victims by the hot ash (ca. 500 °C). A cast of the skeletons unearthed in chamber 10 is on display at the Museum of Anthropology in Naples.[34]

Of exceptional interest is the recent analysis of one of the skeletons (n. 26) discovered in 1982 on the beach next to a boat (on display in the boat pavilion). The remains belong to a military officer (with an elaborate dagger and belt), who was perhaps involved in a rescue mission.[35]

New digs beginning in 2021 will seek to uncover the ancient beach's western side, where additional skeletons may be discovered.[36]

After years of mismanagement, Herculaneum fell into a dire state. However, in 2001, the Packard Humanities Institute began the Herculaneum Conservation Project, a private–public partnership initially set to provide financial aid to local authorities addressing critical issues. The program eventually shifted to include providing skilled expert support and formulating a long-term plan for the site. Since 2001, the Herculaneum Conservation Project has been involved in pilot conservation projects and has partnered with the British School at Rome for training students to maintain the site.[37]

One of the pilot projects started by the Conservation Project was on the tablinum that had been conserved by Maiuri's team in 1938. Over time water had seeped into the wall causing the paint to attach to the previously applied wax and curl away from the wall, stripping it of its colour. However, after working in tandem with the Getty Museum, conservators have created a technique where solvents are used to remove some of the wax and lessen the buildup on the walls so that the paint no longer chips off.[38]