Herculaneum

Herculaneum plan showing the ancient site below the modern (1908) town and the 1631 "lava" flow

Dionysius of Halicarnassus states that the Greek hero Heracles (Hercules in Latin) founded the city.[5] However, according to Strabo, the Oscans founded the first settlement[6] and they were followed by Etruscan and then Greek control. The Greeks named the town Heraklion and used it as a trading post because of its proximity to the Gulf of Naples. In the 4th century BC, Herculaneum came under the domination of the Samnites until it became a Roman municipium in 89 BC, when, having participated in the Social War ("War of The Allies" against Rome), it was defeated by Titus Didius, a legate of Sulla.

The eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 buried Herculaneum with approximately 20 m (66 ft) of ash. It lay hidden and largely intact until discoveries from wells and tunnels became gradually more widely known, notably following the Prince d'Elbeuf's explorations in the early 18th century.[7] Excavations continued sporadically up to the present and today many streets and buildings are visible, although over 75% of the town remains buried. Today, the Italian towns of Ercolano and Portici lie above Herculaneum. Ercolano was called Resina until 1969 when the modern name was adopted in honour of the old city.

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.

Based on archaeological excavations and on two letters of Pliny the Younger to the Roman historian Tacitus, the course of the eruption can be reconstructed.[8]

At around 1:00 pm, Mount Vesuvius began spewing volcanic material thousands of metres into the sky. When it reached a height of 27–33 kilometres (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, nonetheless prompting most inhabitants to flee.

At 1:00 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 15 m away and a carbonised skeleton was found lifted 2.5 m above ground level in the garden of the House of the Relief of Telephus.[11]

The date of the eruption has been shown to be on or after 17 October.[12] 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.[13]

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.[14]

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.[15] 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,[16] currently housed in the Skulpturensammlung in Dresden.[17] The excavation ceased in 1711 out of concern about the stability of the structures above.

Major excavations resumed in 1738. With the engineer from Zaragoza Roque Joaquín de Alcubierre, Giovanni Antonio Medrano began the excavations of Herculaneum, giving rise to a new type of activity[18] under the patronage of Charles III of Spain, who had recently begun building his nearby palace in Portici. He appointed the Spanish military engineer Rocque 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 tinier layer of material covering the site (4 m as compared to 20 m 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 today part of the archaeological park.

Hundreds of skeletons were found in the so-called "boat houses", by the ancient shoreline, between 1980-81.

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

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

Insulae numbers

The classical street layout separates the city into blocks (insulae), defined by the intersection of the east-west (cardi) and north-south (decumani) streets. Hence Insula II – Insula VII run counterclockwise from Insula II. To the east are two additional blocks: Orientalis I (oI) and Orientalis II (oII). To the south of Orientalis I (oI) lies one additional group of buildings known as the "Suburban District" (SD). Individual buildings have their own entrance number. For example, the House of the Deer is labelled (Ins IV, 3).

The Forum, temples, theatre, numerous houses and necropolises are still buried in Herculaneum.

The settlement was encircled by walls between 2 and 3 metres thick, dated to the 2nd century BC and constructed primarily of large pebbles, with the exception of the coastal section made of opus reticulatum. As in Pompeii, following the Social War, the walls lost their protective purpose and were integrated into adjacent structures, such as the House of Inn.

A single main drain was collecting water from the Forum and from house impluviums, latrines, and kitchens along cardo III. Other drains emptied directly into the street, except latrines equipped with a cesspit. For water supply, the city was directly connected to the Serino aqueduct, built in the Augustan age, which brought water to houses through a series of lead pipes under the roads, regulated by valves; eight and ten metres wells had been used previously.

Due to bradyseism, which affects the whole Vesuvius region, portions of the historic city of Herculaneum today lie as much as 4 metres below sea level.[22]

The House of Aristides (Ins II, 1)

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.

College of the Augustales

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.

Villa of the Papyri

A fresco depicting Theseus, from Herculaneum (Ercolano), Italy, 45–79 AD

The most famous among Herculaneum's luxurious villas, Villa of the Papyri was first identified as the magnificent seafront retreat belonged to consul Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus, Julius Caesar's father-in-law; However, artefacts found at the site closely resemble standardised assortment and cannot conclusively identify the villa's owner.[23] The villa stretches down towards the sea in four terraces. Piso, a literary patron of poets and philosophers, built there the only ancient library that has survived virtually intact.

Between 1752 and 1754, a number of blackened, unreadable papyrus scrolls were serendipitously 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, there is still a long way to go before the stories on the scrolls are unlocked.[28]

Boathouses and the Shore

"Boat houses" where skeletons were found

"Boat houses" with skeletons

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 all of the excavations. However, this startling 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 mismanagement and deterioration skeletons[31] further excavations in the 1990s uncovered a total of 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 themesleves 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.[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]

Despite the extensive knowledge over Herculaneum, the city was long eclipsed by the better-known Pompeii. Although the cities are located a mere 13 km apart, Pompeii is often more popular in education systems than Herculaneum. Herculaneum was discovered in 1709, whereas Pompeii was not discovered until 39 years later, in 1748. After Pompeii was discovered, Russian painter Karl Bryullov created an oil painting titled The Last Day of Pompeii in 1830–1833, which inspired Edward Bulwer-Lytton to write his book The Last Days of Pompeii in 1834, both of which helped boost Pompeii's popularity. Pompeii's discovery caused excavations in Herculaneum to stop until the 1920s. This was likely because of the 20-meter-thick pyroclastic layer covering Herculaneum, whilst Pompeii was covered by "only" 4 meters of thinner, significantly easier to excavate ash.

Harsh criticisms from Johann Joachim Winckelmann also influenced Herculaneum's excavations. Winckelmann, a well-respected traveler of the time, was frustrated by the difficulty in accessing findings and materials at Herculaneum. He did not like the fact that the importance of cultural tourism was being ignored. He also strongly criticized the fact that those pieces excavated that were not being taken back to the palace were being destroyed.

He ranted on about how important archeological context is and how destroying frescoes so they could not be sold off to foreigners was wrong and could mess with said context. Winckelmann created as much of a fuss as he could in an effort to get the excavations to stop, and it worked. The reason it worked was that the current ruler, Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, was a young child at the time. Ferdinand I had been left to rule from 1759 to 1816 as his father went to go become Charles III of Spain. Due to young Ferdinand's lack of ability to deal with harsh criticism, he gave in to Winckelmann's demands and slowed the excavations at Herculaneum.[37]

At the same time Herculaneum's excavations were coming to a halt, Pompeii's excavations were finally starting to pick up. Originally there had been a lack of artifacts due to the site being easier to excavate; this caused the site to have already been touched by looters who took many valuable artifacts. However, there was a major breakthrough when excavations finally struck the theatre of Pompeii. Due to the nature of Pompeii being closer to the surface, policies were adopted to keep the site open to visitors, effectively pleasing Winckelmann. With Pompeii's easily accessible 'open-air' excavations, it became an interesting tourist attraction that many people began to visit.[38] On the other hand, Herculaneum had deep tunnels that had to be traversed by torchlight and was therefore a much less interesting attraction that was easily dismissed from peoples' minds.

Herculaneum, Ercolano, and Vesuvius

The volcanic ash and debris covering Herculaneum, along with the extreme heat, left it in a remarkable state of preservation for over 1600 years. However, once excavations began, exposure to the elements began the slow process of deterioration. This was exacerbated by earlier excavation practices, which generally focused on valuable artefacts rather than preserving the archeological value of the site. Preservation of the skeletal remains became a top priority only in the early 1980s, under the direction of Dr Sara C. Bisel.

Intensive tourism, vandalism, substandard management, and political ineptitude all contributed to the deterioration of numerous sites and buildings. Numerous building foundations have been weakened by water damage caused by modern Ercolano. Reconstruction initiatives have often proved counterproductive. However, recent conservation efforts have had greater success. Today excavations have been temporarily discontinued to direct all funding to conservation programs.

A large number of artifacts from Herculaneum are preserved in the Naples National Archaeological Museum.

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  House Number 22 is noted for this outstanding summer triclinium with a nymphaeum decorated with coloured mosaics.
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  Herculaneum, Neptune and Salacia, wall mosaic in House Number 22
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  Street paving stones in Herculaneum
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  Residential water pipe made of lead in Herculaneum
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  Wall paintings in the first style
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  Inlaid marble floor
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  Marcus Nonius Balbus, found in dwellings of Resina/Herculaneum.
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  Most likely a posthumous painted portrait of Cleopatra VII of Ptolemaic Egypt with red hair and her distinct facial features, wearing a royal diadem and pearl-studded hairpins, from Roman Herculaneum, mid-1st century AD[45][46]
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  Bronze sculptures of runners from the Villa of the Papyri at Herculaneum, now in the Naples National Archaeological Museum

• A 1987 National Geographic special, In the Shadow of Vesuvius, explored the sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum, interviewed archaeologists, and examined the events leading up to the eruption of Vesuvius.
• The 2002 documentary "Herculaneum. An unlucky escape" [47] is based on research of Pier Paolo Petrone, Giuseppe Mastrolorenzo and Mario Pagano. Co-production of DocLab Rome, Discovery Channel USA, France 3 – Taxi Brousse, Spiegel TV, Mediatred, 52'.
• A 2004 documentary "Pompeii and the 79 AD eruption". TBS Channel Tokyo Broadcasting System, 120'.
• An hour-long drama produced for the BBC entitled Pompeii: The Last Day portrays several characters (with historically attested names but fictional stories) living in Pompeii, Herculaneum and around the Bay of Naples, and their last hours, including a fuller and his wife, two gladiators, and Pliny the Elder. It also portrays the facts of the eruption.
• Pompeii Live, Channel 5, 28 June 2006, 8pm, live archaeological dig at Pompeii and Herculaneum
• Marcellino de Baggis' 2007 documentary "Herculaneum: Diaries of Darkness and Light", Onionskin productions[48]
• The 2007 documentary "Troja ist überall: Auferstehung am Vesuv", Spiegel TV, 43'29 [49]
• "Secrets of the Dead: Herculaneum Uncovered"[50] is a PBS show covering the archaeological discoveries at Herculaneum.
• "Out of the Ashes: Recovering the Lost Library of Herculaneum"[51] is a KBYU-TV documentary that traces the history of the Herculaneum papyri from the time of the eruption to their discovery in 1752 to modern developments that impact their study.
• "The Other Pompeii: Life and Death in Herculaneum"[52] is a documentary presented by Andrew Wallace-Hadrill, director of Herculaneum Conservation Project.
• "Pompeii: The Mystery of the People Frozen in Time"[53] is a 2013 BBC One drama documentary presented by Dr. Margaret Mountford.
• "Pompeii: The New Revelations" was broadcast on UK TV channel 5 in 2021.
• "Unearthed: Vesuvius' Secret Victim." Documents the city of Herculaneum and the lives of its people. Revealed that over 1,000 people of Herculaneum's 5,000 citizens had survived the eruption and were resettled in Naples and Cumae.

• Brennan, B. 2018.Herculaneum A Roman Town Reborn. Sydney: Ancient History Seminars.
• Brennan, B. 2012. Herculaneum A Sourcebook. Sydney: Ancient History Seminars.
• Capasso, L. 2001. I fuggiaschi di Ercolano. Paleobiologia delle vittime dell' eruzione vesuviana del 79 d.C. Roma: L'Erma di Bretschneider
• Daehner, J., ed. 2007. The Herculaneum Women: History, Context, Identities. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum.
• De Carolis, E., and G. Patricelli. 2003. Vesuvius, A.D. 79: The Destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum.
• Deiss, J. J. 1995. The Town of Hercules: A Buried Treasure Trove. Malibu, CA: J. Paul Getty Museum.
• Lazer, E. 2009. Resurrecting Pompeii. London: Routledge.
• Pace, S. 2000. Herculaneum and European Culture Between the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. Naples, Italy: Electa.
• Pagano, M. 2000. Herculaneum: A Reasoned Archaeological Itinerary. Translated by A. Pesce. Naples, Italy: T&M.
• Pagano, M., and A. Balasco. 2000. The Ancient Theatre of Herculaneum. Translated by C. Fordham. Naples, Italy: Electa.
• Pirozzi, M. E. A. 2000. Herculaneum: The Excavations, Local History and Surroundings. Naples, Italy : Electa.
• Scarth, A. 2009. Vesuvius: A Biography. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
• Wallace-Hadrill, A. 2011. "The Monumental Centre of Herculaneum: In Search of the Identities of the Public Buildings." Journal of Roman Archaeology 24:121–160.

• Pliny the Younger's letters on the catastrophic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D. to the Roman historian Tacitus from University of Arizona: Pliny the Younger, Letters 6.16 and 6.20 to Cornelius Tacitus and in Project Gutenberg: Letter LXV – To Tacitus, Letter LXVI – To Cornelius Tacitus

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Herculaneum.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ercolano.

• The local archaeological authorities – Official website
• Herculaneum Conservation Project – Official website
• AD 79: Year of Destruction
• 62 Pompeii earthquake
• Herculaneum papyri
• Blogging Pompeii
• The Friends of Herculaneum Society
• The Philodemus Project will publish Philodemus' works on poetry and on rhetoric.
• Brigham Young University: Herculaneum Scrolls
• Herculaneum Archived 7 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine by Iain Dickson, 'Melvadius Macrinus Cugerni'
• Herculaneum Uncovered Documentary produced by the PBS Series Secrets of the Dead
• Purcell, N., R. Talbert, T. Elliott, S. Gillies (23 November 2020). "Places: 432873 (Herculaneum)". Pleiades. Retrieved 8 March 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
• Romano-Campanian Wall-Painting (English, Italian, Spanish and French introduction) Archived 7 March 2011 at the Wayback Machine
• "Herculaneum Uncovered – A conversation with Andrew Wallace-Hadrill", Ideas Roadshow, 2013
• Texts on Wikisource:
  • "How was Herculaneum Destroyed?" in Popular Science Monthly, Volume 2 (December 1872)
  • "Herculaneum". New International Encyclopedia. 1905.
  • "Herculaneum". The Nuttall Encyclopædia. 1907.
  • "Herculaneum". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). 1911. pp. 342–344.; contains a plan of Villa Ercolanese