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Essay / The History of Pompeii and Its Fall
The history of Pompeii is a sad one with over 1,200 people dying during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. However, Pompeii provided one of the only glimpses into the past where you can literally walk around. city and I can imagine what life was like. In this report, I intend to discuss what happened to Pompeii, how it happened, and why it happened. Additionally, I will discuss life as well as technologies used today to enhance conservation efforts and examine what the future of Pompeii will look like. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get the original essay In 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius erupted, sending molten rocks, gases, and gigantic clouds of ashes in the sky which quickly reached the city of Pompeii. This toxic gas, ash, and stones rained down on Pompeii and eventually covered Pompeii in approximately 20 to 32 feet of ash (Bianchini). August 24, 79 AD is the date most researchers have agreed on for the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. However, researchers are beginning to question the timeline due to new factors such as the clothing they found on the bodies as well as a dated found object. the 16th day before the first of November. These findings conflict with the chronology of the letter Pliny the Younger wrote about the disaster. It is important to note that in 2012 a new project was launched called "Grande Progetto Pompei" or Grand Pompeii Project (GPP website), a restoration project with $140 million earmarked for conservation (Lidz). Massimo Osanna is the director and leader of the GPP and he believes that these clues reinforce the idea that the eruption occurred in autumn, however, we will discuss this project later in the document. In the 8th century BC, Pompeii was a port city, it was a popular vacation spot for many residents of Rome. At that time, “Pompeii was a city in crisis and change,” explains archaeologist Stephen Kay of the British School at Rome (Leonard). This was due to the earthquake that occurred in Pompeii two years before the eruption of Vesuvius. The inhabitants of Pompeii were rebuilding their lives, their homes and the infrastructure of their city (Leonard). Many people believe that Pompeii existed as it was discovered, but Pompeii was a bustling city for over 1,000 years and the eruption of Mount Vesuvius was one of the deadliest in history (Leonard). Before its eruption, Vesuvius had been dormant for over 700 years and the earthquake that occurred was a precursor to the eruption to come. There was a documented witness to the eruption, his name is Pliny the Younger, he wrote a letter describing what he saw. To date, this is the only documented eyewitness account. In his letter, he said, "large sheets of fire and flames sprang up at several points, their brilliant brilliance being accentuated by the darkness of the night." For many years, researchers believed that the people of Pompeii suffocated to death from the ash that fell on them. However, archaeologists have determined that pyroclastic explosions, which are superheated toxic gases, caused the residents of Pompeii to die instantly. In Regio V (area not open to the public), archaeologists unearthed a balcony called “Vicolo dei Balconi” and found ancient dust there. In this same area, it was discovered that there were many houses, some of which still had intact balconies and terracotta containers that were used to hold oil and guram, a sauce made from intestines fermented fish. When people aredead, their bodies were encased in hot ashes and they eventually decomposed, leaving hollow shells where the bodies once were. Giuseppe Fiorelli found a way to create a plaster cast of the people and animals who died from the volcano and this method is still used today. Fiorelli would fill the hollow ash capsules with plaster, let them dry, then chip away the outer shell which would reveal the cast plaster inside. Through this process, he was able to capture the actual moment of the person's death in extreme detail, including facial expressions. Many famous plaster casts are on display at the Naples Archaeological Museum and the Boscoreale Museum in the Antiquarium, part of the Pompeii archaeological site. Pompeii was discovered in the late 16th century (around 1748) by Renaissance architect Domenico Fontana. while working on the construction of an underground water tunnel. The King of Naples, Charles Bourbon, began real excavations at the site and in 1763, excavators found an inscription indicating that the site was Pompeii. Traces of excavations have been found everywhere in Pompeii, but the Pompeii excavations were largely random and full of looters. Pompeii was covered in ashes and hidden for 1,500 years. It is important to note that due to the eruption of Vesuvius, the landscape of Pompeii was changed. Pompeii was closer to the coastline and after the eruption, apart from Pompeii being covered in ash and debris, the city was cut off from the Samo River. Excavations of the site have continued regularly for more than two and a half centuries. For many decades, these excavations were disorganized, poorly documented and more like treasure hunting expeditions (Leonardo). Finally, after decades of mismanagement, Giuseppe Fiorelli resumed excavations at Pompeii in 1860. Under his direction, the artifacts were documented and eventually the entire site was mapped and divided into 9 sections which are Regio I-IX. The plan and sections of the site are still in use today, and as of 2018, only about 1/3 of the site has yet to be excavated, and only about 2/3 of the site is open to the public. Recently, an unexplored part of Pompeii (Regio V) began experiencing problems, with some parts collapsing under its own weight. Further excavations were needed to resolve the problems of mud, erosion and find a way to kick-start Pompeii's conservation efforts. This work led to the discovery of new objects in Pompeii, such as new paintings and frescoes on the walls that had never been seen before. These discoveries gave archaeologists the opportunity to explore Pompeii in a manner similar to past archaeologists who excavated 200 years ago (Leonardo). Another interesting fact is that, through paleobotanical studies, we have determined that Pompeii most likely had orchards, cultivated fields and was surrounded by fir forests. As work continued on the GPP, archaeologists discovered more skeletons, mosaics of mythological figures and other Roman artwork. Recently, thanks to the GPP in the Regio V section, skeletal remains of women and children were found in one of the innermost parts of the villa. The house had rooms with frescoes preserved by ashes, this house had frescoes, one of which depicted the fertility god Priapus, and in the fresco he was holding his penis and it was incredibly large. Throughout the house, garlands were found painted as well as an explicit fresco depicting a Spartan queen with Jupiter disguised as a swan. These frescoes were intendedto show the high status of the owner. The city of Pompeii was generally wealthy with a large shopping center, cobbled streets, bakeries, stadiums, as well as private villas and public buildings (Bianchini). What is interesting is that even today many private buildings retain their original decor and there are also several public buildings in fantastic condition. For example, the Teatro Grande (the great theater), the Odeion, the Great Palaestra and the Basilica still have significant decorations and details. Some famous frescoes inspired artists of the 18th and 19th centuries. Religion also played an important role in daily life in Pompeii. The Enchanted Garden House was discovered in Region V and it is believed that this house was a shrine dedicated to the house gods (Lidz). This house has a raised swimming pool with much decoration and under the sanctuary is a painting of snakes moving towards the altar, the garden wall was red and the decorations were intricate, and there was a specific space for worship at inside the house (Lidz). Venus was the deity of Rome and in Pompeii they had created a temple in her honor. Because Venus is the goddess of love and beauty, she was the most important Roman deity (Leonardo). The temple has been dated to the end of the 7th century BC. Another discovery that shed light on the lives of the inhabitants of Pompeii was the unearthing of the Stabian baths. The baths were a place for socializing, relaxation and exercise and were one of the oldest of Pompeii's five bathing areas. The Stabian Baths were located in a prime location and had running water from an aqueduct. Additionally, renovations to the Stabian Baths after the 62 AD earthquake included new amenities such as a hot bath, running fountains, heated walls, floors and they were updated. with new decorations meeting the standards of Bains Central (Léonard). Another amazing thing about Pompeii is that by the first century AD, the city had modernized its bakeries, which included larger scale bakeries, although the poor still struggled to get bread. It is also believed that hydraulic grain-soaking systems allowed Pompeii's bakers to make better quality bread and sell it to Pompeii's wealthier residents. As I said earlier, in 2012 a new GPP project was funded to ensure the conservation of Pompeii through extensive efforts that involve new technologies and a large team of people seeking to ensure Pompeii's survival. Thanks to this new project, we can finally explore Pompeii in a way that has never happened before. This project ensures that the decline of Pompeii is mitigated and, in some cases, repaired. This also led to the opening of the Schola Armaturarum, which showed that Pompeii was finally being properly cared for. Osanna, "has assembled a vast team of more than 200 experts to conduct what he calls 'global archaeology,' including not only archaeologists but also zooarchaeologists, anthropologists, art restorers, biologists, masons, carpenters, computer scientists, demographers, dentists, electricians, geologists, geneticists, mapping technicians, medical engineers, painters, plumbers, paleobotanists, photographers and radiologists. In their work, they used a variety of tools and techniques ranging from “ground sensors and drone videography to CT scans and virtual reality.” Currently, satellites are used to assess flood risk. Additionally, drones can produce images..