The city of Herculaneum was small in comparison to the better-known city of Pompeii, a town for high-ranking Romans seeking an escape to the seaside with its cooling breezes. It was blazing hot the day I visited. Over the years, Herculaneum sank beneath the earth that grows above ancient cities, and though the site isn’t too far from the sea, it is further inland than it was in AD 79. On the day I visited, there was no breeze and no shade, but there was a planned ancient city with mansions for its wealthy inhabitants.

In AD 79, Mount Vesuvius, a somma-strato volcano, erupted with explosive violence and released a cloud of stones, ashes, and volcanic gasses as well as molten rock and pulverized pumice. By way of comparison, the force was 100,000 times more thermal energy than that released by the nuclear attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

When Mount Vesuvius erupted, most of the volcanic material fell onto Pompeii. Roofs collapsed under the weight of debris and ash, but only a few centimeters of ash fell onto Herculaneum. Instead, ash and hot gas flowed down the mountain and through the town at about 100 miles an hour. Over six flows, city buildings were buried about 66 feet deep. The high temperature of the first volcanic flow carbonized wood in the buildings resulting in artifacts that were destroyed in Pompeii. Volcanic rock called tuft covered the site for 1700 years with an air tight seal.

The primary cause of human deaths was the intense heat from volcanic gas which reached a temperature of 1022 degrees Fahrenheit. In particular, excavations from 1980-1982 uncovered 55 skeletons on the ancient beach in front of the city walls. Further excavations uncovered more skeletons raising the death toll to 340. Male skeletons rested on the beach while women and children took shelter in warehouses, now called boat houses. All awaited a rescue that never came. The bodies turned into vapor, leaving only jewelry and other metal objects on the skeletons.

The eruption buried Herculaneum in about 66 feet of ash, protecting the site from looting and weather damage. Essentially, the city slept, its material culture preserved until 1738 when men digging a well found the theater. Today 75 per cent of the site has yet to be excavated.

The remains of Herculaneum are now an open-air archeological museum and UNESCO World Heritage site. 

In comparison to the Villa Romano on Sicily, it felt strange to walk the streets and enter the houses at Herculaneum. Perhaps the sensation was due to Herculaneum’s abrupt and violent end in comparison to the villa which was probably abandoned before being buried. The villa holds its secrets without drama. But in Herculaneum, I was conscious of life’s fragility whether in the first century AD or our own time. Going about their routines, the people of Herculaneum were aware of Vesuvius, but could not know that everything was about to abruptly stop, freezing the historical moment until modern excavations. History is more than documents or material culture. It is being able to reach back in time.

Illustrations & A Few Sources

Ancient Roman city of Herculaneum by Diego Delso, 2023. Herculaneum Past, Present & future by Charles Waldstein, 1908. Lava from Vesuvius by Pietro Fabris 1760. Boat Houses, Photo by Author. Artifacts, Photo by Author. Interior Fresco, Photo by Author.

Guillermo Altares. Herculaneum, the Roman city destroyed by Vesuvius. El Pais 50. July 31 2023.

The Story of Herculaneum. Herculaneum Society.

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The post Touching the Past — My Visit to Herculaneum first appeared on Sandra Wagner-Wright.