How did the Herculaneum people die?
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The Herculaneums were the first to be hit by the pyroclastic waves because their
city was closer to Mount Vesuvius than any other city and so died first; it must be made clear though that nobody died from lava or even the ash but in fact from
suffocation. Archaeologists have found that the inhalation of gasses and ash created fluid in the lungs; it took up to ten minutes for everyone to die from suffocation. It has also been studied that the skulls of the skeletons in the Herculaneum boat sheds were cracked and had holes in them, this showed that the heat was so intense that they're brains were literally boiling and must have exploded with such force that even the skulls cracked open due to so much pressure.
city was closer to Mount Vesuvius than any other city and so died first; it must be made clear though that nobody died from lava or even the ash but in fact from
suffocation. Archaeologists have found that the inhalation of gasses and ash created fluid in the lungs; it took up to ten minutes for everyone to die from suffocation. It has also been studied that the skulls of the skeletons in the Herculaneum boat sheds were cracked and had holes in them, this showed that the heat was so intense that they're brains were literally boiling and must have exploded with such force that even the skulls cracked open due to so much pressure.
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How did the Pompeians die?
Pompeii was hit soon after but they didn't die from suffocation like the Herculaneum people. The temperature was about 250 to 300 degrees, that was slightly cooler than Herculaneum, so the temperature was hot enough to kill them instantly but not hot enough to destroy their clothes (which is very fortunate for our archaeologists). That day, Pompeii turned into a gigantic, super hot oven; there is no way that anything within range of the pyroclastic waves had even a little chance of surviving.
How were the bodies preserved? why did it happen this way?
The Herculaneums seeked the refuge of the boat sheds because they thought they were just experiencing earthquakes; that shelter would have been the safest place if this was true however they did not realize that they were about to be roasted and boiled by intense heat of a volcanic eruption. Literally! So after the Herculaneum people died, their boat sheds were sealed up tight by hardened volcanic ash, becoming their tombs for almost 1700 years! In Pompeii the preservation process was a bit different.
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The Pompeians seemed not to know what to do in their situation because although some people did flee the city, others were ignorant enough to think that their homes would be enough shelter; but there was evidently chaos because many people's bodies were found outside buildings too; we also have Pliny's account of what happened and that sounds quite chaotic (page 2). So when the pyroclastic wave struck the city everyone, including animals, were instantly cooked alive and thus died from the intense heat. While corpses lay stranded on the ground, volcanic ash fell from the sky and completely covered them. The ash hardened faster than the flesh decomposed which is why, when the archaeologists discovered Pompeii, they found outlines of bodies scattered everywhere - perfect plaster moulds - which is what we can see today. [1]
What is the significance of these remains? What information does it give us?
The Pompeian casts are especially significant and unique, mostly because there is no other method of preservation quite like it anywhere else in the world and so of course is very fascinating to us because we can learn directly from a first century civilization about their way of life and what their beliefs and philosophies were. If you watched the video link on the home page, you would have seen the amazing process of how our modern technology can take scans of a cast or skeleton and recreate what their face would have looked like back in 79AD. Also the things that were preserved along with the bodies give us an insight to what their daily lives were like and their means of wealth. On the phalanges of a Herculaneum skeleton, there were still two rings (scroll to top of page), which indicates to us that not only was that person wealthy but the city could have been wealthy too? Herculaneum was indeed a seaside resort for the wealthy and explains why they were educated enough to have the initiative to seek suitable shelter, for an earthquake.
REFERENCES
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MQYMcQSZNs
[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MQYMcQSZNs