The explosion of Vesuvius in AD 79 is certainly one of the most popularly well-known events in the ancient world, but there’s a previously unexplored side to the disaster, the survivors of Vesuvius. The story has traditionally been presented as complete destruction that killed everyone. For a number of reasons, it’s logical that there were, in fact, survivors. First of all, the number of bodies found is far fewer than the estimated population of Pompeii and Herculaneum.
So where did the survivors of Vesuvius go after they fled from Pompeii and the other buried towns? How could anyone now figure that out or even identify any survivors? Archaeology Magazine has an intriguing article on this subject, “Digging on the Dark Side of the Volcano.”
New Discoveries and Methods to Find the Survivors of Vesuvius
Recent excavation of a grand villa referred to as the Villa of Augustus on the north side of Vesuvius helped trigger interest in this subject. This excavation showed construction activity in the area not long after AD 79. And then University of Texas at Austin archaeologist Rabun Taylor came up with a time-consuming but effective strategy to “find” the survivors. It helps that Romans so frequently left writing on monuments both public and private.
A previously unexcavated portion of Pompeii has produced surprising finds in the last few years. People would be forgiven for thinking Pompeii didn’t have so many secrets to tell. Now there’s a whole side of Vesuvius to explore. Creative archaeologists like Taylor will also follow the trail of survivors and the way they rebuilt their lives. That’s quite the new narrative for such an established site.
Further Reading
If you’re interested in the series of new finds coming from the newly excavated block of Pompeii, you can go to any of my previous posts covering aspects of the discoveries.