Bodies from Pompeii and Herculaneum
Analysis of the artefact:
Throughout the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum are victims of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. One of the largest groups of bodies found in Pompeii is in the Garden of the Fugitives, where 13 bodies were found (as seen above). Almost all of the bodies in Pompeii have been found in places where many Ancient Romans spent their daily lives. This includes at their homes, in the Baths, at the market, and at the Forum. In Herculaneum, many residents managed to get away from the eruption and evacuate the city immediately, leaving considerably less bodies compared to Pompeii. However, there was a large group of people that went down to the beach for shelter as they felt that they would be safe down there - resulting in the discovery of 150 bodies found in the warehouses at the beach front, as seen in the artefact above. Within the warehouses are people from all walks of life, including slaves, plebeians and patricians, and people of both genders. The sex and social class of victims could be determined by studying the bones and bone structure to decide the gender, while the determination of social class was done by examining the items that were found with the skeletons. If jewelry was found, then this suggested a wealthier person, and if weaponry was found they were most likely a male and a soldier. The bodies found in both Herculaneum and Pompeii can tell us what they ate, their health and what their occupation was. In Herculaneum the remains of the people are preserved differently to in Pompeii, however they still provide us with a look as to what life was like in Ancient Rome. From the skeletons at Herculaneum, strontium levels were checked and they were shown to be high, which tells us that the people from Herculaneum in particular had a varied diet, eating mainly seafood and vegetables. This is possibly due to the fact that Herculaneum was a coastal city and so a lot of seafood would be brought in for the people to eat. It shows us that seafood was a main staple food for many Ancient Romans in their diet. Looking at other skeletons from Herculaneum, particularly those of children, specific bone alterations have been found to point towards child labour, and in the case of one skeleton which was found to be a woman, the structure of her pelvic bones judged her to be a prostitute. Looking at the bones, their density and their shape could tell archaeologists a lot about what the victim had done when they were alive, which then helped to determine whether the victims had been slaves or not. This was usually difficult to judge as they may not have had any belongings with them, but other victims that were plebeians or patricians may not have either and so looking purely at belongings would not always work. This shows us that even in cities outside of central Rome, slavery was still commonplace particularly in the case of children and prostitution, which was not illegal in Ancient Rome, was a common activity in Roman social life. The bodies at Pompeii, which had been made into a plaster cast after their discovery give extreme detail of the body underneath, and in some cases have shown the clothing that people wore. This also contributes to identifying the social class that people were in.
Throughout the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum are victims of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. One of the largest groups of bodies found in Pompeii is in the Garden of the Fugitives, where 13 bodies were found (as seen above). Almost all of the bodies in Pompeii have been found in places where many Ancient Romans spent their daily lives. This includes at their homes, in the Baths, at the market, and at the Forum. In Herculaneum, many residents managed to get away from the eruption and evacuate the city immediately, leaving considerably less bodies compared to Pompeii. However, there was a large group of people that went down to the beach for shelter as they felt that they would be safe down there - resulting in the discovery of 150 bodies found in the warehouses at the beach front, as seen in the artefact above. Within the warehouses are people from all walks of life, including slaves, plebeians and patricians, and people of both genders. The sex and social class of victims could be determined by studying the bones and bone structure to decide the gender, while the determination of social class was done by examining the items that were found with the skeletons. If jewelry was found, then this suggested a wealthier person, and if weaponry was found they were most likely a male and a soldier. The bodies found in both Herculaneum and Pompeii can tell us what they ate, their health and what their occupation was. In Herculaneum the remains of the people are preserved differently to in Pompeii, however they still provide us with a look as to what life was like in Ancient Rome. From the skeletons at Herculaneum, strontium levels were checked and they were shown to be high, which tells us that the people from Herculaneum in particular had a varied diet, eating mainly seafood and vegetables. This is possibly due to the fact that Herculaneum was a coastal city and so a lot of seafood would be brought in for the people to eat. It shows us that seafood was a main staple food for many Ancient Romans in their diet. Looking at other skeletons from Herculaneum, particularly those of children, specific bone alterations have been found to point towards child labour, and in the case of one skeleton which was found to be a woman, the structure of her pelvic bones judged her to be a prostitute. Looking at the bones, their density and their shape could tell archaeologists a lot about what the victim had done when they were alive, which then helped to determine whether the victims had been slaves or not. This was usually difficult to judge as they may not have had any belongings with them, but other victims that were plebeians or patricians may not have either and so looking purely at belongings would not always work. This shows us that even in cities outside of central Rome, slavery was still commonplace particularly in the case of children and prostitution, which was not illegal in Ancient Rome, was a common activity in Roman social life. The bodies at Pompeii, which had been made into a plaster cast after their discovery give extreme detail of the body underneath, and in some cases have shown the clothing that people wore. This also contributes to identifying the social class that people were in.
Developed conclusions:
These artefacts are unique and show us that the eruption was significant to our understanding of Roman social life, because every single body that has been found has been preserved in the moment of death - and this is something that has never been found anywhere else in the world. As Ancient Romans cremated their dead, the skeletons left at Herculaneum are the largest and first ever group of Roman skeletons to ever be found. This then makes these bodies unique as they would be the first Ancient Roman bodies to be analyzed and could finally unearth a better understanding as to life in Ancient Rome. In Herculaneum, the skeletons left preserved from the eruption provide archaeologists with DNA that can give modern science significant knowledge as to the health of the people. For example, DNA taken from bodies in Herculaneum has shown that the disease Pleurisy was prevalent in many people. Pleurisy was caused by the indoor pollution from lighting, cooking and heating and has for the first time shown the modern world the consequences of living in such poor conditions. The reason why this is so significant is because for this sort of detail to be gathered, there must be good skeletal preservation which Mount Vesuvius has provided us with. This is why the eruption of Mount Vesuvius is so significant, because without it we would not be have perfectly preserved bodies and skeletons that then give us DNA evidence to help determine what the people ate, the cause of their death, and any diseases that they had which then tell us exactly what it was like to live in Ancient Rome as well as how your social class affected your health, based on what living conditions you lived in and what your diet consisted of.
These artefacts are unique and show us that the eruption was significant to our understanding of Roman social life, because every single body that has been found has been preserved in the moment of death - and this is something that has never been found anywhere else in the world. As Ancient Romans cremated their dead, the skeletons left at Herculaneum are the largest and first ever group of Roman skeletons to ever be found. This then makes these bodies unique as they would be the first Ancient Roman bodies to be analyzed and could finally unearth a better understanding as to life in Ancient Rome. In Herculaneum, the skeletons left preserved from the eruption provide archaeologists with DNA that can give modern science significant knowledge as to the health of the people. For example, DNA taken from bodies in Herculaneum has shown that the disease Pleurisy was prevalent in many people. Pleurisy was caused by the indoor pollution from lighting, cooking and heating and has for the first time shown the modern world the consequences of living in such poor conditions. The reason why this is so significant is because for this sort of detail to be gathered, there must be good skeletal preservation which Mount Vesuvius has provided us with. This is why the eruption of Mount Vesuvius is so significant, because without it we would not be have perfectly preserved bodies and skeletons that then give us DNA evidence to help determine what the people ate, the cause of their death, and any diseases that they had which then tell us exactly what it was like to live in Ancient Rome as well as how your social class affected your health, based on what living conditions you lived in and what your diet consisted of.