Vesuvius Froze Time

In 79 CE, Mount Vesuvius erupted with devastating force, shooting ash and pumice 33 kilometers into the sky. The Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were buried under meters of debris within hours, and an estimated 16,000 people died. The blast was long dated to August 24, but autumn produce and coin finds now point to October.

What makes Vesuvius unique is preservation. Ash sealed Pompeii so completely that archaeologists found intact streets, frescoes, and bread. Pliny the Younger wrote the first eyewitness account, giving science the term Plinian eruption for the most explosive type.