Archeology

Pompeii is one of the world’s best archeological sites. Archeologists in Pompeii have found many artifacts. Those artifacts tell a story about how the ancient Roman society suddenly disappeared due to the eruption of Vesuvius. After the eruption of Vesuvius, archeologists spent most of their time trying to clear volcanic debris to find important areas of the city and uncovered objects. The archeologists were trying to discover the city’s origins. Pompeii was buried for 1,700 years after Vesuvius erupted. The survivors decided not to rebuild Pompeii. It then became an archeological site. Pompeii was entirely forgotten during the Middle Ages and later Roman period. The first person to discover Pompeii as an archeological site was an Italian named Domenico Fontana. Fontana dug a water channel through Pompeii. Ever since the last eighteenth century, Pompeii allowed visitors. Excavations done below the A.D. 79 level have shown what happened on that day when Vesuvius erupted. Archeologists’ interests soon went away from the site of Vesuvius’ eruption to dramatic clearances elsewhere in the city. A new age in Pompeian archeology was started in 1926 by a man named Amedeo Maiuri. Maiuri was recently installed as chief archeologist. He only had one question. “What was this area like before the eruption of A.D. 79. Mairui immediately brought back attention to the abandoned site of the eruption. Other excavations done recently in 1999 have uncovered many frescos. The frescos were found in the House of Triclina and they covered the walls of all three triclina. Modern archeologists now try to follow the footsteps of Amedo Maiuri believing it is an honor to study Pompeii. Archeological studies of Pompeii have both answered questions and raised new questions.



Bibliography: http://www.fieldmuseum.org/pompeii/ http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/ http://www.archaeology.org/interactive/pompeii/history.html Giuntoli, Stefano. __Art__ __And History Of Pompeii__. Florence, Italy: Casa Editrice Bonechi, 1989.