1 / 61

The Eruption

Explore the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius that buried Pompeii and Herculaneum, revealing new evidence and eyewitness accounts of the devastation. Learn about the events leading up to the eruption, Pliny the Younger's letters to Tacitus, and the preservation of these ancient cities.

tribble
Download Presentation

The Eruption

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. The Eruption

  2. Death of Pompeii and Herculaneum

  3. Phlegraean Fields ( bradyseism)

  4. Strabo Geography V.4.8 ( Vitruvius and DiodorusSiculus) • Mount Vesuvius is situated above these places and people live all around on very beautiful farms, except at the summit. This is flat for the main part, but completely unfruitful, like ashes to look at, and it displays porous hollows of rocks blackened on the surface, as if devoured by fire. As a result, one would deduce that this area was previously on fire and held craters of fire, and that it was extinguished when the fuel failed. Perhaps this is also the reason for the fruitfulness of the surrounding area, just as at Catana they say that the part covered by ash carried up by the fire of Etna made the country suited to vine-growing.

  5. 4,00 ft. high

  6. Monte Somma/Monte Vesuvio

  7. Traditional DAte • 19– 23 August --- earth tremors and other signs • Morning 24 Aug. –explosion with ash • But- more than 12 dates given in manuscripts of Pliny’s Letters

  8. August • Deciduous trees sill have leaves at Herculaneum • Villa A at Oplontis-herbs that would have finished flowering by autumn • Broad beans ( don’t stay fresh long after picking)

  9. Atumn? • Heavy clothing on victims • Autumn fruits ( pomegranates) • BUT Maybe clothing for protection from ash Fruits picked earlier but saved.

  10. New Evidence ( House of the Golden Bracelet coin hoard) • Silver denarius of Titus

  11. TRP VIIIiImPXV COS VII PP • Imperator Titus Caesar Vespasian Augustus Pontifex Maximus • With tribunician power for the 9th time 9 • Acclaimed Imperator for the 15th time, consul for the 7th time, father of the country. • Consul= 79 CE/Tribune= July/Imperator= not before Sept.

  12. Pliny the Younger -Eyewitness • Letters -- Pliny the Younger to Tacitus • Raised by his uncle Pliny the Elder . Pliny the Elder– ( The Natural History– 37 Books ). Commander of Roman fleet at Misenum

  13. Misenum

  14. Plinian phase ( 10-20 miles high)

  15. Plinian phase ( umbrella pine)

  16. Plea from Rectina

  17. “Fortune favors the brave-head for Pomponianus” (Stabiae)

  18. DeatH Of Pliny The Elder

  19. “Studying Livy”

  20. Timeline (2-- Days from 11:00 am to 8:00 am ) • Day 1-steam, Plinian Phase Day 2- pumice (lapilli) and rock 6 inches per hour

  21. Day 2 --Pelean phase-Surges 1and 2 (nuees ardentes) Herculaneum • Hot ash and gas ( 212- 750degrees F.) 100+miles per hour

  22. Final Surge swept across bay to Misenum ( 18 miles)

  23. Herculaneum 6 surges ( 75 feet),extended coastline by 1300 ft. • Pompeii = last 3/6 surges (2-6 ft.)

  24. Pompeii Overburden

  25. 100,000 times A- bomb

  26. 2000 victims found

  27. Moose

  28. Herculaneum

  29. Aug. 25

  30. Herculaneum Bath

  31. 1982

  32. 300 + victims

  33. 13 March 1944

  34. Preservation of Pompeii/Herculaneum

More Related