What can archaeology tell us?

Archeology (the study of human history through excavation and artifacts) can tell us things about how people lived, died and suffered. Scientists have learned a lot from digging up portions of Pompeii and Herculaneum (see video about archeology).

As visitors we were told that residents were killed by falling rock, but few of the bodies recovered show evidence of physical damage. Lava did not flow for more than a week after the eruption. Instead, the lava crystallized into a fine, glass pumice (4 meters of it). Most of the human remains recovered are completely in tact, showing little to no physical damage. Many bodies were preserved in pockets of air, so that we can see their positions at death. Positions of humans, dogs and horses show suffocation to be the primary cause of death (see movie clip).

Archeology tells us all this, and more.

The area covering the final surge cloud is so large, only one area of it has been excavated. No matter where archaeologists dig, they always find bodies, even far outside Pompeii. This suggests a large death toll. A total of 1044 bodies have been found in Pompeii, but archaeologists believe that 10 times that many died (over 10,000 people). That would mean that half the population of Pompeii died as a result of the Vesuvius eruption.

Plaster molds of bodies found in Pompeii show us how over 1000 people died (see movie clip). 3D MRI scanning gives us a better picture of who they were and their deaths.

Picture 1 shows the remains of the Macellum, also known as the covered market place.Picture 2 shows casts of human remains found in Pompeii.

all videos are courtesy of United Streaming and Discovery Education. The complete video can be viewed under a membership login at United Streaming. "Enduring Influence: Rome, Greece, and Byzantium" and also " Forensic Detectives: Archeology at Work."

Forensic Detectives: Archaeology at Work (55:37) This video contains 34 segments. Description: Remnants of the past tell remarkable stories about ancient cultures, civilizations, and cataclysmic events. Video segments explore the history of China, Peru, and Jerusalem, and examine the Earth’s magnetic poles. Spanning many locations and eras, this presentation invites students on a worldwide journey to study the forensic uses of archaeology and geology. © 2004 Discovery Channel School Grades: 6-8 Play Download My Content Assignment Quiz

Enduring Influence: Rome, Greece, and Byzantium (55:39) This video contains 12 segments. Description: Pompeii: Preserved in Time (32 min.)—Examines the final 24 hours for the people of this ancient Roman city before the catastrophic eruption of Vesuvius. Greece: One Out of Many (4 min.)—Traces how an assortment of city-states in the Aegean became one of the world’s most complex and influential cultures. The Rise of Rome’s Empire (5 min.)—Shows how Rome’s emperors swept away the old republic, created a vast empire, and came into conflict with a new religion, Christianity. Byzantium and Its Roman Ideals (5 min.)—Reviews the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and how its surviving Eastern empire kept alive its achievements and heritage. © 2005 Discovery Channel School Grades: 9-12 Play Download My Content Assignment Quiz