Pompeii lies at the base of Mount Vesuvius

This is the volcano that erupted and destroyed the entire city, freezing it in time beneath layers of ash and pumice.

It erupted in 79 A.D and killed many of the population – those who lived fled to nearby towns and cities, taking with them whatever they could carry. The volcano is categorized as a stratovolcano and could erupt at any time – nobody knows when, and an evacuation plan is permanently in place in case of any warning signs.

Nobody knows the exact date of the eruption

Pliny the Younger, a Roman writer who provided an eyewitness account of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, noted the date as August 24th.

However, based on the food and clothing preserved underneath the ash, researchers have suggested that this date may not be entirely accurate. This is often debated. Click the next ARROW to see the next Photo!

Pompeii is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site

In 1997, Pompeii was given the status of World Heritage Site. It is an incredibly important place in that it provides such a complete example of Roman life, architecture, community and history. So much has been learned from the excavations at Pompeii, in terms of history, science and sociology. It is an absolute must-visit if you are in Italy, and a Pompeii tour from Rome is the perfect way to do just that.

Bodies were cast by researchers

Plenty of bodies were discovered underneath all of the ash and pumice left behind by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

Many of these had left holes within the ash layers after disintegrating, as noticed by Italian architect Giuseppe Fiorelli in 1863. He came up with the idea of injecting plaster into these gaps, thus creating plaster casts of the bodies of the people buried at Pompeii.

There is a LOT of graffiti

And not modern-day graffiti, either. Far from being the result of disrespectful visitors, the graffiti that covers Pompeii is from before the eruption. It gives visitors and historians an incredible insight into Roman society – examples include private messages, public announcements, and election notices. You’ll be able to spot all of this graffiti on one of our Pompeii tours from Rome as you imagine yourself living day-to-day life in an ancient city.

Pink Floyd in Pompeii

Back in 1972, rock band Pink Floyd recorded a live performance in Pompeii’s Roman Amphitheater. There was no audience there to see it, but filmmaker Adrien Maben had brought his vision to life – the acoustics were fantastic, and it was undeniably a huge moment in rock history. Click the next ARROW to see the next Photo!

It was once occupied by Greeks

Researchers believe that before Pompeii was a Roman town, it originally belonged to – and was ruled and inhabited by – the ancient Greeks. They can’t be sure of the exact dates during which the area was occupied by the Greeks, but there are fragments of a Greek Doric Temple in Pompeii. This temple dates back to the 6th century BC – and you can get up close to it on a day trip from Rome. Click the next ARROW to see the next Photo!

It is famous in pop culture

Pompeii has been referenced and depicted in pop culture for years. It appears in the Italian Bob episode of The Simpsons, where they find the cast of an ancient Roman family who look just like them, and British-based band Bastille has a song called Pompeii. Click the next ARROW to see the next Photo!

The wind was simply blowing the wrong way

As simple as it seems, the reason that so many people died – and an entire city was buried for hundreds of years – when Vesuvius erupted was because the wind was blowing in a northwesterly direction. Typically, research suggests, the wind would have been blowing from the southwest instead. That would have meant that the debris was blown away from the city, instead of covering it as it did. It is incredible to think that such a small factor caused so much death and destruction, leaving behind a well-preserved Roman city.