Today at the historic site of Pompeii some of the most fascinating pieces of evidence are the remains of the men and women who were unable to escape this catastrophic disaster. These remains are not bones of the citizens who perished, but rather cast of shapes these bodies left in the ash after decomposing after thousands of years until they were rediscovered. The remains of these men and women who were killed by the poisonous gases that were the result of the Mt Vesuvius eruption were first discovered in the 1700’s during one of the numerous excavations of Pompeii and Herculaneum. When these bodies were first discovered only the bones of these residents were found, and the excavators at this time were unsure how to determine whether these remains were men and women as they lacked all forensic analysis technologies scientist can use today. Later on in further excavations, archaeologist realised they could pour plaster into the holes formed by the decomposed remains the show the forms that each person was in at the moment of death while still preserving the skeletons, thus beginning to determine what it was that really killed the men and women who were unlucky and didn’t manage to escape.
This technique of preserving the numerous bodies found in Pompeii gave archaeologist and historians of that time, and today, the evidence they needed to determine how people really died which give the specific cause of death. Because many of the casts of bodies have been found either lying down, protecting their faces or protecting their loved ones, gave specific examples that it was the poisonous gas that killed the men and women of Pompeii and Herculaneum. This technique also gives primary evidence of which gender was killed by the gas, what they were wearing and whether the people had any health risks at the time of death.
A famous plaster cast of a man shielding what appears to be his wife, gives primary evidence to archaeologists and historians of the lengths this man would go to protect his wife and his unborn child that can be seen through the mould of her body with a bump on her stomach and shows the heavy clothing that his wife was wearing during the day of this eruption. There are thousand of other casts of skeletons that provide a primary source of evidence of the unique cause of death and provide specific examples of this civilisation that was wiped out through scientific discoveries that were non existent during the first excavations, furthering the knowledge of people studying this historic town in Italy.
The plaster casts of men and women who were unable to escape the poisonous gases in Pompeii show the significance of the Mt Vesuvius eruption as they provide unique evidence of how the men and women really died, by providing the DNA evidence that archaeologists did not have during the initial excavations and providing an extremely accurate account of the volcanic eruption, instead of the written account from Pliny the Younger. These plaster casts also provide actual moment of death preserved. Each of the bodies tells a unique story about an individual and how they suffered from this volcano that no other volcanic eruption has shown prior to this disaster or after and giving a first hand account of the terrible moment of death and how each individual person tried to protect someone around them. Without these casts of these men and women, scientists would have no primary evidence of what killed the men and women, whether it being the falling hot ash and pumice and the immense heat the volcano let off, 426 C, or whether it really was the toxic gas that made all men and women perish in their final resting places that they still remain to this day.
This technique of preserving the numerous bodies found in Pompeii gave archaeologist and historians of that time, and today, the evidence they needed to determine how people really died which give the specific cause of death. Because many of the casts of bodies have been found either lying down, protecting their faces or protecting their loved ones, gave specific examples that it was the poisonous gas that killed the men and women of Pompeii and Herculaneum. This technique also gives primary evidence of which gender was killed by the gas, what they were wearing and whether the people had any health risks at the time of death.
A famous plaster cast of a man shielding what appears to be his wife, gives primary evidence to archaeologists and historians of the lengths this man would go to protect his wife and his unborn child that can be seen through the mould of her body with a bump on her stomach and shows the heavy clothing that his wife was wearing during the day of this eruption. There are thousand of other casts of skeletons that provide a primary source of evidence of the unique cause of death and provide specific examples of this civilisation that was wiped out through scientific discoveries that were non existent during the first excavations, furthering the knowledge of people studying this historic town in Italy.
The plaster casts of men and women who were unable to escape the poisonous gases in Pompeii show the significance of the Mt Vesuvius eruption as they provide unique evidence of how the men and women really died, by providing the DNA evidence that archaeologists did not have during the initial excavations and providing an extremely accurate account of the volcanic eruption, instead of the written account from Pliny the Younger. These plaster casts also provide actual moment of death preserved. Each of the bodies tells a unique story about an individual and how they suffered from this volcano that no other volcanic eruption has shown prior to this disaster or after and giving a first hand account of the terrible moment of death and how each individual person tried to protect someone around them. Without these casts of these men and women, scientists would have no primary evidence of what killed the men and women, whether it being the falling hot ash and pumice and the immense heat the volcano let off, 426 C, or whether it really was the toxic gas that made all men and women perish in their final resting places that they still remain to this day.