“Admetos and Alkestis receiving the oracle”. Roman fresco found in Herculaneum, Italy.
Admetos and his wife Alkestis receive the oracle saying that one of them will die unless a relative offers himself to go to Hades instead; Admetos´ parents listen.
I took this photo in Herculaneum, a day after my trip to Pompeii. Just like Pompeii, the city of Herculaneum was buried under the ashes of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 AD.
When you walk in, you can still see many of the skeletons of people who sought refuge in boat houses at what used to be the harbor but were killed by a pyroclastic flow. There I saw something that really upset me: Next to my group was a young woman who chose to take a selfie with the skeletons of the victims.
I know that these people died almost 2000 years ago but this doesn’t change that they were all individuals with hopes and dreams and most of us can’t imagine what they must have gone through, sitting in these boat houses hoping that they would still be alive the next day. I remember two victims especially, who looked like they could have been a parent with a child.
I can’t fathom why someone would take a selfie in a place like that. At least I was lucky that I was travelling with a group who respected the victims and none of them took a photo.
Herculaneum is an amazing place but please remember its inhabitants as well. Take pictures to show how they lived and not how they died.
The Dancers of Herculaneum. Naples Museum of Archaeology.
These statues were discovered at the Villa of the Papyri in Herculaneum. Originally believed to be dancers, their poses suggest to some that they may in fact be hydrophori, or water-carriers.
This brings to mind a passage from the Iliadabout the fate of the women of Troy:
“Then, all your life in the Argives’ land you will work long days, bent over the loom of some stern mistress, or carrying water up from her well - hating it but having no choice, for harsh fate will press down upon you.”
- The Iliad, Stephen Mitchell
Although these statues are beautiful works of art, they also remind us that the tales of ancient heroines did not alway end happily.
The eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 is without a doubt one of the most famous, if not iconic, volcanic events in history. The first rumblings were felt on 23 August - which was the feast day of Vulcan, no less - and then, on 24 August, the volcano erupted.
The event was witnessed by a 17 year-old Pliny the Younger, who wrote some vivid, first person accounts in his letters. It’s because of his descriptions that particularly violent volcanic eruptions are still referred to as Plinian.
Herculaneum was one of the Roman towns which were buried under tens of metres of pumice and ash during the eruption. One house in Herculaneum contained a library filled with papyrus scrolls which were turned into charcoal by the heat of the volcanic ash.
These charcoal scrolls were discovered by excavators in the 1750s. Four of them were presented to the Bodleian Library in 1810 by George, Prince of Wales.
I couldn’t stop taking pictures of Vesuvius. No words can describe what I’m feeling to see this beauty in person. I’ve been dreaming of visiting Vesuvius since I was 5 when I received a book about Vesuvius and Pompeii.
I booked a wonderful Airbnb in Pompei that blessed me with a magnificent view of Vesuvius. I took photos every chance I got, every morning and every night. You can easily imagine what the volcano looked like before the 79 AD eruption and how it would have felt to stand under its impressive height.
What an adventurous last few days… From exploring the ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum to climbing Vesuvius then hopping on a train to tour the enteral city of Rome. More pictures to come…
Hey Tumblr, if you are still mad about the Library of Alexandria, Stop! You can SAVE one ancient library right now. The Villa of the Papyri in Herculaneum was buried when Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, Some nearly 2000 carbonized scrolls were discovered along with the villa in the 1700s. Over the past couple centuries the scrolls have been a major source of study and today we are finally reaching ways of reading their contents without destroying the scrolls in the process.
The villa itself is largely underground and was explored via tunneling and as such it’s full extent still hasn’t been made clear, and it has long been suspected that additional libraries could exist within the site, not to mention other as of yet undiscovered villas. However, Italy as with many European countries simply has so many archaeological sites and new things being found all the time and not enough money to go around. Additionally the Villa of the Papyri is threatened with constant flooding issues. Library aside Sites like Herculaneum and Pompeii and all Archaeological sites around the world tell us so much about ancient peoples and cultures where we don’t have their literature to call on.
So how can you save the last ancient library? Donate to various archaeological and conservation/preservation groups, or even volunteer!
Ancient loaves of bread from the sister cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum that were carbonized in volcanic pyroclastic flows of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD
