Excavation of Pompeii and Herculaneum
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The eruption of Mount Vesuvius lingered in the minds of people for many years afterwards, but eventually was forgotten. The volcanic debris that erupted from Mount Vesuvius turned to hardened rock trapping buildings, people and other objects. In 1748 Pompeii was rediscovered, and Carlo di Borbone began exploration on the site, which was in an area known as 'Civita.' During this time the exploration was sporadic and unorganized. A lot of of important artefacts went into private collections one of which being that of Bourbon King Charles III 1759-88. Some artefacts and pieces of art have been recovered but others have since been lost because there was never even record of when and where they were found and where they were being taken. A lot of damage was done to the historical sites also as people weren't entirely careful about preserving the buildings and other artefacts. During the years 1924-1961, excavations were supervised by Amedeo Maiuri. There was a lot of activity during this time and many buildings were discovered including the Villa of the Mysteries. The complete perimeter of Pompeii was also discovered.
Carlo di Borbone is also well known for discovering the technique used to create plaster casts detailing the times of death of the people in Pompeii which can be found on the Plaster Casts page.
Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1709 when a farmer who was digging discovered marble. It was later found that he had found the Roman theatre. King Charles of Bourbon took over excavation and many people did so after him. By the end of the 18th century many significant buildings had been discovered. Excavation practices had also been significantly refined. Kart Weber and Francesco La Vega worked on the site for sometime and wrote detailed accounts about this work as well as drawing accurate designs for the buildings they discovered. During 1806-1815, excavation practices became significantly more organized. Many of the excavated artefacts are now displayed at the Royal Palace at Portici. mostly skeletons were found. Because of the superheated surges that hit the town, it is known that all organic matter carbonized, which included the bodies of the dead. Prior to 1927, excavations was by means of tunneling deep into the rock. In 1927 open-air excavation and from that point on excavation went considerably quicker. Unfortunately, inadequate strategies to encourage preservation meant that the building suffered great decay and disrepair. In wasn't until 2001 that this situation was recognized as being so desperate and a conservation project has since been launched to maintain the site.
Carlo di Borbone is also well known for discovering the technique used to create plaster casts detailing the times of death of the people in Pompeii which can be found on the Plaster Casts page.
Herculaneum was rediscovered in 1709 when a farmer who was digging discovered marble. It was later found that he had found the Roman theatre. King Charles of Bourbon took over excavation and many people did so after him. By the end of the 18th century many significant buildings had been discovered. Excavation practices had also been significantly refined. Kart Weber and Francesco La Vega worked on the site for sometime and wrote detailed accounts about this work as well as drawing accurate designs for the buildings they discovered. During 1806-1815, excavation practices became significantly more organized. Many of the excavated artefacts are now displayed at the Royal Palace at Portici. mostly skeletons were found. Because of the superheated surges that hit the town, it is known that all organic matter carbonized, which included the bodies of the dead. Prior to 1927, excavations was by means of tunneling deep into the rock. In 1927 open-air excavation and from that point on excavation went considerably quicker. Unfortunately, inadequate strategies to encourage preservation meant that the building suffered great decay and disrepair. In wasn't until 2001 that this situation was recognized as being so desperate and a conservation project has since been launched to maintain the site.