Q: Do we know how and when Pompeii was destroyed?
A: The only eyewitness account of the eruption that we have comes from Pliny the Younger (the nephew of naturalist and naval commander Pliny the Elder), via letters that he wrote 17 years after the disaster, describing the eruption of Vesuvius. And it is from him that we get a timeline of what happened during those fateful days.
There had been earth tremors in the days leading up to the eruption, but no one seems to have paid much attention to them. Vesuvius had last erupted in something like 1600 BC, so when it emitted a huge plume of ash and volcanic debris into the sky, no one had any idea what was happening. Over the next 18 hours or so, pumice stones rained down from the cloud, filling the streets and houses, and by the next morning, the huge column of ash had collapsed, and incredibly fast-moving clouds of stone and ash and gases (now known as pyroclastic surges) started racing down the sides of Vesuvius at speeds of 200mph and temperatures of 300°C. Anyone who hadn't left Pompeii by that point would have had no hope of survival, and it is this that finally buried and destroyed the city.
Denne historien er fra October 2022-utgaven av History Revealed.
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Denne historien er fra October 2022-utgaven av History Revealed.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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'Dickens's evocation of the fears, excitement and confusion of childhood is peerless'
DR LEE JACKSON ON WHY CHARLES DICKENS REMAINS RELEVANT TODAY
THE AUTHOR GOES ABROAD
Dickens expanded his horizons and boosted his fan-base by venturing overseas - but global fame came with a cost
REVIVING THE FESTIVE SPIRIT
A Christmas Carol wasn't just a bestseller - it changed the way that Britons chose to mark the festive season
GIVING THE POOR A VOICE
From Hard Times to Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens used his pen to help illuminate the lives of the less fortunate
A JOURNEY THROUGH DICKENS'S LONDON
The works of Charles Dickens are synonymous with visions of Victorian London. We talk to Dr Lee Jackson about the author's love of the capital, and the locations that most inspired him
EXCEEDING EXPECTATIONS
Dr Lee Jackson chronicles Charles Dickens's journey from down-at-luck teenager to titan of Victorian literature
GIFTS, TREES & FEASTING
We take a journey through the photo archives to reveal how Christmas and its many traditions have been celebrated over the years - and around the world
WHAT GREAT PAINTINGS SAY
We explore the story behind an allegorical painting that celebrates the triumph of love over hate, peace over war
HELLISH NELL
Malcolm Gaskill delves into the life of Helen Duncan - the fraudulent Scottish medium whose ectoplasm-filled seances saw her ending up on the wrong side of the law
7 THINGS YOU (PROBABLY) DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THE WHITE HOUSE
Presidential historian Dr Lindsay M Chervinsky reveals some of the most surprising facts about the world-famous US residence