Pompeii
In the 7th century BC, the city of Pompeii was founded. The city was influenced by the Greek and Etruscan civilizations that dominated the southern region of Italy. In the 4th century BC the city was heavily urbanized by the Samnites.
Between 27 AD. and 37 AD, the city experienced its heyday, large private and public buildings were built, but an earthquake in 62 AD. destroyed much of the city.
This was being re-erected when on August 24, 79 AD. the volcano Vesuvius exploded, spewing a large amount of viscous lava that quickly solidified.
Lava covered the entire city of Pompeii and its neighboring city, Herculaneum, with a layer of two meters thick. Then a new layer, fifteen meters long, made of ash and stones, covered the city, killing about 30,000 people.
Today, historians and archaeologists discover several pieces that, due to the high temperature, remained intact all these years. Such findings have revealed the social, political, economic and artistic aspects of this society.
Ancient Age