Pompeii skeletons reveal terrifying last hours

Archaeologists are piecing together the traumatic last moments of two women and three children whose skeletons have been discovered at Pompeii.

Caught up in the terrifying eruption of Mt Vesuvius nearly 2000 years ago, they sought shelter in the inner room of a villa, where they tried to wedge a piece of furniture – either a bed or a divan – against the door.

However, their attempts at selfpreservation were in vain as the building was engulfed in volcanic ash and collapsed. The skeletons were discovered in the villa where archaeologists last week found a charcoal inscription that suggested that the eruption happened in October AD 79 – not August of that year, as previously thought.

According to Massimo Osanna, the director of Pompeii, they would have barricaded themselves inside the house because by then there was no chance of fleeing – the ash had been falling for 18 hours, homes were covered in debris and streets were blocked with ash and pumice.

‘‘The place where they took shelter must have seemed safe,’’ said Osanna. ‘‘But they were crushed by the roof when it collapsed, or burned by the pyroclastic cloud, or perhaps a combination of both.’’

Not far from the skeletons, archaeologists made another intriguing discovery – a 17thcentury coin, suggesting that the villa was partially explored by tomb raiders. – Telegraph Group

‘‘The place where they took shelter must have seemed safe.’’

Massimo Osanna, Pompeii site director