Herculaneum

Herculaneum
The excavations of Herculaneum
Herculaneum is located in Italy
Herculaneum
Shown within Italy
Alternative nameErcolano
LocationErcolano, Campania, Italy
Coordinates40°48′22″N 14°20′54″E / 40.8060°N 14.3482°E / 40.8060; 14.3482
TypeSettlement
History
Founded6th–7th century BC
Abandoned79 AD
Site notes
WebsiteHerculaneum – Official website
Official nameArchaeological Areas of Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Torre Annunziata
TypeCultural
Criteriaiii, iv, v
Designated1997 (21st session)
Reference no.829
RegionEurope and North America

Herculaneum[a] is an ancient Roman town located in the modern-day comune of Ercolano, Campania, Italy. Herculaneum was buried under a massive pyroclastic flow in the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD.

Like the nearby city of Pompeii, Herculaneum is famous as one of the few ancient cities to be preserved nearly intact, as the solidified material from the volcano that blanketed the town protected it against looting and the elements. Although less known than Pompeii today, it was the first and, for a long time, the only discovered Vesuvian city (in 1709). Pompeii was revealed in 1748 and identified in 1763.[1] Unlike Pompeii, the mainly pyroclastic material that covered Herculaneum carbonized and preserved more wooden objects such as roofs, beds, and doors, as well as other organic-based materials such as food and papyrus.

According to the traditional tale, the city was rediscovered by chance in 1709 during the drilling of a well. Remnants of the city, however, were already found during earlier earthworks.[2] In the years following the site's uncovering, treasure seekers excavated tunnels and took artifacts. Regular excavations commenced in 1738 and have continued irregularly since. Today, only a fraction of the ancient site has been excavated. The focus has shifted to preserving the already-excavated portions of the city rather than exposing more.

Smaller than Pompeii with a population of circa 5,000,[3] Herculaneum was a wealthier town.[4] It was a seaside retreat for the Roman elite, as reflected by the extraordinary density of luxurious houses featuring lavish use of coloured marble cladding. Buildings of the ancient city include the Villa of the Papyri and the so-called "boat houses", wherein the skeletal remains of at least 300 people were found.


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  1. ^ Ozgenel, Lalo (15 April 2008). "A Tale of Two Cities: In Search of Ancient Pompeii and Herculaneum". Journal of the Faculty of Archaeology. 2008, Ankara: Middle East Technical University. 25 (1): 1–25. http://jfa.arch.metu.edu.tr/archive/0258-5316/2008/cilt25/sayi_1/1-25.pdf Archived 30 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Wallace-Hadrill, Andrew (2011). Herculaneum: Past and Future. ISBN 978-0-7112-3142-9. p47
  3. ^ De Ligt et al. (2012). "The Album of Herculaneum and a model of the town’s demography." Journal of Roman Archaeology, 25, 69–94. doi:10.1017/S1047759400001148
  4. ^ Wallace-Hadrill, Andrew (2011). Herculaneum: Past and Future. ISBN 978-0-7112-3142-9. p55

Herculaneum

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