Sacrificial scents
Analysis of two votive offering vessels from Pompeii is enhancing our understanding of Roman domestic rituals.
Vesuvius
The Last Days of Pompeii: the immersive exhibition
A new exhibition in London uses cutting-edge technology to recreate the streets of Pompeii – and the explosive events that turned a thriving Roman settlement into an archaeological time capsule. Carly Hilts describes the experience.
Herculaneum Scrolls: title revealed
For the first time, non-invasive technology has been used to recover a title from the ancient papyri from Herculaneum carbonised in the AD 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Earlier this year, scans of the scroll in question, known as PHerc.172,…
Petite but picture perfect
A small, ornately decorated house has been uncovered in Pompeii during ongoing excavations of the Insula of the Chaste Lovers, in the centre of the ancient city. Archaeological investigations of this newly discovered residence are still under way, but it…
World news in brief: From Bronze Age fossil collecting to 16th-century trumpets
Bronze Age fossil collecting An object discovered in an ancient basement storeroom at Mycenae during excavations in the 1970s has just been identified as the fossilised astragalus (ankle bone) of an extinct genus of rhinoceros, thanks to recent analysis by…
Pompeii: The biggest dig in a generation
The biggest dig at Pompeii in a generation is working to expose nearly an entire block of the ancient city. Archaeologists are making astonishing discoveries that shed powerful new light on life and death in the shadow of Vesuvius, as Giuseppe Scarpati and Sophie Hay told Matthew Symonds.
The other Pompeii: Common lives in the shadow of Vesuvius
An exhibition at Pompeii explores the less glamorous side of life in the ancient city.
Warriors of Rome: From soldiers to citizens in service of the Empire
Rome’s military is renowned as one of the finest fighting forces of the ancient world. But what was life really like for the individuals who became career soldiers, and how much do we know about the tools of their trade? Richard Abdy told Matthew Symonds about the people who fought for Rome.
World news in brief: Bronze sword from Bavaria, AI identifies new Nasca lines and new human remains found in Pompeii
A round-up of some of the latest archaeological discoveries from across the globe.
New archaeological work begins at Pompeii
The excavations are only in their early stages, but already signs of the upper parts of ancient buildings are beginning to emerge.
Wooden wonders of Herculaneum
An astonishing array of wooden objects has survived from Herculaneum, carbonised by the volcanic eruption that destroyed the town. This invaluable material may be less showy than the celebrated marble and bronze statuary, but it was still used for everything from beams and boats to purses and small shrines, as Dalu Jones finds out.
This week: Roman frescoes
Over the past few centuries of European history, we have grown used to the notion of the artist as celebrity. As far back as the Italian Renaissance, Leonardo and Michelangelo were famous in their own lifetimes. More recently, we can…
Pompeii Quiz
In which year was Pompeii buried under pumice and ash following the devastating eruption of Mount Vesuvius?
Researchers sequence entire genome of Vesuvius victim
Analysis of the Pompeian individual's skeletal remains revealed they likely suffered from spinal tuberculosis.
Volcanoes Quiz
In which year did the eruption of Mount Vesuvius bury Pompeii and Herculaneum under ash and mud?
Slaves’ room found in Pompeii
The discovery grants us a glimpse of the people who were behind the day-to-day running of the villa
News in brief: Roman diets, a Byzantine warrior, and Cassowary chicks
A brief look at some of the latest exciting archaeological stories.
Males and females at Herculaneum had different diets, research suggests
‘Males had greater access to marine fish at Herculaneum and more broadly in Roman Italy.’
Mummified human remains discovered at Pompeii
Wax tablet archives revealed that the deceased was a public slave and a custodian of the Temple of Venus.
Last supper in Pompeii
The Romans’ passion for fine dining is well known – now a mouth-watering new exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum shows how the production, distribution and consumption for food and wine coloured every aspect of Roman life, as its curator Paul Roberts explains
Ceremonial chariot found in Pompeii
This is a unique find, representing the only vehicle of this type found in Italy to date.
World News: Italy, Norway, New Mexico
Victims of Vesuvius Excavations at a large villa in Civita Guiliana, 700m north-west of Pompeii’s city walls, have uncovered two more victims of the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed many settlements in this region of Italy in AD 79. The…
Grand Designs at Heraculaneum
One of the most lavish dwellings in Roman Herculaneum, the House of the Bicentenary reopened to the public in 2019 after decades of conservation efforts. Francesco Sirano, Director of the Parco Archeologico di Ercolano, and Leslie Rainer from the Getty Conservation Institute tell the story of this magnificent house, its discovery, its decline, and how it has been brought to life once more.
Victims of Vesuvius
The remains of two individuals who died during the eruption of Vesuvius have been found at a suburban villa near Pompeii.
Last Supper in Pompeii
The extraordinary levels of preservation at the relatively ordinary Roman city of Pompeii and other sites in the Bay of Naples, where the eruption of Mount Vesuvius devastatingly interrupted the inhabitants as they went about their daily lives, provide remarkable insights into the production, distribution, and conspicuous consumption of food and wine.