Ancient Rome

Extraordinary new research from the University of Valencia has revealed a haunting detail about the final moments of those who perished in the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly two thousand years ago. Analysis of fabric imprints preserved in plaster casts shows victims wore heavy woollen cloaks and tunics as they fled the volcanic disaster, a discovery that challenges long-held assumptions about when the eruption occurred and offers fresh insight into the desperate measures people took to protect themselves from the deadly pyroclastic flows. Casts of Pompeii Reveal Last Moments of Volcano Victims Chilling Discoveries Reveal One Family's Fight for Survival in Pompeii Decoding Ancient Textiles Through Time Professor Llorenç Alapont, an archaeologist at the University of Valencia, led an