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- 8 months ago
>>> Βεζούβιος: Έκρηξη
Voices of the Dead | Vesuvius: Eruption
2022 | Επ. 3/3 | HD
Η καθηγήτρια Μπέτανι Χιουζ ηγείται μιας εγκληματολογικής έρευνας για μερικά από τα πιο διαχρονικά μυστήρια του αρχαίου κόσμου και φέρνει τους θεατές αντιμέτωπους με τους εξαιρετικούς ανθρώπους του παρελθόντος που ανακαλύπτει στην πορεία.
Χρησιμοποιώντας την πιο πρόσφατη γεωλογική και εγκληματολογική έρευνα, η Μπέτανι αποκαλύπτει μια αλληλουχία γεγονότων καθώς ο Βεζούβιος εκρήγνυται, με αποκορύφωμα τον τραγικό και σοκαριστικό θάνατο των χαρακτήρων μας και τη βίαιη καταστροφή της Πομπηίας και του Ερκολάνο.
Voices of the Dead | Vesuvius: Eruption
2022 | Επ. 3/3 | HD
Η καθηγήτρια Μπέτανι Χιουζ ηγείται μιας εγκληματολογικής έρευνας για μερικά από τα πιο διαχρονικά μυστήρια του αρχαίου κόσμου και φέρνει τους θεατές αντιμέτωπους με τους εξαιρετικούς ανθρώπους του παρελθόντος που ανακαλύπτει στην πορεία.
Χρησιμοποιώντας την πιο πρόσφατη γεωλογική και εγκληματολογική έρευνα, η Μπέτανι αποκαλύπτει μια αλληλουχία γεγονότων καθώς ο Βεζούβιος εκρήγνυται, με αποκορύφωμα τον τραγικό και σοκαριστικό θάνατο των χαρακτήρων μας και τη βίαιη καταστροφή της Πομπηίας και του Ερκολάνο.
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00:00Υπότιτλοι AUTHORWAVE
00:30The explosion buried the gorgeous ancient towns, Pompeii and Herculaneum, under a blanket of ash up to 24 metres thick.
00:39But its volcanic debris also preserved these amazing towns and the remains of many of the people trapped inside them.
00:48Now, with access to the very latest discoveries and technology,
00:53it's time to explore the evidence of their lives, to try to understand their world from their point of view.
01:00Even to give them back their voices.
01:04The Duke at Patriremes, the Admiral, gave orders for the warships to be launched
01:09and came on board himself with the intention of bringing help, steering straight to the danger.
01:15I'll be exploring the ancient landscape for clues and using the latest scientific revelations
01:23to uncover how these people lived 2,000 years ago.
01:28This is actually a fragment of material from Pompeii.
01:32It's all been handmade.
01:34And the shocking truth of their deaths.
01:36This is his femur of his leg and most of his body material has vaporized.
01:44With the help of these new discoveries, I'm going to explore the stories of five people who lost their lives.
01:50A young boy trapped inside a villa, a soldier strangely found on the beach, an overworked slave,
01:59a young woman with a secret and a man mysteriously cowering in his room when the devastation hit.
02:07Thanks to new geological discoveries, we can track the eruption blow by blow
02:13to see how these people's lives were snatched from them.
02:2879 AD
02:30For four days in autumn, the region around Mount Vesuvius has been hit by increasing earth tremors.
02:40No one realized that this was a warning, that an eruption was imminent.
02:45Among them, a 20-year-old woman living in the town of Herculaneum.
02:53Forensic analysis has revealed amazing details of her life.
02:58Can you tell how she chose to dress her hair that morning?
03:01Yes, we can see this.
03:03A melted iron hair comb has preserved traces of her hair,
03:07plaited as was fashionable for higher-class Roman women.
03:11But even so, she had a terrible case of nits.
03:16So she's scratching there, because it's sort of driving her mad.
03:20Yes, exactly this.
03:23But there's something else.
03:24In just a month's time, she was expecting her first child.
03:29This is the femur, six centimetres long,
03:36corresponding to a fetus of about eight months.
03:40So she could have given birth very, very soon.
03:44Yes, one month.
03:46She would never know that she was carrying a baby girl.
03:54The disruption of the earthquakes must have been a huge problem
03:58for these bustling market towns whose economy depended on trade.
04:03But on a normal day,
04:05our young pregnant woman might have chosen to prepare
04:09for the impending arrival of her newborn.
04:14Which could have involved a lot of shopping.
04:17And Herculaneum was certainly rammed with shops.
04:22There was everything available,
04:24from perfume and ironmongery
04:26to all kinds of Mediterranean delicacies.
04:31These are the streets that our young pregnant woman
04:34would have known really well.
04:38A wine merchant's advertising
04:41has survived across 2,000 years.
04:45The town looks pretty neat and tidy now.
04:50But there was a real problem with littering
04:52and rubbish being left on these streets.
04:54And we know that because of an inscription here.
05:00If anyone wants to throw away dung in this place,
05:05he is warned that it is not permitted to throw it.
05:10If anyone provides intelligence about this,
05:15freeborn people are made to pay a fine
05:17and slaves are to be punished
05:19by being beaten on their backsides.
05:25It's just a hint
05:27of how frenetic this place was.
05:31So imagine these streets
05:33absolutely buzzing,
05:35packed with people and produce
05:37a bit more like this downtown street in Naples.
05:40So I am channeling my inner ancient Roman
05:43and going in search of some of the supplies
05:46they recommended for pregnancy.
05:50There was plenty of Roman medical advice around
05:53that our pregnant woman might have been aware of.
05:56Some of it sensible,
05:57some of it pretty out there.
06:01For morning sickness,
06:03oh my goodness, I needed help with that,
06:05a day's fast was recommended,
06:07followed by a rub down with olive oil,
06:09which sounds lovely,
06:10and then very easily digestible food.
06:13So boiled eggs
06:14and a kind of porridge
06:15and water
06:16with no wine allowed.
06:18Ciao, ciao.
06:21If she'd hoped for a boy baby,
06:24then she might follow the advice
06:26of Pliny the Elder himself
06:28to eat...
06:36Mm, clearly a bit less cool for them these days.
06:45OK, no problem.
06:46Thank you.
06:47Ciao.
06:47Bye.
06:49We know that our pregnant woman
06:50was going to have a daughter,
06:52so maybe Cockerell's testicles
06:55weren't on her list.
07:01At eight months pregnant
07:03in preparation for the birth,
07:05you could order up little strips of wool
07:08to cover your female parts,
07:10sea sponges to dampen your faces
07:13to wipe up any mess,
07:15or swaddling bandages for babies.
07:17And then on the day of the birth itself,
07:19there was this advice.
07:23Inflation Woolway,
07:24Fimum Aprunum Sui Lumue,
07:26For inflations of the uterus,
07:27it is found a good plan
07:28to apply wild boar's dung
07:30or swine's dung
07:31topically with oil.
07:34But a more effectual remedy
07:35is to dry the dung
07:36and sprinkle it in the patient's drink.
07:42I just suspect
07:44that is only something
07:45a man would write
07:46knowing he would never
07:47have to drink wild boar dung.
07:52But one less controversial item
07:55for the expectant mum
07:56has miraculously survived
07:59here in Herculaneum.
08:05Oh, perfect.
08:06Oh, my goodness.
08:09Okay.
08:10So, one thing that every parent needed
08:13is stored in here.
08:15And I just should emphasize
08:16that it's incredible
08:18that I've been given access
08:20to this place
08:20because here are totally
08:22unique treasures.
08:32What you're looking at
08:34is a 2,000-year-old crib
08:38for a baby.
08:40It's made of wood
08:41and it survived
08:42because the heat here
08:44was so ferocious
08:45it flash burnt.
08:47Anything that was made of wood.
08:49And there's actually been
08:50a chemical reaction.
08:51So, it's carbonized.
08:53The minerals have actually
08:54physically changed
08:55their chemical compound.
08:57So, you can see
08:58it's got this kind of
08:59sheen on it.
09:01So, this crib has survived
09:03and this would be
09:04exactly the kind of thing
09:06our poor, young, pregnant woman
09:08would have thought
09:09that she'd have needed.
09:11And it's just one
09:13of dozens of wooden objects
09:15that, amazingly,
09:17have been preserved
09:18by the eruption.
09:19Each one,
09:20a prized personal possession
09:22of one of Vesuvius' victims.
09:27So, bland food,
09:30cockerel testicles
09:31and a crib.
09:32What else?
09:34Oh, yeah.
09:35Something for herself.
09:36For that amazing hair.
09:39But I don't mean
09:40a visit to the salon.
09:42I'm thinking of something
09:43more medicinal.
09:46And for those annoying lice,
09:48one Greek doctor at the time
09:49recommended eating garlic
09:51and putting honey on your hair.
09:53Greek honey, of course.
09:55Ciao.
09:57Or there was always
09:58one of these.
10:00A knit comb.
10:01The ancient knit combs
10:03from Pompeii and Herculaneum
10:04are exactly the same design
10:06as the ones
10:07that we still use today.
10:1310 o'clock in the morning
10:15on the day of the eruption.
10:17The earthquakes are getting worse.
10:23A few miles from Herculaneum
10:26stood the town of Pompeii.
10:28Here,
10:29in one of its most luxurious houses,
10:31surrounded by gardens,
10:33water features
10:34and brightly coloured wall paintings,
10:37lived a little boy
10:38under five years old.
10:42His body was discovered
10:43close to that of a man,
10:45a woman
10:45and another small child
10:47who'd taken shelter
10:48in a stairwell.
10:50Possibly,
10:51they were his family.
10:55The bodies of the little boy
10:57and his family
10:57had been preserved
10:58in a way that is unique
10:59to the victims of Pompeii,
11:01as plaster casts.
11:06After the eruption,
11:07they were buried
11:08in volcanic ash.
11:10Their flesh rotted away,
11:12leaving cavities in the ash.
11:15Archaeologists then
11:16filled these cavities
11:17with plaster.
11:20The result
11:21is accurate plaster copies
11:23of the victims,
11:24exactly as they died.
11:27For our little boy,
11:29let's try to imagine
11:31how this last day,
11:32the day of the eruption,
11:34might have begun.
11:36Our little boy
11:37would have started
11:38his morning
11:38as probably every child
11:40has through time
11:41of protesting
11:42about being washed
11:43and dressed.
11:44But because this was
11:45a really wealthy family,
11:47they would almost certainly
11:48have used some
11:49pretty fancy
11:50bathroom products.
11:51We've got recipes
11:52from the times,
11:53so we know that
11:53the Pompeians used pumice
11:55to clean their teeth
11:56and they even imported
11:57urine from Portugal
11:59as a teeth whitener.
12:01His mum's face cream
12:02would have been made
12:03with sensible things
12:04like honey and resin
12:05and barley and eggs
12:07but then some slightly
12:08more unusual ingredients
12:09like chicken fat
12:10or ground deer antler.
12:15And we know
12:17from some of the most
12:17popular poets
12:19in Rome
12:19that it was thought
12:20really important
12:21that women
12:22should keep clean
12:23and sweet smelling.
12:28Do not let your armpits
12:30reek like a goat.
12:31Do not let your teeth
12:35turn black through laziness.
12:38But wash out your mouth
12:40every morning.
12:43So that told her.
12:46Now, we can't know
12:48what the adult woman
12:49found with the little boy
12:50smelt like
12:51but we do know
12:52that she was
12:53super glamorous.
12:55Her body was found
12:56heavy with jewellery
12:58including this
12:59a solid golden bracelet.
13:02It's decorated
13:04with a picture
13:04of Selene
13:05the goddess of the moon
13:07wearing a veil of stars
13:08and flanked
13:09by two snakes.
13:12Next,
13:13time for our little boy
13:14to get dressed.
13:15And fascinating
13:17new research
13:17reveals the details
13:19of exactly
13:20what he wore.
13:22The little boy's cast
13:24has just been 3D scanned
13:26so we can tell
13:27really precisely
13:28what he was wearing
13:29on that morning.
13:30And it's this very short tunic
13:31that finishes
13:32well above the knee.
13:34But then,
13:35look at it
13:35from another angle.
13:37We can tell
13:37that the cloth
13:38has been tied up
13:39on his left-hand shoulder.
13:41But look at his back.
13:43It's got rucked up.
13:45and as a mum
13:46you just want to
13:47tug it down
13:48and help him out.
13:51Remarkably,
13:52we now also know
13:53what his tunic
13:54was made of.
13:55The material's been
13:56analysed microscopically
13:57and we know
13:59that it's made
14:00of linen.
14:01This is actually
14:02a fragment of material
14:03from Pompeii.
14:04You can see
14:05it's all been handmade.
14:06You can see
14:07the kind of weft
14:07and the warp there.
14:09Linen was really
14:10common in Pompeii.
14:12It was worn by
14:12well-to-do people
14:13because it was a material
14:15that allowed your skin
14:16to breathe
14:17and to keep you cool.
14:18So we know
14:19that that little boy
14:20got dressed this morning
14:21as he always
14:22would have done
14:23not knowing
14:24that it was going
14:25to be his last day alive.
14:29Whatever the plans
14:30were for his day
14:31suddenly
14:32everything changed.
14:36Around 11 o'clock
14:37in the morning
14:37there was the hiss
14:39of an explosion
14:39and a cloud of ash
14:41appeared above
14:42Mount Vesuvius.
14:44To take me through
14:45the evidence
14:46for the eruption
14:46is geologist
14:48Professor Chris Jackson.
14:50It's actually
14:50a relatively small
14:52eruption.
14:53A blast of ash
14:54comes out.
14:55Before the big one?
14:56Before the big one,
14:57yeah.
14:58That's interesting
14:59because you don't
15:00I mean well
15:00with the records
15:01that we've got
15:01that survived
15:02you don't hear about that
15:03nobody's writing about it.
15:04No, so exactly
15:05this is one of the time
15:06when the geological record
15:07comes to our aid
15:08because what we find here
15:09east of Vesuvius
15:11are ash deposits
15:12associated with
15:13that smaller
15:14initial eruption.
15:15But I mean my goodness
15:16if that's happening
15:17there's no way
15:18the people in Pompeii
15:20and Herculeanium
15:20aren't going to notice
15:22that something's going on.
15:23It would have been
15:23a very, very worrying time.
15:29Just imagine the shock.
15:31Vesuvius hadn't shown
15:32any sign of activity
15:33for hundreds of years.
15:35Most people thought
15:36it was a mountain
15:36and now that mountain
15:38had exploded.
15:52The explosion
15:53would have triggered
15:54chaos and panic
15:55for all those
15:56we're following.
15:57The streets
15:58would have been filled
15:59with people pushing
16:00and shoving
16:00and panicking
16:01while some thought
16:02the best strategy
16:03was to hunker down
16:04and try to brave it out.
16:09None of those
16:10unfollowing left
16:12but it would prove
16:13a fatal mistake.
16:15The first explosion
16:16was only the starting gun.
16:19Unknown to them
16:20these people
16:21had just one hour left.
16:23Then
16:24close to noon
16:26Vesuvius erupted.
16:34The top of the volcano
16:36has been blown off.
16:37It's actually fragmenting
16:38and forming pumice
16:39and we can see these bits
16:40flying out of the volcano here.
16:42I'll tell you actually
16:43what's really clear
16:44from this as well
16:45is that Herculaneum
16:46is closer
16:47but it seems that Pompeii
16:48is getting the main hit.
16:50Exactly.
16:50Because of the
16:51atmospheric conditions
16:52the wind direction
16:53at the time of the eruption
16:54as we fly up
16:55into the cloud
16:56you can imagine
16:57the whole of the sun
16:58would have been
16:59blotted out
17:00by this column of ash
17:01which rose up to
17:02about 10 miles
17:03into the atmosphere.
17:05So these poor
17:06poor people
17:07so it's pretty much
17:08pitch black
17:09they've got
17:10even if the pumice
17:10is quite light
17:11they're still being
17:12pelted
17:13with millions
17:14of rocks of pumice
17:15and they're
17:16desperately working out
17:17how to try to escape.
17:18Yeah, you either
17:19decide to escape
17:20or you actually
17:21decide to stay
17:22inside your house.
17:24Have you been
17:25next to a volcano
17:27when it's erupted, Chris?
17:28I have been fortunate
17:29or unfortunate enough
17:30to be near volcanoes
17:31when they erupt.
17:32You can feel
17:33the blast of the eruption
17:35you get pelted
17:36with ash
17:36you can smell
17:38the volcanic glasses.
17:39And what does it
17:40sound like?
17:41It sounds like
17:42nothing I've ever heard
17:42before in my entire life
17:44it's just a loud
17:45booming noise
17:45so almost like
17:46heavy artillery
17:47being let off.
17:49For the people
17:50I'm following
17:50it must have felt
17:52like the end
17:52of the world.
17:53They were now
17:54in a race
17:55to save themselves
17:56and their loved ones.
18:02Although he couldn't
18:03have imagined it
18:04there was one victim
18:05who would die
18:06a hero
18:07as this catastrophic
18:08day unfolded.
18:11A battle-scarred
18:12veteran soldier.
18:15He's got a limp
18:16and a slightly
18:17kind of whistly
18:18voice.
18:19The possessions
18:20he was carrying
18:21high-end weaponry
18:23a lot of cash
18:24and a whole
18:25carpenter's toolkit
18:26point to him
18:28being a military
18:29carpenter
18:29of the emperor's
18:30Praetorian fleet
18:32based at
18:33nearby Missenum.
18:36I'm standing
18:37on the headland
18:38right above
18:38ancient Missenum
18:39just across the bay
18:40from Vesuvius
18:41where the fleet
18:42and around
18:4310,000 troops
18:44almost certainly
18:45including our soldier
18:46were based.
18:49The one written
18:50account of the eruption
18:51that we have
18:52is by Pliny the Younger
18:54the nephew
18:55of the fleet's admiral.
18:56Writing from Missenum
18:58he got the same
18:59apocalyptic view
19:00of the eruption
19:01that our soldier
19:02could well have
19:03experienced.
19:05It was like an umbrella
19:07pine rising out
19:08of the ground
19:09a trunk
19:10splitting off
19:11into branches
19:12some areas
19:13were white
19:13others were murky
19:15depending on how much
19:17ash had been carried
19:18in its blast.
19:20I mean
19:21can you imagine
19:22the fear
19:23they must have felt?
19:27But
19:28seen from Herculaneum
19:29in the shadow
19:30of the volcano
19:31the cloud of debris
19:33must have been
19:33truly terrifying.
19:43Just think of
19:44our young pregnant woman
19:45desperately trying
19:47to protect herself
19:47and her unborn trials.
19:50All that could have
19:51been on her mind
19:51was that she needed
19:52to get out
19:53or take cover.
19:57She and nearly
19:59everyone else
20:00in the town
20:00had the same idea.
20:01We know that
20:02they headed for the docks
20:04which offered
20:05the possibility
20:05of escape.
20:09Can you imagine
20:10the wave of relief
20:11that our young
20:12pregnant woman felt
20:14once she'd made it
20:14down here
20:15because these things
20:16are a bit like
20:17a bomb shelter
20:17and built with
20:18incredibly thick walls
20:20and roof
20:21so maybe
20:22just maybe
20:23she relaxed
20:24for one moment
20:25thinking that
20:26at last
20:26she was safe.
20:29Initially
20:30she was
20:31because
20:33high altitude winds
20:34were blowing
20:35the cloud of pumice
20:36and ash
20:36away from her town
20:38Herculaneum
20:39and towards Pompeii
20:41but there was
20:42at least one person
20:43in Herculaneum
20:44who didn't follow
20:46the crowds
20:46down to the docks
20:47and he's
20:48the last of the people
20:50whose story
20:50I want to uncover.
20:52He was discovered
20:53by archaeologists
20:54in rather
20:56mysterious
20:57circumstances.
20:59This is the
21:00Augustalium
21:01a kind of
21:01state-recognised
21:03members club.
21:04This one was
21:05founded in honour
21:06of the Emperor
21:06Augustus Caesar.
21:08It was for very
21:09influential people
21:10in the town
21:10but what makes
21:11this special
21:12is that the
21:12members here
21:13were mainly
21:14freedmen
21:15so men
21:16who'd formerly
21:16been slaves.
21:23I think you can
21:25really feel
21:25the purpose
21:26and energy
21:27of this place
21:28because the people
21:29who met here
21:30had a real
21:31sense of civic
21:32pride.
21:33We know
21:34from inscriptions
21:34that they paid
21:36for public
21:36buildings
21:37and artworks
21:38for the town
21:39and even
21:40funded things
21:40like gladiatorial
21:42games.
21:43At the centre
21:45of this
21:45pillared hall
21:46stands a shrine.
21:48Hard to believe,
21:49isn't it,
21:49that it was painted
21:502,000 years ago.
21:53These colours
21:54are just
21:55incredible.
21:57So this is
21:59a shrine
22:00to Hercules,
22:01the kind of
22:02action man
22:03superhero
22:03of the ancient
22:04worlds,
22:05and he was
22:05really important
22:06to Herculaneum.
22:07The story went
22:08that he'd actually
22:09founded the city
22:10and given it
22:11its name.
22:12That's Hercules
22:12up there
22:13with the goddesses
22:13Minerva and Juno.
22:15And it is so
22:17beautiful,
22:17this is so special,
22:19but there's something
22:21around here
22:21I have got
22:22to show you.
22:24The real secret
22:26here is that
22:27it's also the final
22:28resting place
22:29of another victim
22:30of Vesuvius.
22:35Honestly,
22:35I am so lucky,
22:37guys,
22:37to get access in here
22:40because people
22:40are never
22:40normally allowed in.
22:42So just get a sense
22:43of where we are.
22:44So the shrine's
22:45to my right there
22:46and this is this
22:46slightly strange,
22:48mysterious room
22:49with bars on the windows.
22:51And there's something
22:52remarkable inside.
23:00OK,
23:01so just so you can
23:03understand what
23:03you're looking at,
23:04this in the corner
23:06of the room
23:06is a bed
23:07and this is the
23:08original wood
23:09around the edge.
23:11But in the middle
23:12there are the remains
23:13of a body
23:15and we know
23:16this was a man.
23:18There are just
23:19enough remains
23:19to make out
23:21that he laid here.
23:23Who is this man,
23:24though?
23:24It's all slightly odd.
23:26It doesn't quite add up
23:27because this is
23:28is a pretty posh room
23:29but you've got bars
23:30on the window there.
23:32So maybe he was
23:33some kind of a caretaker.
23:35This could have been
23:36a treasury
23:36to the club.
23:40As the eruption began,
23:42he may have heard
23:43commotion in the street
23:44outside as people
23:45rushed past
23:46in panic
23:47to the docks.
23:50He certainly chose
23:51not to go down
23:52with the other people
23:53at the port
23:54so maybe he just felt
23:56it was his duty
23:57to stay.
24:02At this point
24:03in Herculaneum,
24:04only a light dusting
24:05of ash was falling
24:06on the streets
24:07outside
24:07so he may have
24:09felt protected.
24:11The eruption
24:12would have been watched
24:13at a safe distance
24:14by our soldier
24:15and the rest
24:16of the fleet,
24:17including its admiral,
24:19Pliny the Elder,
24:20a distinguished military man
24:22who also had
24:23a really keen interest
24:24in nature.
24:26Pliny the Elder
24:27was ever more intrigued
24:29by the strange plume
24:30emerging from the volcano
24:32and being a man of science,
24:34he decided
24:35to order up a ship
24:36so he could go
24:37to investigate.
24:40But just before he set off,
24:42an urgent message arrived
24:43from a female friend of his
24:44who lived near Vesuvius,
24:46begging him
24:47to come to rescue her.
24:48Suddenly,
24:49an interesting scientific phenomenon
24:50had become a crisis
24:51so he ordered back up.
24:54Pozo.
24:56And it's at this point
24:58that we think
24:59our soldier
24:59enters the story.
25:01On board one of Pliny's ships,
25:03launched to take part
25:05in one of the most daring
25:06rescue missions
25:07of the ancient world.
25:11The Duke at Padriremes,
25:13the Admiral,
25:14gave orders
25:14for the warships
25:15to be launched
25:17and came on board himself
25:18with the intention
25:20of bringing help,
25:22steering straight
25:23to the danger.
25:28The evidence
25:29of his belongings
25:30suggests our soldier
25:32was a specialist
25:33military carpenter
25:34in the fleet
25:34and that he carried
25:36his tools
25:36ready for any repairs
25:38that might be needed.
25:43Around this afternoon,
25:44he'd have set off
25:45with the fleet
25:45across the Bay of Naples,
25:47but already
25:48the boat
25:49was being bombarded
25:50with pumice
25:51and ash
25:51and burning rock
25:52so he might have
25:53had to use
25:54his carpentry skills.
25:55Now,
25:56pumice actually floats
25:57in the water
25:58and it forms
25:59these kind of
26:00thick shoals
26:01like rafts
26:01that would have
26:02banged up
26:02against the hull
26:03of the boat.
26:04For the sailors,
26:05it must have been
26:06terrifying.
26:10The ships
26:11were around
26:1140 metres long
26:13but even
26:14with over
26:14200 oarsmen,
26:15they only travelled
26:16at eight knots,
26:18taking three and a half
26:19hours to reach
26:20the other side
26:20of the bay,
26:21so it was probably
26:22late in the afternoon
26:23by the time
26:24they got there
26:25and conditions
26:26were deteriorating
26:28rapidly.
26:32Minute by minute,
26:34the pumice fall
26:34was getting heavier
26:35and the visibility
26:36would have been
26:37getting worse
26:37and worse.
26:38By the time
26:39they approached
26:40the coast,
26:41it was almost
26:42as dark
26:42as night.
26:47warships this size
26:48were too large
26:49to dock
26:50at the seaside town
26:51of Herculaneum.
26:52So how could they
26:54reach the thousands
26:55of desperate civilians
26:56hoping for rescue?
26:58A clue's been found
26:59on the beach.
27:03Close to where
27:04the soldier was discovered,
27:06archaeologists
27:07found this.
27:10It's a boat
27:11that capsized
27:12and then was
27:12thrown up
27:13onto the beach.
27:14Now,
27:15we know it's not
27:16just an ordinary
27:16fishing boat
27:17because this is
27:18an official
27:18naval design,
27:20so it feels
27:21pretty certain
27:22to me
27:22that this is
27:23a boat
27:24employed
27:24on that
27:25rescue mission.
27:30Boats like this
27:31could have been
27:32launched
27:33from the large
27:33warships
27:34and given
27:35his special
27:36set of skills,
27:37our soldier
27:38was perfectly
27:38placed to aid
27:39the rescue mission.
27:41He may have
27:41been on the beach
27:42itself
27:43helping with
27:43the evacuation
27:44as our pregnant
27:45woman desperately
27:46waited in line.
27:51In Pompeii,
27:53the fall of
27:54volcanic debris
27:54was much more
27:55severe than it
27:56was in Herculaneum.
27:58The ash cloud
27:59was being blown
28:00in Pompeii's direction.
28:02rocks and pumice
28:04rained down
28:05relentlessly,
28:06clogging the roads
28:07and smashing
28:07in roofs.
28:09Half a mile
28:10outside Pompeii
28:11lies a villa,
28:13Cavita Giuliana.
28:15Two human bodies
28:17were found here,
28:18one that
28:19of a young man.
28:21Video,
28:22taken at the time
28:23of the excavation,
28:24reveals how a
28:25plaster cast
28:26of his body
28:26was made.
28:28Archaeologists
28:29discovered a cavity
28:30in the ground
28:31where his flesh
28:32once was
28:32before it
28:33rotted away.
28:35They removed
28:36the bones
28:36then filled in
28:37the cavity
28:38with plaster
28:38which was then
28:39carefully chipped
28:41out of the ash
28:41to reveal
28:43an accurate
28:44plaster copy
28:45of his body.
28:48His spine
28:49shows evidence
28:50of carrying
28:50heavy loads
28:51so he was
28:53possibly a slave.
28:55The evidence
28:56also suggests
28:57that the villa
28:58was a farm.
28:59Our slave
29:00may have worked
29:01in the fields
29:02perhaps tending
29:03a crop of grapes
29:04to make the
29:05Pompeian wines
29:06that were famous
29:07across the empire.
29:09In the stables
29:10a horse
29:11was found
29:12saddled up
29:13as though ready
29:13to make a break
29:14for it.
29:15The animals
29:16must have been
29:17wild with panic.
29:21There were huge
29:23sheets of fire
29:24and leaping flames
29:26shining through
29:27the dark night
29:28in long
29:29as flammarum
29:30figuras
29:30they scaven.
29:32The position
29:33of the men's
29:34corpses
29:34suggests
29:35they'd sought
29:36shelter
29:36in a basement
29:37passageway
29:38deciding to
29:39wait here
29:40for the
29:40bombardment
29:40to end.
29:42A decision
29:43that was
29:43to prove
29:44fatal
29:45because things
29:46now took a
29:47turn for the
29:48worse.
29:51So around 8pm
29:53in the evening
29:53things really
29:54really kick off
29:55and we actually
29:55have this
29:56acceleration
29:57in material
29:58coming out
29:59of the volcano
30:00and at this
30:01point
30:01this column
30:02of ash
30:03is reaching
30:03about 20
30:04miles up
30:05into the
30:05atmosphere.
30:0620 miles?
30:0720 miles!
30:08I mean that's
30:09just so terrible!
30:10Yeah, all of
30:11this material
30:11is raining
30:12down upon
30:13Pompeii.
30:15Can you
30:15hear each other?
30:16If people are
30:17calling out for
30:17help
30:18would their
30:19voices have
30:20carried?
30:20The volcano
30:21itself will
30:22make a noise
30:22when it erupts
30:23but then after
30:23that it will
30:24be maybe just
30:24the pitter-patter
30:25of ash
30:26falling down
30:26but just
30:26the general
30:27chaos
30:28amongst the
30:29population
30:29it is that
30:30which will
30:31be the
30:31noise
30:31which makes
30:32it difficult
30:32for people
30:33to communicate
30:33with each
30:34other.
30:34And this
30:35is going
30:35on for
30:35hours.
30:36So that's
30:37hours worth
30:37of fear.
30:38Yeah, so
30:39Pompeii's really
30:39in the firing
30:40line here.
30:41We have ash
30:42both kind of
30:43small particles
30:43but also big
30:44bombs raining
30:45down on the
30:45city.
30:46The roads
30:47would have
30:47been coated
30:47with this
30:48material but
30:49also the
30:49roofs of the
30:50houses will
30:50be getting
30:51increasingly
30:52battered by
30:52this fallout
30:53from the
30:53volcanic column.
30:55Totally, totally
30:56petrifying.
30:57Exactly, and
30:57you have no
30:58idea when this
30:58volcano is going
30:59to stop erupting
31:00either.
31:00So you have no
31:01idea whether or
31:02not you should
31:03stay and hunker
31:04down and look
31:04after yourselves
31:05in your houses
31:06or whether you
31:06should try and
31:07plan your
31:07escape.
31:12As night
31:12fell, Vesuvius
31:14continued to
31:15spew out vast
31:16quantities of
31:16rock.
31:18In Pompeii, our
31:20little boy was
31:20hunkered down
31:21inside of one of
31:22the town's
31:23grandest houses.
31:25The adult woman
31:26was found with a
31:27lot of cash on
31:27her, surely
31:28waiting for the
31:29chance to make a
31:30break for it.
31:33As Vesuvius
31:34erupted, the
31:35family must have
31:36been speechless
31:37with terror.
31:38I mean, material
31:38is coming out of
31:39the volcano at
31:40around 500 miles
31:42an hour, but we
31:43don't know why
31:44they didn't leave.
31:44Were they trying
31:45to save the
31:46beauty in their
31:46home, or were
31:47they just desperately
31:48trying to find
31:49somewhere to
31:50shelter?
31:56We know from
31:57the positions of
31:57their remains that
31:59as time drew on,
32:00the little boy
32:01and other victims
32:02sought safety in a
32:03stairwell.
32:05The eruption had
32:07started around
32:07noon and kept
32:09spewing out
32:10pumice and
32:11scalding ash
32:12through the night
32:12and into the
32:13early hours of
32:14the next day.
32:15Pompeii and the
32:16surrounding
32:17countryside were
32:17now covered in
32:18three metres of
32:19volcanic debris.
32:21Then, at around
32:23four o'clock in
32:24the morning, the
32:25assault stopped.
32:29At last,
32:30for some, a chance
32:32to get out.
32:37This is an area in
32:39the city known as
32:40the Garden of the
32:41Fugitives, because
32:43thirteen bodies of
32:44fleeing victims were
32:45found here, now
32:47captured as castes.
32:51having made a run
32:52for it, they'd been
32:54stopped in their
32:55tracks.
32:56But if they died
32:58after the
32:59bombardment, what
33:01exactly killed
33:02them?
33:04It was a new and
33:07deadly phenomenon.
33:09This huge column of
33:10ash had built up in
33:12the atmosphere, and
33:13now it starts to
33:14collapse because it
33:14can't be supported
33:15anymore by material
33:17coming out of the
33:17volcano, and that
33:19generates something
33:19called a pyroclastic
33:20flow.
33:21So it's basically
33:22that, collapsing
33:23down the side of the
33:24mountain.
33:25So as it collapses
33:26down, the ash, the
33:27rocks, the gases are
33:28all brought with it,
33:29and they are
33:29travelling very, very
33:30quickly, so several
33:31tens of miles an
33:32hour, maybe even a
33:33few hundred miles an
33:34hour, and it's hot
33:35several hundreds of
33:36degrees Celsius.
33:37So you can imagine
33:38if this hits one of
33:40these towns, then
33:41it's going to be bad
33:41news for anybody
33:42there.
33:44A few minutes after
33:46the column of ash
33:46collapsed, a mighty
33:49pyroclastic flow
33:50barrelled down the
33:51side of the mountain
33:52straight towards
33:53Herculaneum and our
33:54soldier, our pregnant
33:56woman, and our
33:57caretaker.
33:59And it was this
34:00caretaker, who seems
34:02to have been resident
34:03in one of the town's
34:04meeting places, who
34:05was in the front
34:06line, apparently
34:08taking refuge in a
34:09side room.
34:12All that we know
34:13about him is that in
34:14those final moments,
34:15he chose to throw
34:16himself down and lie
34:17with his face buried
34:18into the bed, maybe
34:20praying to Hercules,
34:21maybe just desperately
34:22trying to get some
34:23refuge from that hot
34:24gas and ash.
34:29In an instant, this
34:31building was engulfed as
34:33volcanic debris poured
34:34in through the windows.
34:36We know it became
34:37hotter than an oven.
34:40What little remains of
34:42this man's body reveals
34:43just how intense the
34:45heat was.
34:46This is his femur of
34:48his leg and most of
34:50his body material has
34:51vaporised, but the fat
34:53has left this kind of
34:54stain in the ash and
34:56pumice.
34:58He's lying face down,
35:00and we know that he
35:02suffered extraordinary
35:04heat.
35:04There was a kind of
35:05heat shockwave here
35:07of around 520 degrees
35:09centigrade.
35:10And what that did is it
35:12actually exploded his
35:14skull.
35:17Death would have been
35:19virtually instant.
35:25The pyroclastic flow
35:26raced on, down through
35:28the town, to the docks
35:30where the inhabitants of
35:31the city were still
35:32trying to escape.
35:33One of the people down
35:34here on this beach was
35:35our soldier.
35:37Now, we don't know what
35:38he saw or heard, but we
35:41do know that the force of
35:42the pyroclastic flow
35:43smashed him to the ground,
35:45burning his flesh right
35:47off.
35:50The sea vaporised.
35:52The soldier's exposed
35:54bones were scorched by the
35:56scalding ash.
35:57Black marks show where the
35:59bones were hit directly by
36:00flying, burning debris.
36:04There's nothing he could
36:06have done to save himself.
36:10Nearby in one of these
36:11chambers, our young woman
36:13might have felt the heat
36:15of the pyroclastic flow just
36:17seconds before burning
36:18ash and gas poured through
36:20the doors.
36:23The walls of the chambers
36:25shielded the intense heat.
36:27So, instead of stripping
36:29her flesh, she would have
36:31baked.
36:32Breathing the hot mixture of
36:34gases into her lungs would
36:36have killed her by asphyxiation
36:38in just two breaths.
36:43Herculaneum was covered in
36:45around three metres of hot
36:47ash, but this was just the
36:49first wave.
36:51Within the hour, a second
36:53surge hit the town, burying it
36:55in a further two metres of
36:57ash.
36:57The pyroclastic flows, they
36:59just keep coming.
37:00Yep.
37:01They continue.
37:02There was a third flow here
37:03which almost reached Pompeii.
37:05So, that's interesting.
37:06So, the Kivito Giuliana is just
37:08here in the countryside.
37:09So, that's going to be what took
37:10out those two men and the
37:12horses.
37:12Exactly.
37:16Major new research by Italian
37:18volcanologists and the British
37:20Geological Survey reveals more
37:22details about the flow than ever
37:24before.
37:25We now know that as it
37:27approached Pompeii, it slowed
37:29and cooled dramatically.
37:32We're talking about
37:32temperatures of probably
37:33around about 100 degrees
37:34Celsius.
37:36But even so, does that mean
37:37it's worse for them?
37:39Does that mean it's going to
37:40take people slightly longer
37:41to die?
37:42It means you're not
37:42incinerated, but if you're
37:44being hit by a fast-moving
37:45flow containing gas, which
37:48is 100 degrees Celsius, it's
37:49going to kill you more
37:50slowly.
37:51So, the estimates here are
37:52that some of the people could
37:53have taken about 15 minutes
37:55to die.
37:56Awful.
37:59In Villa Cavita Giuliana, on
38:01the outskirts of Pompeii, our
38:03slave and another man had left
38:05a horse saddled up in the
38:06stables, ready to escape,
38:08while they sheltered in a
38:09passageway in the house.
38:12Around 6.30am, without
38:14warning, they were overwhelmed
38:16by gas and ash swirling at
38:19around 100 degrees.
38:22After many minutes, they died.
38:27The heat was ferocious, but
38:29nothing like it was in
38:30Herculaneum.
38:31So, here, body tissue could
38:34survive long enough for ash to
38:35fall on it and form a kind of
38:37casing, which is why, centuries
38:39later, archaeologists have been
38:41able to make casts like this.
38:46One revealing detail that we have is
38:48the posture of the older man.
38:50He was holding his fists in front
38:52of him, a position often called the
38:55boxer's pose, the body's automatic
38:57response to heat stress.
39:02But Pompeii itself hasn't actually
39:04been hit by a pyroclastic flow, has
39:06it?
39:06No, it's been spared up to this
39:08point, but then there was a fourth,
39:11fifth, and sixth flow.
39:13And as you can see, they went
39:15straight through Pompeii.
39:17So, nobody is going to survive that?
39:19No.
39:19So, the sixth one would have been the
39:21largest one, and in fact, it was so
39:22large that deposits from that flow
39:24were found way over here on the
39:26other side of the Bay of Naples.
39:30The family of our little boy was
39:31found sheltering in the stairwell.
39:33He was a metre or so away, somehow
39:36separated.
39:38We now know that in temperatures of
39:41100 degrees, these victims of
39:43Pompeii would have endured close on
39:4615 minutes of boiling hot ash before
39:50they finally died.
39:53It seems our family group suffered the
39:56same terrible fate as those two men.
39:59The mother, with the little child's
40:02brother or sister on her lap,
40:03But our little boy died alone.
40:12The sixth and final pyroclastic flow
40:15still had enough energy in it to come
40:17hurtling across the water here, and
40:19Pliny the Younger described what he
40:21saw.
40:25I looked around.
40:27A dense cloud was spreading across the
40:29earth like a flood.
40:31Darkness fell, not the dark of a
40:33moonless light, but as though a lamp
40:35had been extinguished.
40:37You could hear the screams of women,
40:39the cries of children, and the shouts
40:41of men, all calling out for their
40:43families desperately, trying to
40:45recognize them by their voices.
40:52The eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD expended the
40:56energy of 100,000 atomic bombs.
41:01Since then, it's erupted several times and
41:04is now monitored 24 hours a day by sensors
41:07around the crater.
41:10Over 2 million people, including the whole
41:14population of Naples, live within Vesuvius'
41:17range.
41:20Fortunately for them, they can rely on
41:22scientists to identify the danger signs of an
41:25eruption.
41:25Back in 79 AD, the only people who
41:30survived were those who had an instinct to
41:32get out before Vesuvius exploded.
41:36But there were plenty of those who did.
41:42Our poor victims suffered desperate ends.
41:47But theirs isn't the only story.
41:50Most people from Pompeii and Herculaneum actually
41:54managed to escape, and many of them ended up
41:57here in central Naples, in what was the
41:59ancient city of Neapolis.
42:01Now, we know that because we have their names
42:05in written records and on stone inscriptions.
42:08And many of those families lived here for
42:11generations.
42:12So, it could just be that the descendants of
42:17the survivors of Vesuvius are still walking
42:20these streets today.
42:22We will 너�entes.
42:26Yeah.
42:27Can we go!
42:28Go!
42:29Go!
42:30Go!
42:31Go!
42:31Go!
42:32Go!
42:33Go!
42:36Go!
42:41Go!
42:43Go!
42:44Go!
42:48Go!
43:00Ευχαριστώ.