A new study looks at the effects of plaster on the preserved remains of the Roman city that was wiped out by Mount Vesuvius.
and one cast from the city’s Terme Surbane for anthropological and multielemental analysis. They also compared these bones to cremated bones from a Roman necropolis and ones found in a Spanish Islamic necropolis.“Cross referencing is important for volcanologists and anthropologists. It provides complimentary data [for the] reconstruction of the evidence.
Gianni Gallello measuring Cast #57 by pXRF, together with Llorenç Alapon at Pompeii Archaeological Park. CREDIT: Alapont et al. Using portable X-ray fluorescence, they found that the plaster from Pompeii was completely different from the burned and unburned bones from the collection. Testing out this method for the first time on the Pompeii casts also helped add to theof what killed these specific residents of Pompeii during the eruption. While the plaster contamination makes it more difficult to study, the chemical analysis supports the theory that the victims suffocated from the volcanic ash.
“We don’t pretend to say how they died. What we do is provide more evidence and data to complement and allow theThe team hopes that using noninvasive techniques like this on other archeological finds and cast skeletons will help find better evidence to draw stronger conclusions on the causes of death.
“It’s an honor to work in Pompeii,” says Gallello. “We do work that we love, and for us, it’s not work.”Laura is a science news writer, covering a wide variety of subjects, but she is particularly fascinated by all things aquatic, paleontology, nanotechnology, and exploring how science influences daily life. Laura is a proud former resident of the New Jersey shore, a competitive swimmer, and a fierce defender of the Oxford comma.
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