30 INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT POMPEII AND MOUNT VESUVIUS

1.The city and people of Pompeii did not know that Vesuvius was a volcano, as it hadn’t
erupted in 1,800 years.
2.It was extimated that just over 13% of the total population of Pompeii died in the initial
blast. A population of around 15,000 people and an estimated 2,000 died.
3.Pompeii was originally settled around the 7th century BC by the Oscan people who were
descendants of the Neolithic inhabitants of Campania (the region of southern Italy). The port city
was in a prime location for trade as well as farming. The rich volcanic soil from earlier eruptions of
Vesuvius created prime farmland for grapes and olive trees.

4.Pompeii is so well preserved because the city was buried so quickly by volcanic ash and it
now provides snapshots of past life in a Roman city
5.Mount Vesuvius erupted destroying Pompeii shortly after noon on the 24th of August.
 6.Pliny described the eruption as follows, “It resembled a (Mediterranean) pine more than
any other tree. Like a very high tree the cloud went high and expanded in different
branches….sometimes white, sometimes dark and stained by the sustained sand and ashes.”
7.The Ancient city of Pompeii was not discovered until 1748, when workers stumbled upon it
while building King Charles III Palace.
8.Before the eruption of 79 AD there was not even a word for Volcano, which was created
afterwards. Volcano derives from the word Vulcan - the Roman God of the Flame and Metal
Forgery.
9.At a height of 1,281 metres high and estimated age of 17,000 years it's said that Mount
Vesuvius has erupted over 50 times.
10.The Ruins of Pompeii are visited by over 2.6 million people per year.