For the people of Pompeii the world reached a horrific end in the Autumn of 79 AD. The only surviving eyewitness account of the event consists of two letters written by Pliny the Younger (who was 17 at the time of the eruption) to the Roman historian Tacitus some 25 years later. Observing the first volcanic activity from across the Bay of Naples 29 kilometers away, Pliny the Elder (his uncle) launched a rescue fleet immediately - while Pliny the Younger stayed behind. He wrote of a extraordinary dense cloud rising above mount Vesuvius. His words describe a pine-tree with spreading branches which was sometimes bright and sometimes dark and spotted - impregnated with earth and cinders. After three tremors the sea rolled back upon itself. Flashes appeared through dark clouds and ash fell like a blanket of snow.

Meanwhile for Pliny the Elder things were taking a turn for the worse. As commander fo the Roman fleet at Misenum he went to investigate the phenomenon at close range. He ordered the fleet galleys to evacuate the people on the coast. As he neared the other side of the bay he encountered thick showers of hot cinders, lumps of pumice and pieces of rock. Ignoring the helmsman to turn back Pliny insisted that Fortune favors the brave and continued to Stabiae - a town about 4.5km from Pompeii. Very soon they realized the strong onshore wind prevented any ships from leaving. Pliny and his party saw flames shooting from parts of the mountain - presumed to be burning villages. Forced to stay overnight the crew attempted to approach the beach with pillows tied to their heads to protect from rockfall - however the wind had not changed and exhausted Pliny sat down on a sail for a rest to never stand again.

The remains of a man and a woman were recovered from the Casa del Fabbro or Craftsmans House in 1933. Here is a detailed image showing the actual remains and how they were found (Photo from Notizie degli Scavi di Antichita, 1934, p. 286, fig. 10). They were found slumped in the corner of the dining room as it having a meal. The man was about 35-40 years old and the woman about 50. Despite a volcanic explosion, thermal shock and ash it was now for the first time possible to extract DNA from these remains which are highlighted in this DNA Spotlight. There were gaps in the DNA of the woman but the man yielded an entire genome sequence - the first time this has ever been possible at Pompeii. It turns out these residents likely stayed at home unable to run away from their impending fate as DNA sequences show the man had tuberculosis and the woman had been affected by osteoarthritis.

1044 casts have been made from impressions of bodies at Pompeii so far - 38 percent of these were found in ash fall deposits and mostly inside buildings. The remaining victims outside were likely killed in the pyroclastic surge deposits. The first pyroclastic surge which reached Pompeii brought temperatures of 300 degrees celcius which would killed within a fraction of a second. The Casa del Fabbro is located as shown above quite close to the Great Theatre of Pompeii in the direction of the Amphitheatre. Note the actual date of the eruption is not fully known - originally recorded as the 24th of August 79 in historical records (written 25 years after the event) charcoal inscriptions have been found at the site dated the 17th of October. Furthermore the prevailing beach winds flow to the west away from the beach in August which conflicts with the account of Pliny. Furthermore traces of fruit and braziers found are indicative of Autumn and not Summer.