He Escaped a Deadly Volcano Only to Face an Unfortunate Death

Italian archaeologist recently made a spectacular discovery after they unearthed the skeleton of a man who lived two thousand years ago. The bones were hidden underneath a huge rock in Pompeii, Italy close to Mount Vesuvius which erupted around the time of his death. Although he miraculously escaped the eruption which engulfed the entire city in 79 A.D., he eventually got crushed to death by a huge rock that fell on him.

Volcano that Swallowed Pompeii

2,000 years after he died, Archeologists managed to remove the huge rock from his skeleton which had crushed him to death when the Mount Vesuvius erupted molten lava in 79 A.D. Scientists were astonished to make such an amazing discovery from one of the deadliest natural disasters that ended the lives of 2,000 civilians from the city’s population of 20,000.

Archeologists discovered a skeleton from 2000 years ago buried underneath rock close to Mount Vesuvius in Pompeii, Italy

According to early reports, the man whose skeleton was discovered underneath the volcanic rock was in his early 30’s at the time of death. Investigation also revealed that he had an infection in his leg which made it difficult for him to escape from the spectacular volcanic eruption that swallowed the entire city of Pompeii.

Despite the infection, he ran from the explosion as fast as he could, and although he managed to escape the first eruption, she wasn’t so lucky the next time around when the furious mountain, which had remained dormant for centuries, roared to life once again, spewing ashes and large chunks of rocks till miles away. The survivor, who hadn’t been able to get very far was eventually crushed by a gigantic rock that fell on him.

He had a Bone Infection

Unlike the others who were burned by the lava and died in sheer agony, archeologists say that the condition of his skeleton shows that he experienced immediate and painless death as the rock, hurled through the air by the pressure of volcanic gasses, crushed his skull and thorax in a fraction of a second.

The skeleton’s discovery was announced by the officials from the archeological sites of Pompeii on Tuesday. Along with a detailed report, photographs of the skeleton being retrieved from underneath the giant rock were also released. Archeologists believe that the rock which caused the fatality was used as a door jamb in the old times. The officials said in the report that the jamb was ‘violently thrown by the volcanic cloud, crushing the skull of the man.’

The report also claims that the man’s inability to escape was due to the bone infection in his right leg which made it difficult for him to walk quickly. Although most of the skeleton remained intact underneath the stone, the man’s skull was missing completely. Archeologists say that they are looking for the missing head which is suspected to be buried under the block of stone.

Vesuvius is the only active volcano in Europe which has erupted dozens of times since 79 A.D.

Volcano May Erupt Again

Massimo Osanna, the archeological site’s director released a statement to CNN saying that the skeleton was one of the most exceptional finds of the area which gives researchers missing pieces of the historic puzzle of Pompeii’s civilization. Osanna says that archeological field has evolved over the past few decades and the technological advances of today’s age have enabled the scientists and engineers to use state of the art investigative tools to paint an accurate picture of the archeological site before the eruption.

The discovery was made in Regio V, a section of the archeological site which was recently opened to excavation projects in March and has remained unexplored for decades. Pompeii, located almost 16 miles southeast of the city of Naples, is one of the most popular archeological sites in the world which has attracted scientists and explorers from around the globe.

More eye-opening discoveries such as streets of entire houses were discovered underneath the rocks which has once been molten lava. Some of the houses still had their balconies intact, which will be restored to promote tourism in the area.

Vesuvius has erupted several times since 79 A.D., the most recent incident occurring in 1944 which killed 26 people. Geologists say that it is highly likely that the mountain, which is the only active volcano in Europe, will erupt again in the future and is considered a danger to the nearby cities including Naples.