View of the ornamental fish pond at the House of Julia Felix.

A fine example of a triclinium, or three couch dinning area.

The peristyle in the House of the Golden Cupids.

The heat of the volcanic surge turned yellow paint to red in the House of the Golden Cupids. The remaining yellow was probably sheltered from the highest heat by a buildup of volcanic ash.

Mount Vesuvius sits as peacefully quiet today as it did in the days, weeks and years preceding the 79CE eruption. Explosive volcanoes of this kind require constant monitoring as their eruptions can be sudden and catastrophic.

Moonlight view of Pompeii with the silhouette of Vesuvius looming quietly in the background.

Not everybody escaped the disaster of 79CE. In fact, it's quite possible most city inhabitants didn't make it out. The sea was too rough for travel, the ground unstable, the air full of falling volcanic debris, and there was no understanding of explosive volcanoes. The inclination to wait it out would have been strong.

The moment of death was caught in the volcanic soil. During the early excavations archaeologists found gaps with bones and bone fragments in the layers of fallout. Casts of those caught by the disaster were made by filling the gaps with plaster.

Death came in a fraction of a second, but not by asphyxiation as many once thought. They died much more quickly from heat shock, the sudden impact of a superheated pyroclastic surge.

Researching in jogging gear atop Vesuvius on a cold, snowy, slippery wet day that actually suited my purposes better than expected.