Wonderful new discoveries are unearthed, including a private spa

A once-in-a-century find has been unearthed in the ancient Roman city of Pompeii after lying dormant for 2,000 years under meters of volcanic rock and ash.

Archaeologists have discovered a luxurious private bathhouse complete with greenhouses, conservatories, cold rooms, elaborate artwork, and a huge plunge pool. This could possibly be the largest in history.

This spa-like complex is located at the heart of a grand mansion discovered during extensive excavations over the past two years.

“These spaces are exactly part of the ‘Pompeii effect’, as if people had left only a minute ago,” said Dr. Gabriel Zustriegel, director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park, in an exclusive statement about the new discovery. It is said that this was revealed. BBC News.

Analysis of two human bones found in the house also shows the horrors faced by the residents of Pompeii when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 AD.

The bodies were those of a woman between 35 and 50 years old, who was clutching jewelry and coins, and a young man between his teens and early 20s.

They barricaded themselves in a small room and were killed when a tsunami of superheated volcanic gas and ash, known as a pyroclastic flow, swept through the town.

“This is a dramatic place, and everything here speaks about drama,” says Dr. Ludovica Alesse, Pompeii’s conservator.

A third of the ancient city is still hidden under volcanic debris from the disaster, but the largest new excavation in a generation offers new insights into life in ancient Rome.

The archaeologists are being followed by a documentary team from the BBC and Lion TV in a series called Pompeii: The New Dig.

An entire block of Pompeii has now been exposed, revealing a laundry and bakery as well as a large private house. All of these are believed to have been owned by a wealthy individual named Aulus Rustius Verus, possibly an influential politician in Pompeii.

The discovery of the baths further confirms his elite status, says Dr. Zustriegel.

“There were only a few houses with private baths, so it was really for the wealthy,” he says. “And it’s huge. It’s probably the largest bath complex in a private house in Pompeii.”

Those lucky enough to have access to a suite of bathrooms would undress in a changing room with bright red walls and a mosaic floor dotted with geometric patterns inlaid with marble from throughout the Roman Empire.

They then headed to the hot room and soaked in the bath, enjoying the sauna-like warmth provided by the suspended floor and hollow walls that allowed the heat to circulate underneath.

They are then moved to a warm, brightly painted room where the oil is rubbed into the skin and then rubbed off with a curved instrument called a strigil.

Finally, they enter the largest and most spectacular of all rooms – the freezer, or cold room. Surrounded by red columns and frescoes of athletes, visitors could cool off in a plunge pool large enough to hold 20 to 30 people.

“In the hot summer, you can even sit with your feet in the water, chat with friends, or enjoy a glass of wine,” says Dr. Zuchtriegel.

The bathhouse is a new discovery from this wonderful house.

A huge banquet hall with jet-black walls and breathtaking artwork depicting classical scenes was discovered last year. A smaller, more intimate room painted pale blue, where the inhabitants of the house went to pray to the gods, was also excavated.

The mansion was under renovation, so tools and building materials are found everywhere. In the blue room, a pile of oyster shells is on the floor, ready to be crushed and pasted on the wall to sparkle in rainbow colors.

Next to this beautiful space, in a small, almost undecorated room, a shocking discovery was made: the bodies of two Pompeians who had not escaped the eruption.

The skeleton of a woman was found curled up in a fetal position on a bed. In the corner of this small room was the corpse of a man.

“A pyroclastic flow from Vesuvius came in the street just outside this room and caused the wall to collapse, which almost crushed him to death,” explains Pompeii archaeologist Dr. Sophie Hay.

“While he was dying, the woman was still alive – imagine the trauma – and then this room filled with the remains of the pyroclastic flow, and that’s how she died.”

Analysis of the man’s skeleton showed that despite his young age, his bones showed signs of wear and tear, suggesting he was of low social status and may even have been a slave.

Although the woman was elderly, her bones and teeth were in good condition.

“She was probably from the upper echelons of society,” Dr. Hay said. “She could have been the wife of the owner of the house. Or she could have been an assistant looking after the wife, we don’t know.”

Various items, including glassware, bronze jugs and pottery, were found on a marble table in the room, and were probably taken to the room where the two men were hiding, waiting for the eruption to subside. .

Of particular interest, however, are the items the victims were clutching. A young man was found with several keys, and an older woman was found with gold and silver coins and jewelry.

These are kept in Pompeii’s vaults along with other valuable discoveries from Pompeii, and we were given the opportunity to view them with archaeologist Dr. Alessandro Russo.

The gold coins still shined like new, and he showed us delicate gold and natural pearl earrings, necklace pendants, and intricately etched semi-precious stones.

“When you find these kinds of objects, it erases the distance between ancient and modern times and gives you a glimpse into the lives of the people who died in the eruption,” Russo says.

Dr Sophie Hay says the private bath complex is a once-in-a-century discovery and sheds more light on the darker side of Roman life.

There is a boiler room just behind the high temperature room. Pipes drew water from the street, some of it siphoned into cold plunge pools, and the rest heated by lead boilers headed to hot rooms. The valves that regulate the flow are very modern and can still be opened and closed.

Since the furnace was located below, the environment in this room would have been unbearably hot for the slaves who had to run the entire system.

“What’s most striking about these excavations is the stark contrast between the lives of slaves and the very wealthy, and we see that here,” says Dr Sophie Hay.

“The difference between the luxurious life in the bathhouse and the furnace room where slaves toil all day long by lighting a fire.

“The only thing that separates two different worlds is a wall.”

The excavation is in its final week, but new discoveries continue to emerge from the ashes. A limited number of visitors will be able to visit the excavation site during excavation work, but it will eventually be fully open to the public.

“Every day here is a surprise,” says Dr. Anna Onesti, head of the excavation.

“Sometimes I come to work in the morning thinking it’s a normal workday, but then I realize I’ve discovered something special.

“This is a magical moment in the history of Pompeii, and this excavation work offers us the possibility of sharing this with the public.”