Pompeii was one of the highlights of my last trip to Italy.
As someone who has always been fascinated by Roman history—and who still vividly remembers my Latin teacher’s stories about Pompeii and its ruins, which left a real impression on me—I knew I absolutely had to add this experience to my list of places to see.
Pompeii is only 25 kilometres from Naples, which makes it an easy day trip for anyone with an interest in history. And Pompeii has so much to reveal that it is more than worth the journey. Here are some of the reasons why you should visit Pompeii.
The History of Pompeii
If you want to immerse yourself in ancient history, Pompeii is the perfect place. This vast archaeological site was once a thriving Roman city of around 11,000 inhabitants. The city had achieved a great deal, including a complex water system, an amphitheatre, a gymnasium and a port. What made it so famous, of course, was the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, which buried Pompeii beneath a metre of ash.
Today, it is an exceptionally well-preserved site, with an extensive collection of ruins that visitors can wander through freely. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy, welcoming around 2.5 million visitors each year.
Mount Vesuvius
Mount Vesuvius is considered one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world because of the population of around 3,000,000 people currently living around its base.
It has already produced explosive eruptions and is the only volcano on mainland Europe to have erupted within the last hundred years. The volcano forms the dramatic backdrop to Pompeii. You can see it as you walk through the paved streets and across the ancient city.
Archaeological Artefacts
When experts rediscovered the city of Pompeii, they realised that almost everything had remained exactly as it was for two thousand years. The lack of air and moisture had preserved the objects buried beneath Pompeii, with little to no deterioration.
Many of the artefacts discovered can still be seen in the ancient city of Pompeii, while others are now kept in the National Archaeological Museum of Naples. I highly recommend visiting it, by the way.
But objects were not the only things left behind. The city was covered in thick layers of ash, as were many of its inhabitants, who were buried there too. Archaeologists created plaster casts of the victims, showing exactly how their bodies were found.
Art
Pompeii is one of the rare places where well-preserved paintings offer us a glimpse into ancient painting and decoration. Because of the sheer amount of raw evidence from this period, the city has provided invaluable insight into the Roman world. Many of Pompeii’s buildings were decorated with mosaics and frescoes depicting myths, religion, wars, sports and erotic scenes.
The Villa of the Mysteries, a suburban Roman villa, is one of the best-known surviving examples of ancient Roman painting. It is famous for its series of beautiful and strange frescoes depicting Dionysian* cult practices. It was truly one of the highlights of my trip!
I had such a wonderful time exploring the ancient city of Pompeii, and I learned so much while standing face to face with the mystery of this forgotten city. Pompeii is such a difficult cultural phenomenon to fully grasp. I remember learning about this city in primary school, never imagining that one day I would actually walk through it. Today, I am genuinely happy that I did.
*Dionysian: relating to Dionysus, the Greek god of the Vine and Wine, evoking passion, sensuality, instability and insatiability…
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