Archaeology
Excavation reveals new insights into last moments before Vesuvius eruption
Archaeologists conducting excavations in the Villa San Marco, a high status Roman villa on the outskirts of Stabia, are revealing new insights into the last moments before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.
Stabiae was an ancient Roman town and seaside resort near Pompeii on the eastern end of the Bay of Naples. Like Pompeii and Herculanium, Stabiae was largely buried during the AD 79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius in thick tephra and ash.
Pliny the Elder, a Roman author who wrote the encyclopedic Naturalis Historia (which became an editorial model for encyclopedias died at Stabiae during the eruptions, but many of the town inhabitants were spared and resettled. Publius Papinius Statius recites in a poem to his wife – “Stabias renatas”, meaning Stabiae reborn.
Recent excavations at the Villa San Marco, a large Roman villa complex which covers more than 11,000 square metres, have been investigating the previous building phases of the site to further understand the chronology and extent of the entire structure.
Image Credit : Pompeii Sites
The villa’s original construction dates back to the Augustan Age and was focused on a tetrastyle Ionic atrium. Later, during the Claudian period, expansions incorporated a panoramic garden and a swimming pool that were enclosed by a three-sided portico, topped with a colonnade featuring spiral columns.
As a result of these additions, the layout of the villa underwent significant changes, shifting away from the previous axial plan and decentralising the entrance and the original core.
The main entrance, now buried, used to open onto a porticoed courtyard that provided access to the tablinum. From there, one could proceed to a tetrastyle atrium, leading to four small cubicula. Additionally, the thermal baths were accessible from the atrium, but their alignment deviated from the villa’s main axis due to their connection with the pre-existing street running in front of the structure.
Since March 2023, archaeologists have excavated the end part of the upper portico, revealing paintings with seated figures and large parts of the collapsed walls. The portico was buried in lapilli tephra (volcanic rock), allowing the paintings to be preserved along with a flight of the spiral columns.
According to a press announcement: “Following the story provided by the stratigraphies of lapilli and collapses, and by the sequence of pyroclastic flows, it is also possible to reconstruct the last hours of the villa’s life.”
“Despite the dramatic destruction, the life and luxury of the villa resurface in the chromatic ranges of the paintings on the walls and ceilings, in the stuccos, in the capitals, in the precious coatings and crowning of columns and roofs,” added the researchers.”
Header Image Credit : Pompeii Sites
A recent study, published in the journal ResearchGate, proposes that the Pyramid of Djoser could have been constructed using hydraulic lift.
The Pyramid of Djoser, also known as the Step Pyramid, is a proto-pyramid built as the final resting place of Djoser, the first or second pharaoh of Egypt’s 3rd Dynasty (2670–2650 BC) during the Old Kingdom period.
The pyramid rises from the Saqqara plateau in six steps to a height of around 60 to 62 metres, serving as the centre of a vast mortuary complex.
Due to the absence of authentic sources from the pyramid architects’ working sphere, there is currently no confirmed comprehensive model for the method used in the pyramid construction.
The prevailing theory suggests that the heavy stone blocks were transported on apparatuses such as rollers, and raised to height using a series of ramps.
In the study, a survey of watersheds near to the pyramid indicate that the Gisr el-Mudir (enclosure) has features of a check dam for trapping sediment and water. Furthermore, the topography beyond the “dam” shows a possible ephemeral lake west of the Djoser complex, and water flow inside the moat surrounding it.
The study authors explain: “In the southern section of the moat, we show that the monumental linear rock-cut structure consisting of successive, deep compartments, combines the technical requirements of a water treatment facility: a settling basin, a retention basin, and a purification system.”
Based on this finding, the study proposes that the Gisr el-Mudir and moat’s inner south section worked as a unified hydraulic system for regulating flow and improving water quality. In addition, the pyramid’s internal architecture is consistent with a hydraulic elevation mechanism never reported before.
“The ancient architects likely raised the stones from the pyramid centre in a volcano fashion using the sediment-free water from the Dry Moat’s south section. Ancient Egyptians are famous for their pioneering and mastery of hydraulics through canals for irrigation purposes and barges to transport huge stones. This work opens a new line of research: the use of hydraulic force to erect the massive structures built by Pharaohs,” said the study authors.
Please note: This study was submitted to PLOS ONE on December 7, 2023. After two rounds of review by peers, the paper was formally accepted by PLOS ONE on June 27, 2024. Since July 23, 2024, it has been the subject of new consultations and review by the PLOS ONE Editorial Board.
Header Image Credit : Shutterstock
Sources : ResearchGate | Piton, Guillaume. (2024). On the possible use of hydraulic force to assist with building the Step Pyramid of Saqqara. PLOS ONE.
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
Constructed between 1630 and 1633 in a Renaissance-Baroque style, the Great Synagogue of Vilnius served as the religious centre of a complex of synagogues, mikvahs, and community institutions devoted to Torah study in Vilnius, Lithuania.
According to a press statement by the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA): “The Great Synagogue of Vilna was the beating heart of the Lithuanian Jewry, which included 12 synagogues and study houses, the community council building, the home of Rabbi Eliyahu – the Vilna Gaon, Kosher meat stalls, the famous ‘Strashun’ library, a bathhouse and more.”
During World War II, the synagogue was looted, burned, and partially destroyed by the Nazis in the holocaust. Soviet authorities completely demolished the remaining structure to build a school, intending to prevent any future restoration of Jewish worship.
Only three original pieces of the synagogue survived the destruction: a door of the Holy Ark, a reader’s desk, and a bas-relief with the Ten Commandments, which are now on display at the Vilna Gaon Jewish Museum.
Image Credit : Israel Antiquities Authority
In a recent study conducted by the IAA, the Association of Lithuanian Archaeology, the Good Will Foundation, and the Jewish Community of Lithuania, archaeologists have rediscovered traces of the synagogue’s decorated walls and remnants of flooring with red, black, and white floral patterns that paved the main hall.
Excavations also uncovered huge water reservoirs to feed halachically pure water to the mikva’ot, and one of the giant pillars that surrounded the Bimah (prayer platform).
Dr. Jon Seligman from the IAA and Justinas Rakas from the Lithuanian Archaeological Society, said: “The magnificent remains we are rediscovering bring back moments in the life of a lost vibrant community.”
Header Image Credit : Israel Antiquities Authority
Sources : IAA
This content was originally published on www.heritagedaily.com – © 2023 – HeritageDaily
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