WEBVTT 00:00:01.557 --> 00:00:04.083 [Music] 00:00:04.083 --> 00:00:08.151 [Leonard Nimoy] For an eternity, the volcanic cone of Mount Vesuvius 00:00:08.151 --> 00:00:11.394 has dominated the landscape of Southern Italy. 00:00:11.809 --> 00:00:15.095 Two thousand years ago, it would shape history. 00:00:15.526 --> 00:00:19.363 At that time, Rome was an old-powerful empire. 00:00:25.455 --> 00:00:31.369 Pompeii was one of its most prosperous provincial towns, thriving at the foot of Vesuvius. 00:00:32.538 --> 00:00:34.025 (Explosion noise) 00:00:34.348 --> 00:00:40.559 Suddenly, a terrible explosion shook the earth and Vesuvius entered the annals of history 00:00:40.559 --> 00:00:45.111 as one of the most devastating volcanic disasters ever recorded. 00:00:48.676 --> 00:00:57.706 The people ran for their lives. Some took cover in their homes. Others tried fleeing to the nearby sea. 00:00:57.706 --> 00:01:00.862 But thousands would not escape. 00:01:03.552 --> 00:01:08.245 In a matter of hours, homes, buildings and the people themselves were covered 00:01:08.245 --> 00:01:12.379 by a thick layer of volcanic ash and débris. 00:01:14.025 --> 00:01:21.181 Everything was entombed and forgotten, to lie in undiscovered silence for centuries. 00:01:22.999 --> 00:01:29.608 Archeologists discovered the hollow cavities which the decayed bodies left behind. 00:01:30.837 --> 00:01:36.040 These were used as molds to produce eerie plaster casts of the victims. 00:01:36.040 --> 00:01:45.094 And the once vital inhabitants of ancient Pompeii now lie here, distorted in agony, exactly where they fell. 00:01:46.832 --> 00:01:49.336 What secrets did the people leave behind? 00:01:49.618 --> 00:01:52.316 What misteries are entombed with them? 00:01:52.640 --> 00:01:58.200 A journey into the ancient past to a city frozen in time. 00:02:02.194 --> 00:02:06.783 (Pompeii: Buried Alive) 00:02:06.783 --> 00:02:15.129 (Act I) 00:02:15.129 --> 00:02:23.891 (The Mountain Speaks) 00:02:24.352 --> 00:02:27.868 [Music] 00:02:28.142 --> 00:02:34.859 [Nimoy] Today, two million people live around the foot of Mount Vesuvius near Naples, in Southern Italy. 00:02:35.394 --> 00:02:39.827 The inhabitants of modern-day Pompeii are very much aware of the constant threat 00:02:39.827 --> 00:02:42.956 posed by this still active volcano. 00:02:44.990 --> 00:02:52.429 Farmers tend fruitful fields where, just a few feet below, lie the remains of an ancient civilization. 00:02:53.745 --> 00:03:01.043 Sprawling over 160 acres, the layout of ancient Pompeii is much like that of any modern city. 00:03:02.995 --> 00:03:07.814 Unequal among historical sites for its remarkable state of preservation, 00:03:07.814 --> 00:03:12.446 Pompeii is a unique showcase of ancient art and architecture. 00:03:13.913 --> 00:03:17.871 There is an abundance of original mosaics and frescoes, 00:03:17.871 --> 00:03:21.395 some as vivid as though they were created yesterday. 00:03:22.103 --> 00:03:27.856 The city offers archaeologists a once in an lifetime opportunity to explore the mysteries 00:03:27.856 --> 00:03:30.803 of those who once inhabited the Roman World. 00:03:30.972 --> 00:03:32.211 (The Roman Empire 79 C.E.) 00:03:32.211 --> 00:03:37.350 [Nimoy] During the 1st century of the Common Era, Rome was a powerful empire, 00:03:37.350 --> 00:03:41.383 straddling Europe and the Near East, from Britain to Egypt. 00:03:41.383 --> 00:03:42.960 (Map of Italy, with Rome and Pompeii marked) 00:03:42.960 --> 00:03:48.303 [Nimoy] Pompeii was a thriving commercial center with a population of 20,000. 00:03:51.971 --> 00:03:58.621 Then, these streets leading to the city's forum were bustling with farmers and merchants from afar, 00:03:58.621 --> 00:04:02.133 trading produce and merchandise. 00:04:04.155 --> 00:04:11.217 Many of the local citizens were wealthy, enjoying a relatively affluent and placid way of life. 00:04:13.877 --> 00:04:17.745 Mount Vesuvius always loomed in the background. 00:04:17.745 --> 00:04:24.885 But as far as the people were concerned, it was just another mountain, a good place to cultivate vines. 00:04:26.078 --> 00:04:30.647 [Haraldur Sigurdsson - Professor of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island] The Romans living in the area were not aware of the fact that the mountain was a volcano. 00:04:31.709 --> 00:04:39.804 For example, the most famous of these Romans was Pliny the Elder, who was a great historian and a writer. 00:04:39.804 --> 00:04:45.094 And he described many volcanoes in Italy, but he never mentioned Vesuvius as a volcano. 00:04:47.271 --> 00:04:52.158 [Nimoy] The 24th of August, in the year 79, was an ordinary Summer's day, 00:04:52.158 --> 00:04:57.034 with the people of Pompeii uneventfully going about their daily business. 00:05:00.921 --> 00:05:06.929 The slight rumbling sounds coming from Vesuvius in the early morning were largely ignored. 00:05:07.506 --> 00:05:11.804 [Ann Koloski-Ostrow - Assistant Professor of Classical Studies, Brandeis University] People proceeded as if everything was normal. 00:05:11.804 --> 00:05:16.315 Women at home were probably getting their children ready for short siestas, 00:05:16.315 --> 00:05:21.363 slaves were bustling about the kitchen, getting everything ready for what would be 00:05:21.363 --> 00:05:23.670 the evening hours at home. 00:05:23.670 --> 00:05:30.504 Men were thinking about spending an afternoon at the public baths, but the rumbling didn't stop. 00:05:30.640 --> 00:05:33.218 [Music] 00:05:34.387 --> 00:05:41.113 [Nimoy] Suddenly, around 12 noon, a deafening explosion shook the entire city. 00:05:42.063 --> 00:05:47.007 The people watched, horrified, as Vesuvius erupted. 00:05:48.264 --> 00:05:50.461 Pillars of black volcanic ash 00:05:50.461 --> 00:05:55.677 and of red-hot magma spewed miles high into the sky. 00:06:00.178 --> 00:06:07.147 Then, a torrent of suffocating ash fell upon the city, followed by complete darkness. 00:06:07.516 --> 00:06:10.582 [Music] 00:06:10.690 --> 00:06:14.832 At the same time, stones hailed down from heaven. 00:06:15.228 --> 00:06:20.778 Gradually, Pompeii became buried in white pellets of solidified ash. 00:06:23.968 --> 00:06:25.879 [James L. Franklin, Jr. - Professor of Classical Studies, Stanford University] They hadn't seen an eruption before, 00:06:25.879 --> 00:06:30.226 so I don't think that they had any idea - true idea - of what they were encountering. 00:06:30.226 --> 00:06:36.494 They must have been really terrified, however, with the addition of the eruption to the earthquake. 00:06:36.494 --> 00:06:40.636 And I suspect it took a lot of them an awfully long time to figure out 00:06:40.636 --> 00:06:44.067 that they were actually going to be buried by these pellets. 00:06:45.513 --> 00:06:51.732 [Nimoy] Two men whose names have come down to us from their time were witness to the inferno: 00:06:52.117 --> 00:06:57.421 Pliny the Elder, an admiral in the Roman Navy, died, attempting to rescue victims. 00:06:59.722 --> 00:07:06.610 His nephew, Pliny the Younger, wrote the only eye-witness report to have survived the disaster. 00:07:09.395 --> 00:07:15.878 *"On Mount Vesuvius, broad sheets of fire and leaping flames' blazed at several points,* 00:07:16.217 --> 00:07:20.370 *their bright glare, emphasized by the darkness of the night.* 00:07:23.894 --> 00:07:29.194 *The buildings were now shaking with violent shocks and seemed to be swaying to and fro,* 00:07:29.194 --> 00:07:31.610 *as if they were torn from their foundations.* 00:07:32.488 --> 00:07:39.132 *Outside, on the other hand, there was the danger of falling pumice stones. It was a choice of fears."* 00:07:41.903 --> 00:07:47.681 [Koloski-Ostrow] Some huddled in corners, collecting their belongings with them there, 00:07:47.681 --> 00:07:51.700 and thought: "We'll wait it out, it will stop." But it didn't stop. 00:07:51.700 --> 00:07:59.047 And 17 hours later, it was still raining ashes, and many of the roofs of the town had collapsed 00:07:59.047 --> 00:08:04.843 from the weight of these ashes, some people then were trapped in their cellars, 00:08:04.843 --> 00:08:10.997 others were trapped in their homes, and many others still were trapped as they tried to flee the city. 00:08:14.043 --> 00:08:19.780 [Nimoy] Pliny the Elder did not grasp the severity of the situation until it was already too late: 00:08:21.023 --> 00:08:26.861 *"My uncle decided to go down to the shore and investigate the possibility of an escape by the sea.* 00:08:27.968 --> 00:08:31.647 *The flames and smell of sulfur drove the others to take flight.* 00:08:31.883 --> 00:08:35.988 *And he stood, leaning on two slaves, and then, suddenly collapsed,* 00:08:35.988 --> 00:08:41.374 *I imagine because of the dense fumes stifled his breathing and choked him."* 00:08:43.377 --> 00:08:48.072 [Nimoy] Pliny the Younger also describes his own death-defying escape: 00:08:49.615 --> 00:08:56.808 *"You could hear the shrieks of women, the wailing of infants, the shouting of men.* 00:08:57.542 --> 00:09:03.400 *Then ashes began to fall again, this time in heavy showers.* 00:09:03.400 --> 00:09:06.657 *We rose from time to time and shook them off.* 00:09:06.657 --> 00:09:10.541 *Otherwise, we would have been buried and crushed beneath.* 00:09:10.541 --> 00:09:18.136 *I derived some poor consolation in my belief that the whole world was dying with me, and I with it."* 00:09:18.733 --> 00:09:22.023 [Nimoy] As the night wore on, thousands would perish. 00:09:23.394 --> 00:09:27.042 (Act II) 00:09:27.042 --> 00:09:30.588 (The Death Of Herculaneum) 00:09:32.081 --> 00:09:37.858 [Nimoy] Death and destruction rained down from the sky for an entire day and night. 00:09:38.719 --> 00:09:41.384 As Pompeii riled in agony, (Map of Italy with Rome, Vesuvius and Pompeii) 00:09:41.384 --> 00:09:48.143 another town, lay in the direct path of the volcano's fury, nine miles away, 00:09:48.143 --> 00:09:53.055 neighboring Herculaneum was a seaside resort for the Roman rich and famous. 00:09:55.552 --> 00:10:00.554 But even fame and wealth would not save the inhabitants, that terrible night. 00:10:01.645 --> 00:10:08.020 As Vesuvius erupted, Herculaneum was entombed in a layer of ash 40-feet thick. 00:10:10.973 --> 00:10:17.325 Today, beneath the rubble and debris, pieces of carbonized wood can still be seen. 00:10:17.325 --> 00:10:24.111 Such evidence enables volcanologists to reconstruct the city's final moments. 00:10:24.111 --> 00:10:27.887 Even complete window shutters and doors are preserved. 00:10:28.641 --> 00:10:34.995 Artifacts like these reveal that Herculaneum's destruction was very different from that of Pompeii. 00:10:35.742 --> 00:10:40.453 [Sigurdsson] We know that around midnight, the style of the eruption changed dramatically. 00:10:40.453 --> 00:10:46.953 Instead of a very high eruption column, all of a sudden, the ash and pumice comes out of the crater 00:10:46.953 --> 00:10:52.725 as a flow, a glowing avalanche, a dust cloud that is moving like a nuclear blast 00:10:52.725 --> 00:10:58.807 in all directions from the crater at a velocity of 100 to 200 miles per hour. 00:10:58.807 --> 00:11:02.992 And within minutes, this cloud would have reached Herculaneum. 00:11:02.992 --> 00:11:08.515 And this cloud is hot enough to carbonize wood and to melt glass. 00:11:08.515 --> 00:11:11.007 Obviously, it is lethal. 00:11:11.884 --> 00:11:18.196 [Nimoy] At Herculaneum's public baths, this marble washing bowl now stands below the window, 00:11:18.196 --> 00:11:20.836 where it once stood in ancient times. 00:11:21.452 --> 00:11:27.384 But when the bath was excavated, the bowl was found hurled across the room. 00:11:27.722 --> 00:11:33.690 Its impression can still be seen imprinted on the solidified volcanic magma. 00:11:34.902 --> 00:11:42.911 [Sigurdsson] The Vesuvius' eruption in 79 A.D. was one of the largest volcanic explosions in history. 00:11:42.911 --> 00:11:49.146 In terms of the energy, the amount of energy involved, it is much larger than any nuclear explosion 00:11:49.146 --> 00:11:51.533 that has been set off on the earth. 00:11:53.669 --> 00:11:59.840 [Nimoy] One of the great mysteries of Herculaneum is the absence of human skeletal remains in the town. 00:12:01.008 --> 00:12:04.014 The houses and streets seemed to be deserted. 00:12:05.028 --> 00:12:07.734 What happened to the people? 00:12:08.657 --> 00:12:12.193 Did they know something that their neighbors in Pompeii did not? 00:12:12.193 --> 00:12:17.006 Were they forewarned of the disaster, and had time to escape? 00:12:18.361 --> 00:12:24.162 Archaeologists always thought so, until a grisly discovery was made. 00:12:24.162 --> 00:12:28.719 [Koloski-Ostrow] More recent excavations, right at the sea shore of Herculaneum, 00:12:28.719 --> 00:12:36.046 have brought a much grimmer and sadder result to our understanding of this mystery. 00:12:36.340 --> 00:12:44.636 Upwards of a hundred victims have been found, and some of them are so well-preserved 00:12:44.636 --> 00:12:49.464 and give us such poignant details of those tragic final moments, 00:12:49.464 --> 00:12:55.228 that we can say quite a bit about their stories and what happened to them at the end of the city. 00:12:56.700 --> 00:12:59.660 [Nimoy] This was the first time we ever come face to face 00:12:59.660 --> 00:13:03.510 with human remains from the ancient Roman world. 00:13:04.921 --> 00:13:08.559 As it was a Roman custom to always cremate their dead, 00:13:08.591 --> 00:13:14.928 the other thing of the skeletons at Herculaneum and Pompeii was a rare discovery. 00:13:17.128 --> 00:13:24.926 This was once a soldier, found face down, watching the sand, his sword still with him. 00:13:25.567 --> 00:13:30.798 [Joseph J. Deiss - Professor of Classics, University of Florida] It's an extraordinary find, because no other Roman soldier has ever been discovered anywhere. 00:13:30.798 --> 00:13:36.566 And he was wearing, he had his sword belt, he had his money belt, he had three gold coins, 00:13:36.566 --> 00:13:42.043 and he was all prepared to be rescued. And it never happened. 00:13:43.342 --> 00:13:48.306 [Nimoy] Physical anthropologists examined the skeletons in detail. 00:13:48.306 --> 00:13:54.448 Through their work, we've gained a new insight into the lives of these long-lost people. 00:13:55.522 --> 00:14:01.078 [Koloski-Ostrow] In one of the chambers, I met a family of twelve victims. 00:14:01.078 --> 00:14:10.492 We find a young woman, probably about 14, clutching very closely a baby of 7 months in her arms 00:14:10.492 --> 00:14:17.345 trying to protect this child from the inevitable death that is soon to come. 00:14:18.589 --> 00:14:22.492 [Nimoy] At first, it seemed that this was the baby's older sister. 00:14:22.492 --> 00:14:28.293 Then, investigations pointed to a more poignant and tragic story. 00:14:29.101 --> 00:14:32.163 [Koloski-Ostrow] The baby is very likely an aristocratic baby, 00:14:32.163 --> 00:14:38.180 it had in its ear a gold earring with a small pearl on it, 00:14:38.180 --> 00:14:43.524 whereas the bones of the 14-year old girl are bones that show 00:14:43.524 --> 00:14:49.158 she has done far heavier labor than a girl of her age do. 00:14:49.158 --> 00:14:58.149 She's not well-nourished, her teeth are in poor condition, she very likely had a difficult, 00:14:58.149 --> 00:15:01.316 not to say, a terrible life. 00:15:02.593 --> 00:15:08.361 [Nimoy] The conclusion was that this is the skeleton of an overworked slave girl. 00:15:08.361 --> 00:15:12.580 One of her duties may have been to protect and tend the baby. 00:15:12.580 --> 00:15:18.341 Her life style stood in stark contrast to that of the more affluent citizens of the town. 00:15:18.341 --> 00:15:26.021 The gleaming white teeth of some remains indicate healthy nutrition, at least for most of the population. 00:15:26.686 --> 00:15:32.120 [Deiss] This is the only find of Roman bodies, the only important find ever made. 00:15:32.120 --> 00:15:36.080 So, for the first time, we can find what Romans were really like, 00:15:36.080 --> 00:15:40.007 not just the way they look from statues and frescoes. 00:15:44.546 --> 00:15:49.681 [Nimoy] Perhaps the most moving example to survive Pompeii's fearful night of destruction 00:15:49.681 --> 00:15:52.427 are these silent forms. 00:15:53.077 --> 00:15:59.133 After what must have been a terrible death, bodies decomposed, leaving eerie cavities 00:15:59.133 --> 00:16:01.971 within the hardened volcanic ash. 00:16:04.125 --> 00:16:10.602 These are casts made by archaeologists after filling the hollow spaces with plaster of Paris, 00:16:10.602 --> 00:16:16.659 forever preserving the forms of the victims, exactly as they were caught at the moment of death. 00:16:26.132 --> 00:16:32.189 This man was wearing a wide belt identifying his status as a slave. 00:16:33.472 --> 00:16:39.455 All slaves had to wear a heavy belt inscribed with the name and title of their owner. 00:16:42.436 --> 00:16:49.978 Two thousand years after death, the people of Pompeii still tell a haunting, yet silent tale. 00:16:49.978 --> 00:16:56.314 Can we ever understand the destruction of an entire community, on such an unprecedented scale? 00:16:57.526 --> 00:17:01.501 (Act III) 00:17:01.501 --> 00:17:05.242 (In the Shadow of Vesuvius) 00:17:11.211 --> 00:17:16.906 [Nimoy] The eruption of Vesuvius in the year 79 is comparable to the drama of Mount St Helen's 00:17:16.906 --> 00:17:19.987 in the State of Washington in 1980. 00:17:21.578 --> 00:17:29.598 In both cases, volcanic ash was hurled high into the air, followed by a devastating explosion. 00:17:31.004 --> 00:17:36.939 But the eruption of Vesuvius was 3 times more powerful than that of Mount St Helen's. 00:17:40.989 --> 00:17:46.736 In just a few hours, two prosperous cities disappeared from the face of the earth, 00:17:46.736 --> 00:17:51.636 taking with them the great works and accomplishments of their inhabitants. 00:17:54.494 --> 00:18:02.251 Where ash and lava once covered the cities, grass and vines slowly took possession of the land. 00:18:02.251 --> 00:18:06.523 Gradually, the place faded from memory. 00:18:08.123 --> 00:18:13.180 More than 1,500 years would pass before Herculaneum would be rediscovered. 00:18:13.180 --> 00:18:15.479 It was totally by accident. 00:18:17.618 --> 00:18:23.844 In 1709, two monks were sinking a well, when they inadvertently struck the marble floor 00:18:23.844 --> 00:18:26.646 of an ancient theater. 00:18:27.539 --> 00:18:29.961 [John J. Dobbins - Associate Professor of Archaeology, University of Virgina] Pompei was also discovered by accident. 00:18:29.961 --> 00:18:36.246 The digging of a canal actually produced part of the city, and it became clear that there was something there, 00:18:36.246 --> 00:18:40.265 and during the early days, excavation was not an archaeological enterprise, 00:18:40.265 --> 00:18:46.339 but was really a treasure-hunting activity, in order to provide objects for the royal collection. 00:18:46.897 --> 00:18:53.757 [Nimoy] During the 17th and 18th centuries, kings from Vienna and Spain ruled Naples. 00:18:57.521 --> 00:19:05.120 To provide their courts with classical statues, Roman gold and silver, they ordered excavations of the ruins. 00:19:05.806 --> 00:19:10.555 Plundering the area in search of ancient bounty, treasure-hunters secretly sank 00:19:10.555 --> 00:19:15.413 numerous shafts and tunnels, many of them still visible today. 00:19:17.037 --> 00:19:24.057 It was only in 1861 that orderly scientific excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum began, 00:19:24.057 --> 00:19:27.562 and have continued unabated ever since. 00:19:34.832 --> 00:19:41.840 (Man chattering while typing on keyboard) 00:19:42.547 --> 00:19:48.734 [Nimoy] Today, cutting-edge computer technology is used by John Dobbins at the University of Virginia 00:19:48.734 --> 00:19:51.774 to rebuild ancient Pompeii. 00:19:54.169 --> 00:19:59.638 In binary building blocks, he's reconstructing, a 3-dimensional computer images, 00:19:59.638 --> 00:20:03.608 a series of public buildings from the city's forum. 00:20:04.631 --> 00:20:10.109 [Dobbins] There is not evidence of a colony, in front of the sanctuary of the end of Augustus 00:20:10.109 --> 00:20:13.557 So this seems to have been just an open area at the... 00:20:13.803 --> 00:20:17.799 [Nimoy] Modern technology provides unique new tools in the search to unravel 00:20:17.799 --> 00:20:22.707 the ancient mysteries of Pompeii and of its inhabitants. 00:20:23.347 --> 00:20:29.591 [Dobbins] In many ways, Pompeii, more than any other city in the classical world, demystifies ancient life. 00:20:29.591 --> 00:20:34.882 because it puts the modern viewer in close proximity with all of those aspects. 00:20:34.882 --> 00:20:40.968 There is an immediacy, it's possible to connect with Pompeii, because it is preserved well, 00:20:40.968 --> 00:20:45.095 the buildings are tri-dimensional, they are taller than we are. 00:20:45.095 --> 00:20:49.240 You can go into those houses and have a feeling that the people have just gone away. 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:51.583 and that you're stumbling into someone's house. 00:20:52.741 --> 00:20:59.783 [Nimoy] Once inside their homes, a search for their belongings brings us closer to the people who once lived here. 00:21:00.822 --> 00:21:08.012 Walking these silent passages, we brush with phantoms from a long gone civilization. 00:21:08.857 --> 00:21:15.553 Complete dwellings can be explored, allowing the visitor to vividly travel backwards in time. 00:21:17.403 --> 00:21:21.872 Even the frescoes and the mosaics seem to harbor a life of their own. 00:21:24.369 --> 00:21:29.934 Ancient technology and plumbing laid bare, revealing a remarkably advanced piping system 00:21:29.934 --> 00:21:32.456 for distributing water. 00:21:33.274 --> 00:21:41.000 In the panic and confusion of the devastating volcanic eruption, everything was left exactly as it was, 00:21:41.000 --> 00:21:43.355 including this complete wine shop. 00:21:44.562 --> 00:21:48.872 Intact objects of daily life were to be found everywhere. 00:21:49.372 --> 00:21:55.398 Even a loaf of ordinary bread, carbonized by the hot gas of the explosion. 00:21:56.309 --> 00:22:02.750 [Koloski-Ostrow] Pompeii and Herculaneum become opportunities for us to time-travel 00:22:02.750 --> 00:22:10.718 to the ancient world: not just time-travel to a century, or to a period or to a decade, 00:22:10.718 --> 00:22:20.288 but in fact, time-travel to one day in the ancient world, to 24 August 79 C.E. 00:22:20.360 --> 00:22:24.770 and see the moment in which these people met their deaths. 00:22:27.710 --> 00:22:33.802 [Nimoy] Obvious everywhere is the enormous wealth and extravagance of the villas of the well-to-do: 00:22:36.808 --> 00:22:41.658 wall paintings and mosaics of exquisite artistry, 00:22:48.784 --> 00:22:55.564 decorative cosmetic boxes, complete with delicate instruments, fashioned from wood and ivory, 00:22:55.564 --> 00:23:01.372 solid gold jewelry, embellished with expensive gem stones. 00:23:01.372 --> 00:23:10.042 All of these objects conjure the ghosts of their owners, recalling a once living, breathing society. 00:23:10.311 --> 00:23:16.207 [Dobbins] We actually have some sense of life breathed into those ruins by the writings of Pliny the Younger, 00:23:16.207 --> 00:23:21.630 once again, who describes in tremendous detail the pleasures of living in these villas. 00:23:21.957 --> 00:23:25.672 They enjoyed their meals, and they enjoyed that in the proximity of their garden, 00:23:25.672 --> 00:23:31.133 with fountains playing and the light coming in, the breeze, dining, water 00:23:31.133 --> 00:23:33.589 music and all that. 00:23:36.876 --> 00:23:40.985 [Nimoy] The extent of the wealth enjoyed by society is not known. 00:23:40.985 --> 00:23:46.267 But clearly, only a small fraction of the people lived in plush opulence. 00:23:47.338 --> 00:23:49.240 [Franklin] There is an incredible difference 00:23:49.240 --> 00:23:53.332 between the wealthy and everybody else, you know, in the Roman world. 00:23:53.332 --> 00:23:59.735 There is essentially no middle class. There are only very wealthy people and very poor people. 00:24:00.395 --> 00:24:07.512 [Nimoy] The privileged few often spent their time in ornate atriums, lavishly decorated with art works, 00:24:08.359 --> 00:24:13.828 but mysteriously, much of the decor is essentially Greek in origin. 00:24:16.161 --> 00:24:20.819 Alexander the Great, the Greek warrior emperor, in battle. 00:24:20.819 --> 00:24:29.271 This mosaic was found in Pompeii, yet it is an exact copy of a similar work of art made in Greece. 00:24:29.911 --> 00:24:37.329 Why? Why does so much of Pompeii and Herculaneum speak so strongly of Greek influence? 00:24:38.171 --> 00:24:43.225 [Franklin] The Romans were absolutely overwhelmed, I think, by the Greek World, and then, 00:24:43.225 --> 00:24:45.291 the world that follows Alexander the Great, 00:24:45.291 --> 00:24:50.898 the Hellenistic world of great sophistication and culture that came to Italy. 00:24:50.898 --> 00:24:53.757 The Romans didn't fight it at all, they gave in and said: 00:24:53.757 --> 00:24:56.360 "Wow, if it's that good, let's make ten copies." 00:24:58.145 --> 00:25:02.696 [Nimoy] Another mosaic reveals a lively scene of street musicians. 00:25:03.517 --> 00:25:09.660 A delicate work of extraordinary craftsmanship, it bears the signature of the artist who made it: 00:25:10.578 --> 00:25:14.841 "Dioscurides of Samos", in Greece. 00:25:15.163 --> 00:25:19.672 [Koloski-Ostrow] The themes of the paintings were frequently adapted from Greek literature. 00:25:19.672 --> 00:25:26.218 And we can understand that it's very likely many of the painters were Greek slaves, 00:25:26.218 --> 00:25:33.054 were actual Greeks who were brought to Pompeii to do the decoration of these houses. 00:25:37.079 --> 00:25:42.347 [Nimoy] Perhaps the most famous of all art works discovered here are these bronze sculptures, 00:25:42.347 --> 00:25:45.181 depicting two young wrestlers. 00:25:46.953 --> 00:25:53.465 Still in mint condition, the were found in the garden of the Villa dei Papiri, near Herculaneum. 00:25:56.628 --> 00:26:01.630 [Dobbins] These are wonderful pieces of art and they will have been done in Greece and shipped over. 00:26:01.630 --> 00:26:05.954 There was a major trade in shipping all sorts of statuary over from Greece. 00:26:05.954 --> 00:26:08.315 So, that surely, would be Greek. 00:26:08.315 --> 00:26:14.121 [Franklin] The Romans never were into statuary and painting. 00:26:14.121 --> 00:26:16.297 This came to them from the Greek world. 00:26:16.297 --> 00:26:22.816 The Romans got to the Greek world, whether it's here on the bay of Naples or over in Greece, with armies 00:26:22.816 --> 00:26:26.835 and practicality, and going in and fighting. 00:26:28.831 --> 00:26:33.298 [Nimoy] Most historians conclude that while the Romans were emulating and admiring the Greeks 00:26:33.298 --> 00:26:39.065 in art and literature, they themselves were innovative leaders in more practical fields. 00:26:43.640 --> 00:26:49.773 The extensive use of the arch and concrete were two of their great contributions to civilization. 00:26:55.300 --> 00:27:00.381 Romans conquered the world and built their empire on the mighty power of the sword, 00:27:01.248 --> 00:27:05.455 but then reinforced it with massive civil engineering skills. 00:27:08.124 --> 00:27:12.600 Little in this world unfolds as we predict. 00:27:12.600 --> 00:27:14.911 The people of Pompeii could not have for seen 00:27:14.911 --> 00:27:19.094 the contributions they would make to the chain of humanity. 00:27:20.716 --> 00:27:26.790 In the first century before the Common Era, the wealthy lounged in luxurious indoor baths, 00:27:26.790 --> 00:27:29.411 illuminated by sunlight. 00:27:29.411 --> 00:27:33.354 Thanks to an anonymous Roman, who had invented glass windows. 00:27:34.290 --> 00:27:40.805 Villas with glass windows would spread throughout the Roman empire and the Mediterranean, 00:27:40.805 --> 00:27:44.139 eventually leading to the design of the greenhouse. 00:27:45.780 --> 00:27:50.296 In the ensuing centuries, the popularity of the greenhouse would soar, 00:27:50.296 --> 00:27:54.492 inspiring interest in harnessing the power of the sun. 00:27:56.421 --> 00:28:02.464 This quest would reach bold new types in 1959, when Pioneer IV, 00:28:02.464 --> 00:28:07.790 the United States' first solar-powered satellite, was launched into orbit. 00:28:10.284 --> 00:28:17.154 An enduring link to the modern world, Pompeii and Herculaneum's architectural marvels still stand, 00:28:17.154 --> 00:28:20.525 just as they did two millennia ago. 00:28:21.173 --> 00:28:24.845 (Act IV) 00:28:24.845 --> 00:28:28.381 (The Oldest Obsession) 00:28:33.350 --> 00:28:39.517 [Nimoy] From the ashes of Pompeii, ghostly eyes stare at us across the centuries. 00:28:41.966 --> 00:28:46.298 Tantalizing clues can be found here, revealing intimate details 00:28:46.298 --> 00:28:49.228 of the relationship between men and women. 00:28:53.869 --> 00:28:57.308 A lady of the house holding a stylus and writing tablet, 00:28:57.308 --> 00:29:00.695 indicating that she is literate and well-educated. 00:29:03.896 --> 00:29:10.950 Though long gone, we even know the names of some of these people: Terentius Neo, wife of the town baker; 00:29:13.108 --> 00:29:15.596 [Franklin] I would say that they are obviously a loving couple. 00:29:15.596 --> 00:29:19.601 They have that quality that Roman marriages are always looking for: 00:29:19.601 --> 00:29:24.553 a husband and wife who actually get along and spend their lives together. 00:29:24.553 --> 00:29:30.573 Many Romans find true love in their lives, and when you read Roman tombstones, Roman inscriptions, 00:29:30.573 --> 00:29:32.776 you find that expressed over and over: 00:29:32.776 --> 00:29:37.952 "To my incredibly sweet wife, who lived with me without an argument for forty years." 00:29:39.243 --> 00:29:43.363 [Nimoy] This captivating portrait was discovered in a mansion once owned by a woman 00:29:43.363 --> 00:29:47.073 we know only as Julia Felix. 00:29:47.073 --> 00:29:51.927 Could this be her? An independent, rich woman of property? 00:29:52.663 --> 00:29:57.428 From evidence that has transcended the centuries, we know that most women lived in a subdued 00:29:57.428 --> 00:30:02.712 and restricted life style, deeply secluded within the privacy of their home. 00:30:04.478 --> 00:30:08.993 Those who belonged to an aristocratic family, living in one of the lavish villas, 00:30:08.993 --> 00:30:15.602 would also be responsible for running the day to day affairs of the house and would manage the slaves. 00:30:17.487 --> 00:30:24.062 But in spite of what we know, the true status of women in ancient Rome still remains a mystery. 00:30:25.016 --> 00:30:28.917 [Dobbins] Women in the Roman world were not on the same power with men, 00:30:28.917 --> 00:30:33.875 they didn't have the same rights to hold office, they could not vote. 00:30:34.648 --> 00:30:41.144 [Franklin] Well-born women at Pompeii, the matrons of these grand houses at Pompeii, 00:30:41.144 --> 00:30:46.611 wielded their power very much within the realm of the private household, 00:30:46.611 --> 00:30:50.568 at dinner parties and among the family. 00:30:50.568 --> 00:30:54.827 They certainly would in no way even want a career. 00:30:54.827 --> 00:30:59.171 It would be unheard of. When we are talking about women's liberation today, 00:30:59.171 --> 00:31:03.260 we often talk about the ability of a woman to go out and build a career. 00:31:03.260 --> 00:31:06.355 A Roman woman simply wouldn't want to do that. 00:31:09.612 --> 00:31:16.253 [Nimoy] But one career for women did flourish: the so-called oldest profession in the world. 00:31:16.253 --> 00:31:23.254 In the center of Pompeii stands a very conspicuous house: the town's main brothel. 00:31:23.254 --> 00:31:30.249 Six small darkly lit rooms greet the visitor, each one with its own stone bed. 00:31:30.249 --> 00:31:33.888 These would have been covered by fine blankets and furs. 00:31:35.348 --> 00:31:39.814 But how do we know what activity really took place in these rooms? 00:31:41.124 --> 00:31:45.585 The paintings on the walls reveal it all, in graphic detail. 00:31:46.696 --> 00:31:50.142 [Koloski-Ostrow] We mustn't over-glamorize the institution, however. 00:31:50.142 --> 00:31:57.160 The young women were captured slaves, who worked for a pimp, 00:31:57.160 --> 00:32:02.924 no doubt were often abused and underfed, and brutally treated. 00:32:02.924 --> 00:32:11.456 Yet it was an accepted part of society and any number of Roman gentlemen from all levels of society 00:32:11.456 --> 00:32:17.113 would have felt free to use the services that were offered there. 00:32:18.635 --> 00:32:21.800 [Nimoy] Paintings which would be termed pornographic today 00:32:21.800 --> 00:32:24.535 were not restricted to the Roman brothel. 00:32:26.387 --> 00:32:30.310 They're found in many private homes of distinguished citizens. 00:32:31.404 --> 00:32:36.220 In the entrance hall to the house of the well-established family named Vettii, 00:32:36.220 --> 00:32:39.828 the visitor is greeted by this explicit painting. 00:32:39.828 --> 00:32:46.884 Excavators also found a remarkable collection of novel wind chimes, replete with their original bells. 00:32:47.515 --> 00:32:52.124 These winged phalluses were used as decorations in the home, 00:32:53.302 --> 00:32:55.625 were suspended from columns in the garden. 00:32:56.863 --> 00:33:02.602 [Koloski-Ostrow] It shocks us, it makes us wonder about the morality of these people. 00:33:02.602 --> 00:33:08.865 Clearly, this particular figure and many representations of the nude phallus 00:33:08.865 --> 00:33:14.530 found throughout the city, were there as good luck symbols, as symbols of fertility, 00:33:14.530 --> 00:33:23.999 symbols to shed fertile children and opportunity on a household, not as objects of perversion. 00:33:24.024 --> 00:33:28.529 [Franklin] We really do find ourselves in a completely different world here, 00:33:28.529 --> 00:33:37.375 than the ancients did, I supposed. Because many ancient cults are flagrantly orgiastic, 00:33:37.375 --> 00:33:43.220 involve sexuality, and it is used for religious expression. 00:33:43.220 --> 00:33:50.868 That really got removed from religion, at least as I understand it, but largely through Christianity. 00:33:52.227 --> 00:33:58.676 [Nimoy] Barely discernible fertility symbols can still be found on many walls in and around Pompeii. 00:33:59.644 --> 00:34:03.642 [Franklin] When, for example, the site was being excavated in the 18th-19th century, 00:34:03.642 --> 00:34:06.831 and the excavators took hatchets to these and destroyed them, 00:34:06.831 --> 00:34:09.335 because they were obscene beyond belief, 00:34:09.335 --> 00:34:14.103 it tells you a great deal more about yourself, I mean, than it does about the objects, I mean 00:34:14.103 --> 00:34:16.507 we all know that there are phalluses in this world. 00:34:17.617 --> 00:34:24.861 Sexuality was an ordinary daily part of every Roman's life, the way it is of most of our lives, 00:34:24.861 --> 00:34:27.210 though we don't like to talk about it openly. 00:34:27.210 --> 00:34:33.832 And the idea that you would be hiding sexuality in any way, to an ancient Roman, would just - 00:34:33.832 --> 00:34:35.816 would seem absurd. 00:34:36.261 --> 00:34:42.820 [Nimoy] What might seem outrageous today was considered perfectly normal 20 centuries ago. 00:34:44.556 --> 00:34:48.308 (Act V) 00:34:48.308 --> 00:34:51.838 (Roman Life Roman Death) 00:34:56.853 --> 00:35:02.029 [Nimoy] As Pompeii and Herculaneum slowly yielded their treasures to the modern world, 00:35:02.029 --> 00:35:07.253 what did the artifacts reveal about the workings of ancient Roman society? 00:35:08.798 --> 00:35:14.743 In confronting the cities' rich aristocrats, we may envy them for their flamboyant life style. 00:35:16.087 --> 00:35:19.366 Yet there is a dark side to the story. 00:35:20.488 --> 00:35:25.676 The cities' opulent habits were founded upon huge reserves of human labor. 00:35:27.230 --> 00:35:31.174 And this, in turn, required a constant provision of slaves . 00:35:32.713 --> 00:35:36.723 As the Roman Empire marched in triumph across conquered territory, 00:35:36.723 --> 00:35:43.234 it consumed vast human resources, absorbing slaves as the spoils of war. 00:35:45.112 --> 00:35:49.239 [Koloski-Ostrow] All the time, capturing cities meant killing the men 00:35:49.239 --> 00:35:56.345 and taking into slavery the women and children of the town, and bringing them wholesale into Rome. 00:35:56.345 --> 00:36:00.893 They came from Egypt, they came from Greece, they came from Tunisia. 00:36:00.893 --> 00:36:07.661 They would - it was as much a slave trade as there was a trade in cloth, in wine, 00:36:07.661 --> 00:36:10.191 and in other articles produce. 00:36:15.638 --> 00:36:21.674 [Nimoy] In this massive structure, many a slave saw his last moments on earth. 00:36:21.674 --> 00:36:27.512 Together with many prisoners of war and convicted criminals, death would come violently 00:36:27.512 --> 00:36:30.621 as victims were forced to compete in the arena. 00:36:37.390 --> 00:36:42.432 Known as the gladiator games, they took place here, in a massive amphitheater, 00:36:42.432 --> 00:36:46.020 which accommodated up to 20,000 spectators. 00:36:46.663 --> 00:36:54.128 All of Pompeii's population would gather to enjoy the bloody spectacle of people fighting for their lives. 00:36:59.821 --> 00:37:04.968 One of the most popular forms of entertainment was the fight-to-death contest. 00:37:06.227 --> 00:37:12.262 A heavily armed gladiator, wearing a bronze helmet and shield, bearing only a short sword, 00:37:12.262 --> 00:37:18.440 would be pitched against a completely naked opponent equipped with a long spear and a net. 00:37:19.732 --> 00:37:24.437 It was brutal, a source of cheap thrills for the blood-thirsty audience. 00:37:29.824 --> 00:37:33.637 [Dobbins] This was an institutionalized violence, 00:37:33.637 --> 00:37:39.740 as there are many institutionalized acts of what we would call violence in our own society: 00:37:39.740 --> 00:37:47.232 executions and wars. And yet we consider that those are appropriate under certain circumstances. 00:37:49.316 --> 00:37:52.702 [Nimoy] Most slaves were kept, not as fighters, but as servants. 00:37:53.694 --> 00:38:00.916 Large villas had up to 50 slaves, eternally embroiled in the hustle-bustle of household service. 00:38:00.916 --> 00:38:05.587 [Franklin] There are so many slaves in Roman antiquity and in Pompeii in particular, 00:38:05.587 --> 00:38:08.035 because that was a way to keep alive. 00:38:08.035 --> 00:38:14.226 The wealthy needed a whole household of slaves because there was no middle class, 00:38:14.226 --> 00:38:16.183 no industry the way we have it. 00:38:16.183 --> 00:38:22.483 So they couldn't go to the tailor: there essentially were no tailors, you had to have 00:38:22.483 --> 00:38:27.699 a dress-maker, a tailor, a shoemaker, all of that, on your personal staff. 00:38:28.648 --> 00:38:32.565 [Nimoy] To better understand the people of Pompeii, it is important to remember that 00:38:32.565 --> 00:38:36.095 two thousand years ago, the law was supreme. 00:38:37.328 --> 00:38:40.748 Civic responsibility was taken very seriously. 00:38:40.748 --> 00:38:47.648 Sometimes, these concepts drove people apart, including fathers and their sons. 00:38:48.636 --> 00:38:52.684 [Franklin] The father has complete legal power. 00:38:52.684 --> 00:38:56.833 He could kill any of his children at any time for disobedience, 00:38:56.833 --> 00:39:02.579 and there are great episodes, particularly in early Roman history, which makes one wonder 00:39:02.579 --> 00:39:07.469 about the veracity of them, of fathers doing exactly that. 00:39:07.469 --> 00:39:12.987 A consul orders his son not to engage the enemy in battle. 00:39:12.987 --> 00:39:17.079 The son engages the enemy in battle and has a great success, 00:39:17.079 --> 00:39:21.944 and he comes back and his father kills him, because the father had told him not to engage the enemy. 00:39:21.944 --> 00:39:26.541 And there's nothing that can be said about it: that his right as a father. 00:39:27.164 --> 00:39:32.934 [Nimoy] Although, today, we subscribe to laws and virtues similar to those of the Pompeians, 00:39:32.934 --> 00:39:36.813 they held their own beliefs about the sanctity of human life. 00:39:41.297 --> 00:39:45.284 [Franklin] They don't have this sacred view for life - the way we do - 00:39:45.284 --> 00:39:49.943 I'm sure each of them had it for his own life, but when it came to life in general, 00:39:49.943 --> 00:39:51.470 well, people die. 00:39:51.470 --> 00:39:57.865 There were so many poor people that you see death all of the time. 00:40:03.223 --> 00:40:08.560 [Nimoy] Their attitudes on death and justice seems foreign to us today. 00:40:10.303 --> 00:40:14.207 Roman values were quite different from the Judeo-Christian tradition 00:40:14.207 --> 00:40:17.562 that was being introduced to the Western World at that time. 00:40:22.310 --> 00:40:29.701 [Koloski-Ostrow] There is no text or book or Bible with a set of morals that the Romans follow. 00:40:29.701 --> 00:40:33.789 Religion, to the Romans, is very much a ritual. 00:40:33.789 --> 00:40:41.013 And without that moral superstructure, without a text or a set of relgious rules and regulations 00:40:41.013 --> 00:40:47.741 that you're following in some way, it makes society much freer in terms of what's allowed. 00:40:49.849 --> 00:40:54.862 [Nimoy] In the years since 79, when Pompeii and Herculaneum met their doom, 00:40:54.862 --> 00:40:58.728 Vesuvius has erupted more than 70 times. 00:40:59.130 --> 00:41:04.563 [Journalist] Vesuvius once again strikes terror into the surrounding Italian countryside. 00:41:05.356 --> 00:41:12.280 A giant wall of lava, in some places 30-feet high, circles irresistibly forward through field and farm. 00:41:12.519 --> 00:41:20.834 [Nimoy] In 1944, as Italy reeled from the closing phases of World War II, Vesuvius erupted again. 00:41:20.834 --> 00:41:25.151 But unlike the eruption that devastated Pompeii, this time, 00:41:25.151 --> 00:41:29.342 the volcano spewed deadly molten lava as well as ash. 00:41:30.141 --> 00:41:36.899 The flow moved at a swift 12 feet per minute, destroying entire towns and villages in its path. 00:41:49.730 --> 00:41:55.273 The worst eruption occurred in 1631, when 18,000 lost their lives. 00:42:01.128 --> 00:42:06.148 [Journalist] Vesuvius, unpredictable and unconquerable, has had its way. 00:42:12.067 --> 00:42:17.352 [Nimoy] Today, the mountain is silent once again, its anger long vented. 00:42:17.352 --> 00:42:22.578 And Vesuvius broods like a great sentinel above the landscape. 00:42:22.578 --> 00:42:27.933 At its feet lie only the ruins and remains of a once proud Roman heritage 00:42:27.933 --> 00:42:31.195 in which many mysteries yet prevail. 00:42:34.291 --> 00:42:39.020 [Franklin] The mystery is that although we have all of these objects, 00:42:39.020 --> 00:42:41.824 like we have no place else in all of the Roman world, 00:42:41.824 --> 00:42:47.625 these people are still just beyond our grasp. 00:42:47.625 --> 00:42:51.926 The human element there, which we share with them helps, but they are - 00:42:51.926 --> 00:42:54.872 they're just beyond our grasp. 00:42:55.836 --> 00:43:01.752 [Koloski-Ostrow] Pompeii offers a wonderful poetic magic for all of us. 00:43:01.752 --> 00:43:06.940 It makes us touch our own feelings about life and death, 00:43:06.940 --> 00:43:11.360 yet at the same time that we feel that emotion and that we feel 00:43:11.360 --> 00:43:15.505 such sympathy for the victims of that eruption, 00:43:15.505 --> 00:43:21.278 as we uncover the pumice stones and remove the pyroclastic mud flows, 00:43:21.278 --> 00:43:26.861 we have to realize we're coming into a world of enormous cultural difference and this - 00:43:26.861 --> 00:43:31.833 the quest for that truth is what the archaeologist's mission must be. 00:43:33.059 --> 00:43:39.165 [Nimoy] In one dreadful night, a volcano entombed an entire ancient community. 00:43:40.491 --> 00:43:48.223 But in spite of the evidence that lies here, it is difficult to comprehend a society so remote from our own. 00:43:48.223 --> 00:43:54.552 The people of Pompeii may continue to remain a mystery to us for all time.