Herculaneum - City Named after Hercules

Herculaneum

The eruption of the volcano in 79 AD left behind several destroyed cities. Among them, the city of Herculaneum holds a special place, according to legends, named after the famous hero of Greek epics, Hercules. It is no wonder that the hero wanted to visit these places, as the location of the city on a cliff above the bay truly invited to a pleasant rest. This is what the city was famous for in the ancient world.

During the excavations, which have been carried out with short breaks since the 18th century, many original buildings erected for the summer relaxation of Roman aristocrats have been discovered. At the time of the disaster, the vacationers had already left their cozy summer residences, leaving them in the care of servants, which explains the small number of victims of this tragedy. But the condition of the remains evokes understandable horror: due to the high temperature of the pyroclastic flow, the skulls of the victims literally exploded. Unfortunate people seeking salvation fled to the sea in the hope of waiting out the catastrophe in the coastal boat houses. And in the end, they were buried alive by the stream of scorching mud.