Original subtitles

Bettany: Pompeii, a unique ancient roman city trapped in time.

In the space of a single day and night,

Close on 2000 years ago, this whole place was devastated by

What has to be one of the most infamous volcanic eruptions in

The whole of human history.

It was horrific.

But it also preserved one of the most astonishing treasures

From the ancient world.

I am professor bettany hughes.

I'm a historian and I spend my life traveling the world to investigate

The stories of the cultures and civilizations of the past,

And I love having the chance to share what I found with you.

(theme music plays).

In southern Italy, 15 miles from naples in the shadow of

Deadly mount vesuvius, world-famous pompeii attracts

Three and a half million tourists every year.

It was a hot-spot in the ancient world too.

Famed for its gorgeous architecture and feel-good vibe.

I'm gonna walk the streets of pompeii to inhabit the ancient

City and discover the greatest treasures left here just where

They stood on that fateful, petrifying day in 79ad.

So, where better to start than a treasure that pulled

Together the rich and poor of the city,

The free and its slaves.

A treasure that dates right back to pompeii's origins and

Was a backbone of the city for centuries.

What did the romans ever do for us,

Is a famous gag, um, and, of course,

The romans were not single-handedly responsible

For the whole of human civilization,

But one thing you cannot argue with is they knew how to build a road.

Um, there were roads right the way across the roman empire,

But this is the most complete in existence.

This is the via dell'abbondanza,

Pompeii's main shopping street and our treasure number ten.

It gives us a vivid insight into what life was like for

An ordinary pompeiian and tells its own history of this amazing city.

When this place was excavated and this lovely lady was found

On the edge of this fountain here,

Um, wrongly identified as the goddess of prosperity or

Abundance because she's got this horn of plenty,

This cornucopia next to her, this whole street was named by

The excavators abundance street.

Given that it's a shopping street,

It feels pretty appropriate.

Abundance street runs through pompeii for over half a mile

An artery linking the key sites.

As well as being the main thoroughfare,

It's one of the very oldest in the settlement.

This is a map of ancient pompeii,

Um, and if you look at abundance street you can see

That its development really helps us understand the

Evolution of the city.

Um, so this is the first section that was built and at

That point there were just six shops on it,

But then look at how it expands from the 2nd-century bc onwards

And by this time there are around 58 shops here.

This was an ancient shopping mall because the romans really

Loved to shop and whatever you needed,

This street had it.

So, we get a sense of what mattered to the

Women and men of the city.

A bakery.

A barber shop.

A pub, with a brothel at the back.

Art supplies.

Wine and oil.

Bronze goods.

A laundry.

And for the sailors here. Ship supplies.

You could enjoy all the fruits of the burgeoning roman empire.

And if you'd found all that shopping exhausting,

Then the good news is that there were at least 27 places

Here along the road that you could, um,

Pick up some fast food and one of my favorite ones is,

Uh, called the inn of the totius placidus.

So, let's go and have a look.

These snack bars open directly onto the street and were the

Perfect pitstop for busy pompeiian's looking to grab

Lunch on the go.

Or a takeaway on the way home.

I'm so chuffed to get into this place,

I just think it's super, super cool.

Um, so this is a brilliant example of a roman convenience food store.

So, in each of these pots you'd have had a different

Foodstuff, uh, chickpeas or lentils or olives or,

Or sometimes wine.

Uh, so you can imagine the customers bundling up here to

Grab their lunch on the go.

And these are these lovely little,

Uh, round holes, set into the counter and what they were

Used for was the coins, uh, were checked up against so

They weren't using forged coins.

The owner, fortotius, was clearly a shrewd businessman.

Judging from the fine frescos and well-appointed outdoor

Dining room found in his house behind the shop,

This little fast food business was generating some serious cash.

When this place was excavated, a pot of coins was found on

The counter, 1600 of them.

I mean, so that is a whole chunk of change and it's

Perfectly possible that that was just the takings of,

Of the morning before the eruptions.

That is a lot of wine and olives.

In fact, new discoveries show pompeii was a bit of a foodie paradise.

Open-air roof-top cafes have just been discovered here.

The evidence on abundance street helps us experience the

Character of the city which thrived thanks to its location

Because not only was the street an artery for pompeii,

It was also the gateway to something essential to

Pompeii's existence.

It's funny 'cause we always think of pompeii,

Um, as this, kind of, dusty town,

But actually it was all about the sea.

Uh, there were sea views everywhere and it was served

By this really bustling port.

Man: Bonjourno.

Bettany: Hi. Bonjourno. Bonjourno.

You remember earlier I found a shop for ship supplies?

Well, before the eruption, the mediterranean practically

Lapped at the end of abundance street.

Back in the roman times, these waterways would've been

Absolutely humming and buzzing with trade.

Uh, so, there were imports from all kinds of places, um,

Exotic spices would've come from southern india and the himalayas,

Uh, there was silk from china and wild animals, even,

Would be brought here to fight in the arena.

Goods from around the world poured into pompeii.

Many heading for my retail therapy treasure,

Abundance street.

But there was something else that drove the economy of the town.

Something else that would've been imported on boats like

This, would've been slaves.

Um, and we absolutely must never forget that the great

Roman civilization was founded on slavery.

The roman empire commanded the biggest slave population in

Human history.

As many as 200 million people were enslaved across its lifespan.

As they invaded new territories,

They made those populations subject and turned them into

What they described as working tools,

The slaves that powered the engine of imperialism.

And, it was those slaves that allowed people who lived free

In cities like pompeii to enjoy their privileged and

Comfortable lifestyle.

Slaves weren't all terribly treated but they'd have lifted

Every stone you see here in the city,

Carried every basket of bread and laid every flag of this road.

Slaves were also the designated delivery drivers of pompeii.

Ruts in the road up to ten inches deep reveal thousands

Of carts rumbled up and down abundance street delivering

Goods and taxiing shoppers.

The pavements here are around 30 centimeters above the

Roadway, um, and that's why you have these amazing

Stepping stones to cross over and frankly it is a very,

Very good thing that the romans put these here because

It's lovely and clean today but in its hey-day it would've

Been pretty gross here.

Um, so, we know there was sewage and rubbish and all

Kinds of other unmentionable things slewing around.

With 27 food joints on abundance street,

The stench would've been rank.

Anchovies, port fat, tripe, green weevils, eels

Have all turned up in the archaeological record around here.

My day walking this iconic street is almost done,

But I'm about to have the chance to travel back in time.

I should just explain also, I'm just getting a,

You know, a beginner's guide to vr,

Which I have done, embarrassingly.

Okay.

Man: Controller here. Bettany: Oh, yeah.

Man: Uh, yeah. Hit, hit go.

Bettany: Oh, oh.

Oh. Hang on.

Oh, my god.

A forward-thinking team at the university of arkansas have

Created a virtual reality replica of the street based on

Hard archaeological evidence.

This is the strangest feeling I've gotta say.

I spend my life trying not to fall over in pompeii and

I'm now virtually walking along the raised pavement and it

Feels like I'm gonna fall off.

As I settle into this virtual world,

Abundance street is alive once again.

There's a cart, so a wagon, which, of course,

Would've left all those famous ruts in the road

And loads of washing.

It's exactly like naples.

Everything from the shop fronts to the snack bars

Have been reinstated here.

That is the most extraordinary experience.

So, really interesting to see to, um,

Get the sense of the colors in the via,

Which I kind of imagined but then seeing it in front of you

Is brilliant.

Uh, it's really cool.

Abundance street transports us to a world we can recognize.

Shop owners checking their customers change.

Workers grabbing a quick bite on the go.

Deliveries making their way through traffic and crowds.

Abundance street is a real treasure of the roman world

And it deserves to be on our countdown because it gives us

Such a rich picture of the ordinary people of pompeii.

Archaeology of the past and technology of the future can

Short circuit us here into the lives of the real women and

Men of the street.

The shopping habits of everyday pompeiians weren't so

Different to our own as was their love of pets.

We know that the people here relied on their animals as

Many of us do today and so I think you're going to

Enjoy our next treasure, number nine.

Follow me.

Normally visitors aren't allowed into this house,

Which makes this a real treat.

This house right in the heart of ancient pompeii is one of

The most intriguing survivors from the eruption and

Let me explain why.

So, it's relatively modest, it's not one of the biggest,

Swankiest of homes in the city...

But it hides a domestic masterpiece.

Now, the artwork I've come to see is,

On the face of it, quite simple but it has its own visceral power

And that is why it's one of our treasures of pompeii.

It's over here and it's one of the most celebrated,

Imitated, replicated artworks in the whole world.

It's the cave canem, beware the dog mosaic.

Inspiring millions of modern doormats,

It's treasure number nine on our pompeii countdown.

Sorry, I've just gotta, I've just gotta show you something.

So, I'm here talking about this dog treasure,

Look whose popped in to, um, take part in the action.

It's one of pompeii's dogs, uh,

They hang out here the whole time and they're here before

Opening hours and once everybody's gone home but it's

Almost identical to the cave canem mosaic.

That is just too uncanny.

It is literally life imitating art.

(kissing noises).

Hello. Hello, beautiful.

I really love this for so many reasons,

Partly because of the story it tells and partly because of

The skill of its making.

Um, so, so just look at this mosaic.

It's made up of hundreds and hundreds of tiny tesserae,

Uh, which are little cubes of stone.

It could take a team of highly skilled craftsmen a whole week

To create a mosaic like this.

Every single piece hand cut and laid in situ as the owners

Watch them work magic in front of their eyes.

Just look at how the artist has conjured up this ferocious animal.

The artist used these little red chips of stone inside to,

Kind of, conjure up the inside of the dog's slavering mouth.

I mean, this is absolutely not just a lapdog.

This is a working dog with its eyes focused,

Its teeth bared, it's straining at its chain.

It's really ferocious.

It's really, really intimidating.

A warning to anyone brave or foolish enough to try to come

Into the house uninvited.

The cave canem mosaic was right at the front door.

It was very definitely there to guard the front of the

House and isn't it brilliant that that's what pompeii's dog

Is still doing today.

Even though it's fast asleep.

Just like the beware of the dog signs we have outside our

Homes today, this mosaic is saying,

Watch out. Guard dog at home,

Because while pompeii was often a delightful place to live,

It also had a decidedly dangerous side.

This was a place where there were many crimes.

Often people didn't go out at night and there was a real

Danger of intruders and burglars and attack,

So this isn't just a, kind of, um,

Fantasy, this was a society where there could be trouble

Around any corner.

Jewels like pompeii attracted thieves and because the romans

Were very superstitious too, images like the cave canem

Were also thought to ward off bad luck.

A bit like people use the evil eye today.

I think we always imagine the roman empire to be advanced

And hyper-civilized, but actually there was a real

Issue of street crime, uh, there was hardly any police force,

There was no street lighting to speak of and so

There were real dangers at night and we know that,

Um, crimes were pretty frequent here.

Burglary and muggings took place regularly,

So the owners of our treasure number nine clearly felt

Worried enough to get a fierce dog to protect house and home.

And our cave canem wasn't the only watchdog in pompeii.

It's packed with similar ferocious mosaics and,

Shockingly, there are the remains of real dogs trapped

By the eruption.

Bettany: By carefully examining bones of 113 dogs

Found in pompeii and then comparing the results with

These mosaics, researchers have been able to piece

Together the identity of these canine guards.

There's a lot of debate about the breed of the dog in the

Cave canem mosaic.

Hello. Hello. Oh.

Oh, what a lovely little thing.

And, of course, on the face of it,

That mosaic looks a bit like this.

He... Ah, hello, lovely.

This is clearly a charming dog but not a,

A very effective guard dog.

And the results of those bone tests tell us that the direct

Descendants of the ancient guard dogs are still with us.

(barking).

Man: No.

Bettany: This, I'm told, is actually what the cave canem

Has genetically inside.

So, this is a, a neapolitan mastiff.

Meet trevis and his owner giovanni.

His breed is a popular guard dog in Italy today.

Hello. Hello. Oh, oh my gosh.

Giovanni: (inaudible).

Bettany: That's very, um, oh, that's very slobbery.

Hmm, lovely.

So, um, this extraordinary dog here,

They're actually are descended from an extinct dog called a molossus.

And we think that the cave canum was a molossus dog,

Um, they were used by the romans as hunting dogs and as

Guard dogs and as dogs of war.

So, they'd strap, uh, armor onto them and send them out to fight.

The molossus were famously loyal to and protective of their owners.

The cave canem household probably had a dog similar to

Trevis chained up inside.

I'm suddenly feeling pleased that I only met the mosaic version.

Yes, you're beautiful.

Urgh, that's so wet.

I'm not feeling, um, threatened particularly just,

Like, this is a fight I would not win had I entered the

House of the ancestor of lovely trevis here.

I bet you don't ever have any burglars here.

Giovanni: No.

Bettany: So, trevis... Oh, thank... Oh, it's on my...

Trevis' balls are on my, on my ankle.

And that wasn't the only excitement of the day.

Oh. Oh. Oh.

All kinds of surprises this afternoon.

How old is this one?

Giovanni: Quarantaquattro giorni.

Bettany: 44 days, it's a baby guard dog. Oh.

Oh, look, here's another one.

Giovanni: Cleopatra. Bettany: Cleopatra.

Are they brother... Are they brother and sister?

Giovanni: Sister and brother.

Bettany: Can you imagine being in the forum or walking down

Abundance street and being offered one of these for sale?

How could you possibly resist?

They're so beautiful. They're...

Molto bello. Bella, bello...

Giovanni: Grazie. Bettany: Prego.

The cave canem mosaic is my treasure number nine because

It reminds me of the ancient special relationship between

Man and his best friend.

And, in fact, the often-overlooked importance of

Animals in the daily life of roman towns like pompeii.

An importance that is inadvertently commemorated by

This mosaic being one of the most replicated bits of art

Anywhere in the world.

An exploration of pompeii is always an exciting but often a

Pretty hot experience.

Fortunately, for visitors ancient and modern alike,

One thing you can't fail to notice is the fact that

There's fresh water all around.

So far, 25 public fountains have been found here in

Pompeii and that is really significant because in the

Ancient world having a supply of fresh running water really

Proved that you'd made it as a culture and somewhere else in

The city that you'd have found running water were the

Fabulous baths and my next treasure is one of those.

At number eight on my countdown of the top 10

Treasures of pompeii, it's the wonderful stabian baths.

So far, five public bathhouses have been excavated in pompeii

And the stabian are the most lavish of them all.

Coming to the baths seems to have been a way the

Pompeiian's got a sense of, of all being in it together.

To kick things off and work up a really good sweat,

Um, the first stop would've been the palestra here,

The gymnasium, 'cause the thing is the romans really did

Believe that a healthy body meant a healthy mind.

The stabian baths were more than just a place to scrub up,

They were somewhere everyone from the very poorest to major

Players could come to get fit and clean.

A bonding experience all in this exquisite setting.

If you think about it, you'd be sitting stark naked next to

Somebody who had much more wealth than you or a lot less,

So the whole thing felt like a,

Kind of, um, collective experience.

Once you were ready, it was time to face the heat.

So, this is the caldarium, the hot room, and

Oh my goodness it would've been absolutely sweltering in here.

Um, the walls are really cleverly designed so that

They're all insulated and then down here in this beautiful

Marble plunge pool hot water would've gushed out.

I mean, exactly like a, like a,

Kinda, modern-day jacuzzi.

The original 2000-year-old stabian baths but when this

Place was in use, the floor was so hot you'd have worn

Platformed wooden shoes to prevent burns.

You know, I just love coming here.

I think it's partly because we know this is where women would,

Would literally let their hair down and loosen up a bit.

With pastries and wine on offer,

The baths were the perfect place to settle in for a good

Old gossip and to check one another out.

If you just think about it, if these walls could talk,

Oh my goodness they would have quite a few pompeiian tales to tell.

Once all that steamy chat got too much,

You could cool off in the cold room,

The frigidarium, under this lovely domed ceiling and we

Think this dome is the oldest in roman Italy.

And it has another remarkable claim to fame.

Bathhouses with traditional timber ceilings posed a

Serious fire risk, so using the local volcanic ash that

Would later bury pompeii, the romans invented a new

Fire-resistant building material to build this roof.

Concrete.

After you'd finished bathing, it was time to hit the

Tepidarium where an array of rather terrifying beauty

Treatments were on offer.

I should tell you that all kinds of really disgusting

Things have been found in baths.

So, uh, lots of equipment for cleaning out your ears and

Razors and we have contemporary accounts as well

Of people complaining about the terrible howls and noise

As, uh, women and men had their armpit hair removed.

So, there'd have been human hair everywhere.

Um, so, you have to imagine, you know,

The water in there being a bit like some kind of human body soup.

One of the popular things to get done while visiting the

Baths was to have your hair styled and my goodness their

Coifs were quite something.

We can actually date sculptures of women because we know

What hairstyles were fashionable in particular decades.

So, in the name of historical investigation,

I'm heading to the salon.

Uh, so, basically, I want something slightly, uh, unusual.

Massimo: Very unusual. Bettany: Ancient roman styles.

Massimo: Ancient roman style. Yes, some...

Bettany: Yeah? Massimo: Kind of...

But maybe this one will be the best for your hair.

Bettany: Arguably the least ludicrous.

The heated tongs massimo is using are actually remarkably

Similar to roman fire-heated tongs discovered in places

Like the stabian baths.

There are some really funny, uh,

Stories though, actually of these heated tongs going wrong

And they're burning the hair off.

Massimo: Burning the hair. Correct.

Bettany: So... Ooh, that feels quite hot.

There's a fantastic quote, I think it's enika,

It says there are as many hairstyles for women as there

Are acorns on an oak tree and then he does this...

This'll be very good for me, and then he says but the...

You know, the very best hairstyles are the ones where

Your hair looks a bit bedraggled.

Nice.

Massima: Feels good. Bettany: Yeah.

Roman society was quite ageist

And many women worried about going grey.

As a preventative, they slapped on a night-time paste

Made from herbs and earthworms and if that failed,

They'd head to the baths for a quick touch up.

Leeches steeped in wine if you wanted to go dark or

Pigeon dung mixed with urine if you fancied being blonde.

Oh, it's so relaxing.

Massimo: Great.

Now, we need some gold.

Bettany: Yes. Ah.

Can I see the back?

Massimo: Yes.

Bettany: Oh, look at that. Amazing.

Massimo: And that will be too (inaudible).

Bettany: My daughters are gonna be so embarrassed by this.

Massimo: No, she's gonna love it.

Bettany: They're not. They're not.

I promise you they're not.

So, if I go out in the streets,

People hopefully will say to me, oh that's so...

Massimo: It's groovy.

Bettany: That's so mid-1st-century ad.

Um, I don't think I'm ever gonna do this again in my

Life, so can I take a photo?

Massimo: Absolutely, yes. Bettany: Cheese.

I have to say, I don't think I'll be rushing back for

Another ancient roman hairdo, but it's a delight exploring

The baths because it tells us about the daily lives of women

As well as men, often written out of history.

The stabian baths are a treasure for me not just

Because they reveal so much about roman engineering but

Actually what they tell us about the roman psyche.

Um, body image and an obsession with body image

Really was nothing new.

They put themselves through agony to achieve hair-free

Skin and just like our gyms and spas today,

They used a workout as an excuse for a good old chat.

The next treasure in our top ten countdown might seem

Stately on the surface, but it holds clues to even more

Intimate bodily functions of the ancient pompeiians.

To live in this town and to be part of the grand roman empire,

Then the next place we're heading is the

Very best place to be.

It's my next treasure, the forum of pompeii.

At number seven on my countdown,

A place that's really close to my heart.

This pedestrianized square takes up an area the size of

The white house right in the center of pompeii,

Flanked by landmark public buildings.

It was the nerve center of the city and the place to be seen.

So, I've wangled my way up onto the temple of jupiter

Here to get an overview.

Everyone from all walks of life spent time here,

From slaves to merchants to aristocrats,

So this was somewhere where you really got a sense of

Where you belonged in the city but also,

Crucially, that you belonged to something greater than

Yourself, the idea that was rome.

The mighty roman empire stretching from britain to the middle east.

In order to unite and wow its subjects,

The romans created a brand that could be replicated

Right across their ginormous territories.

In each city was a showpiece advertising roman power,

The forum.

This really was the beating heart of the place.

It was somewhere that really mattered to the pompeiians but

What's quite ironic is actually this forum was just

Like almost any other right across the roman empire.

That's rome being really clever.

It's saying wherever you are, anywhere in the empire,

You are still part of us.

Crowds of roman citizens would come to forums just like this

One every day to hear the latest news,

Seal business deals and make offerings to the gods.

And there's even evidence of what the people milling around

Here ate, wore and loved.

Archaeologist luigi bafoni has invited me to his lab to take

A look at some extraordinary finds.

So, these are the bones of a little monkey that would've

Been here as a pet.

It's very, sort of, typical bread.

It's almost like tear and share there's... They... The...

You've had these indentations so you could rip it open.

So, this is a leather handbag, but you can see the,

Um, the designs, the flower designs that have been punched

Into the leather, I mean, just like you'd get today.

This evidence of pompeiian life is just so special but

There's one thing that ordinary romans from all walks

Of life did together here that frankly doesn't appeal.

Now, there was a lot that went on in the forum that was very

Noble and uplifting and, you know,

Civically satisfying, um, but you could also satisfy your

Baser instincts here and particularly in this little

Spot that I've got special access to.

Um, so the romans had a very different idea of privacy than

We do, and they used to often go to the loo altogether and

This is pompeii's, uh, communal latrine.

So, they'd have sat along, um, benches with big holes in here.

There was a lovely flushing channel to,

Kind of, get rid of things and we know from,

Uh, written accounts that people loved to talk about

Business and gossip and all kinds of things while they

Were relieving themselves.

As luxurious as these toilets were for the time,

I still can't get on board with the roman version

Of a loo roll.

A communal sponge on a stick.

And I'm sorry to be really, really,

Really gross, but this is evidence from pompeii,

So I thought I'd share it with you.

Uh, we know that, um, in their diet,

Here particularly, they ate a lot of chickpeas and lentils

And figs and the very latest evidence tells us they were

Big fans of melons and cucumber as well.

So, oh my god, it must've been really all going on here.

In fact, getting caught short in pompeii was a real issue.

One wonderful fresco from the city warns a cacator,

To keep his wits about him as he answers the call of nature.

One of the reasons the forum is so rich is because you get

A sense of the grit as well as the glory that was rome.

The fantastic thing about it is that you can also hear the

Voices of ordinary pompeiians because they left their mark

All across these walls.

Most of their graffiti has sadly worn away but some of

The best examples have been recorded.

They provide such a valuable insight into the often

Vindictive minds of the ancients.

A particularly charming one, um,

That says I hope your hemorrhoids rub together so

That they become more and more painful.

There's some pretty good homespun wisdom,

If you leave a problem and ignore it,

It will only get bigger.

But there's also a really lovely line and it says,

I cannot believe that these walls are still standing and

They haven't crumbled under the weight of all the tedious

Thoughts of all the tedious writers who've

Left their graffiti here.

So, it's a brilliant little bit of,

Um, ancient roman irony.

It's the graffiti of the pompeii forum that really

Clinches it for me.

This was the place in the city and mirrored in every city

Right across the roman empire where people felt a real sense

Of belonging.

The forum makes it onto my list of the top 10 treasures

Of pompeii because it short circuits us into the lives of

The women and men who filled this incredible city with such

Wonderful energy.

People who knew they were individuals but who also knew

That they were part of the grand ambitious project that

Was the roman empire.

Next in our top 10 treasures of pompeii,

I'll be coming face to face with those who lost their

Lives in the disaster.

Of

Pompeii on the trail of my next treasure.

This is one of the main streets that leads in and out

Of the city and at the time of the eruption we think it

Would've been rammed with people desperately trying to

Escape the carnage.

Um, when archaeologists excavated,

They found a particular group all huddled together.

And among them was one individual who centuries later

Would change how we see the victims of pompeii.

It's my treasure number six.

But before I introduce you, let me explain how the story starts.

As vesuvius erupted, um, it shed this huge layer of ash

Right across the city and the whole region but there were

Thousands of people trapped inside.

As the ash hardened it formed a,

Kind of, shell and gradually as the bodies decomposed,

Uh, they left these curious voids,

Uh, kind of, human-shaped holes inside.

All that was left inside was skeletons and bones of

Pompeii's victims.

When archaeologists later came across these cavities in the

Ash layer, they poured in plaster,

Waited for it to set and then extracted these desperately

Sad human forms with the skeleton set inside.

This process went some way to resurrect the men and women of pompeii,

Immortalizing the outline of their bodies,

The clothes they wore and the objects they carried.

Our next treasure is a special example of this technique and

Rare in being allowed to travel outside Italy.

I caught up with the cast at the ashmolean museum in oxford

To find out more about the person who lies inside.

When this victim was discovered back in 1984,

The skeleton was so fragile and delicate archaeologists

Were worried using plaster would damage the bones,

So they had to come up with a brand new technique.

What was poured inside the void was wax.

This was then covered with plaster,

The wax was melted out and then inside it was replaced

With basically a kind of glue, um,

An epoxy resin, um, and the wonderful thing about this is

It's much kinder to the human remains inside,

To the bone material.

The transparency of the resin allows us to see that

This is a woman.

We can see inside the cast, so we can read what's going on.

Um, so have a look, you can see her feet here and the

Legs, there's her kneecap.

Traveling up through her body there,

Her arms in this really, kind of,

Typical position.

When she was first discovered,

She was called skeleton number 15

But we now refer to her as the resin lady.

I think we've just got to remember that this isn't a

Sculpture, it's not an artifact,

It's not a, a find on display in a museum,

This is a real individual.

This is a real woman.

I really want to know more about this woman's life.

Luckily, the resin makes it much easier to x-ray.

So, I'm meeting doctor curtis offiah who can piece together

The clues from these x-rays to discover who this was and

Exactly how she died.

One of the remarkable things about this method of

Preservation is how it allows us to really read

The bone evidence inside.

So, what do these x-rays tell you about this,

This poor woman?

Curtis: So, looking at the hip joints there's no advanced

Wear and tear, so it's certainly not an elderly adult

Skeleton and so it had to be probably in the mid-30s.

Bettany: It seems that the resin lady made the most of

Pompeii's party town reputation.

Some scientists think the cavities in her teeth suggest

She indulged in the wining and dining that pompeii had to

Offer but the x-rays also offer shocking clues to

The resin lady's frantic and tragic last moments of life.

I'll tell you what my eyes are drawn to is this lovely thing

Up here, it's this, the purse that we know that she was

Holding, um, because you can see the jewelry inside.

Curtis: You can.

Bettany: So, there's a bracelet and rings and,

And even a coin up there.

Her treasured possessions, five gold rings and a precious gemstone.

All suggest she was from a wealthy family.

But, I mean, this is terrible to see,

Isn't it because she was grabbing that purse and

Running away with it because she thought she was saving it.

Curtis: Yes.

Bettany: She thought she was gonna be able to carry on and

Use it in her life after the, after the eruption but

Actually they're going with her to her grave.

Curtis: Yes.

Bettany: And can you tell from her skull exactly how she died?

Curtis: So, the mouth was open which obviously allowed for

The influx of thermal debris and smoke which itself can

Cause asphyxia.

Bettany: It seems that as the resin lady opened her mouth

Gasping for air, she inhaled a lethal combination of

Suffocating ash and poisonous gas before falling victim to

The extreme heat as vesuvius erupted.

And how quick is a death like that?

I mean, does she, does she have time to, to think?

Would she have been aware of what was going on?

Curtis: It's not always a very quick end.

There is an awareness before that unconscious period sets in.

So, that interval can be quite protracted sadly.

Bettany: That is the terrible thing, we know that

They suffered not just physically but psychologically.

That they had time to...

Curtis: Yes. Bettany: To feel fear.

Curtis: Yes, and I think it captures the horror of

Fire victim and thermal injury deaths.

Bettany: It makes you not just respect them,

Actually, but really care for these...

Curtis: Yes. Bettany: Women and men.

Curtis: Yes. Absolutely.

Bettany: The resin lady deserves to be treasured,

Not just because of who she is but because of

What she represents.

When mount vesuvius erupted it killed indiscriminately.

Women, men, children, the slaves,

The free, everyone.

Women are generally written out of history but because

She's been preserved, we can begin to appreciate her,

Her life and her story.

So, we should treasure and cherish the, so-called,

Resin lady and remember her with huge respect.

Next time, I'll be counting down my final five.

Prepare to be blown away...

As we finally reveal my top treasure of pompeii.

Captioned by cotter captioning services.