Perhaps they were under the illusion that the worst was over, but the reality was that the eruption of Vesuvius had only just begun. In the year 79 after Christ, the inhabitants of Stabia, a luxurious town located near Pompeii, believed that a brief interruption in the rain of pyroclastic material was the end of the horror. But it was only the beginning of the great disaster.
Stabia had become the preferred vacation spot for the Roman elite by the end of the first century BC. And a few decades later, this location at the foot of Mount Lattari, just a few hundred meters from the sea, was still a distinguished place for the aristocracy.
Pliny the Elder, the famous Roman military and historian, was one of those who took refuge in this villa when Vesuvius exploded. He chose to take refuge at the house of his friend Pompoiano, who wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. But Pliny convinced him to stay in the house overnight, waiting for the wind to change in the Bay of Naples.
The next morning, as ash and pumice continued to fall on the roof of the mansion, they both decided to run to the nearby beach. Pliny the Elder, however, never got out of the hell caused by the volcano. He died of gas asphyxiation.
There were several cases like this, as revealed by the latest excavations carried out in Estabia. Several were the people who thought that the interruption of the pyroclastic rain meant the end of the nightmare and decided to return to the houses where they lived or that they had improvised as a hiding place.
The works carried out in the Villa San Marco – a large complex of more than 11,000 square meters that occupies part of the edge of the Varano plateau, in the heart of the old urban center – following the thread provided by the volcanic material that invaded atriums and gardens while submerging roofs and causing the collapse of several buildings, it has made possible the reconstruction of the last hours of the town and its inhabitants.
Despite the destruction, Italian archaeologists point out that the site continues to display its luxury, as evidenced by the color ranges of the paintings on the walls and ceilings, the stuccos, the capitals and the precious coverings and crowning of columns and ceilings.
The paintings reproduce carpets, chandeliers and fantastic scenes or false architecture, often done in different shades of blue and where there are golden statues, small paintings with representations of naval battles, still lifes and seascapes. The walls are populated by seated figures, actors or mythical figures, arranged to occupy the center of the rugs, often in flight.
The villa’s most recent excavation campaign, which began in March and is still ongoing, is bringing new finds to light. The final part of the upper portico has already emerged with paintings still in situ and large parts of collapsed sections of the walls or ceiling.
“They are valuable pieces that contribute to investigate in detail and acquire new elements on the dynamics of destruction of the complex,” experts from the Pompeii Archaeological Park say in a statement. “This excavation campaign offers discoveries of great archaeological value. The context that developed between Estabia, Herculaneum and Pompeii still has a lot to reveal”, assures the Minister of Culture, Gennaro Sangiuliano.
The San Marco complex is divided into a neighborhood with a double atrium and thermal system, a lower garden with columns and a large swimming pool surmounted on the east and west by a large hall and refined living rooms. The structure ends with a monumental upper portico with three arms open towards the sea.
At the end of the first fiery cloud coming from Vesuvius, or when it seemed to subside, a group of inhabitants returned to the place or emerged from improvised hiding places, but were surprised by the moment of maximum intensity (known as eruptive paroxysm) of the volcanic explosion.
Pyroclastic currents and hot, dense winds plunged the entire site into darkness, marking the end of the settlement and leaving only parts of what was once the luxurious villa of San Marco visible.
